Jewish Population and Brief History of Abaújszántó

The history of Abaújszántó encompasses various fascinating chapters, with a particular focus on the Jewish community and its story.

Although the establishment of the first Jewish congregation in Abaujszántó was possible under the auspices of prince Károly Bretzenheim in 1765, the earliest records of Jewish presence in Abaújszántó are associated with the township of Marcinfalva, the home of Móse Herskovitz, a distiller, and his family. Herskovitz had five children whom he educated with the help of a private tutor (melamedet).

Around 1850, about a quarter of the town’s population of 4,467 was Jewish (1,172 persons). Though the 1840 decree allowing Jews to move to free royal cities reduced the local Jewish population, in 1880, the local congregation still counted 1,093 members. Due to economic difficulties perpetuated by World War I, the Jewish population continued to decline. Many Jews relocated to more central areas within Hungary, and some emigrated to other countries. By 1920, thew Jewish population was down to 800 persons. Their lives as Hungarian Jews were made increasingly difficult by the economic downturn in the region brough about by the Treaty of Trianon (1920), and subsequently, by the growing presence of antisemitism. These were probably the main factors that caused the Jewish population to diminish to 681 persons by 1941. The following years led to further tragic events. The 16^th of April 1944 saw the beginning of the deportations of the Jewish population to the ghetto in Košice. Approximately one thousand Jews were taken from the town.

After the Holocaust, 61 survivors attempted to revive communal life in 1945, but by 1950, the congregation ceased to exist. Most were unable to cope with the indignities they suffered and with the anguish caused by the loss of their loved ones, and so left their home town for other Hungarian cities, or emigrated abroad. Today, the memory of a once thriving Jewish community is preserved only by the former synagogue building – now converted to a warehouse – and the Jewish cemetery.

The wine wholesale company of S. Teitelbaum and M. Beiler was founded in 1783, and by the early 20^th century, their premises took up a one-and-a-half-kilometre long street front. Within, interior railways facilitated the transportation of wine barrels. The so-called “Great Wine Cellar” – deemed the storehouse of the most expensive Hegyalja wines – was founded by Ábrahám Teitelbaum. The Teitelbamu-Beiler company exported Tokay wine mainly to Russia, Germany, and Poland. The company also contributed to the popularization of Tokay wines by founding a wine museum within the Rákóczi wine cellar, which holds bottles from all vintages, from the year of its foundation to the outbreak of World War I.

The Abaújszántó yeshiva was opened in 1787, with two separate classes, one with 9 students, the other with 7. The congregation hired scholarly rabbis to teach at the institution. The most famous of these teachers was Rabbi Elazar Löw (Rokeach Schemen), who taught at the institution from 1830, and served the community with his knowledge and teachings for seven years, up until his death. By the 1840s, the school had garnered a favourable reputation, so much so, that it attracted some Christian students as well. When, upon the revolution of 1848, numerous patriotic members of the Jewish community took part in the fights, among them were the teachers of the school, who ultimately gave their lives at the battle of Košice. The school did not re-open to the public until 1853, with four teachers and 168 students, and although it was then designated as being an “elementary school”, it was still a religious school, and in 1901, the state ordered the abolition of all such institution, starting state run institutions in their stead.

Abaújszántó Synagogue
(Abaújszántó, Jászai tér 15.) 

The synagogue was built in 1896 near the market, based on the plans of József Ott and Gyula Blau. The interior decorations were completed by Emil Blau in an Eastern style. The Torah ark was adorned with two Carrara marble columns. The construction was funded among others by Lipót Zimmerman, wine merchant, who served as the president of the congregation for many years.

Following the Holocaust, by the 1950s, all congregational activities had ceased, and the building, capable of accommodating 600 people, stood empty. Its impressive painted decorations were painted over, after which it was used as a warehouse, a function which it has retained to this day. The building was bought by the Hungarian Postal Service in 1961, which had been using it since 1959.

The memorial plaque commemorating the victims of the Holocaust, originally placed in the synagogue, was moved to Miskolc after the dissolution of the congregation, and was placed on an interior wall of the mortuary of the Jewish cemetery. Thus, there remains to this day, no memorial of any kind that would remind the non-Jewish community of the former residents who fell victim to genocide.

PHOTOS:

1. The Abaújszántó synagogue, post card from the turn of the century. (1909)
2. Interior of the Abaújszántó synagogue, post card from the turn of the century. (1909)
3. The Abaújszántó synagogue today. (2022)

Abaújszántói Jewish Cemetery:​
(Abaújszántó Dobó utca 18.)

On the plot of land that served as the first Jewish cemetery, which was situated in the western part of the town, near the Szerencs Creek, a private house was erected after World War II. The cemetery available to the public today was established in 1793, in the same year as the local burial society (chevra kadisha). This is the site of the graves of Rabbi Elazar Löw and Rabbi Arje Lőb Lipschütz. The cemetery was renovated in 2019 by the Hungarian government.

PHOTOS
The Jewish cemetery in Abaújszántó.

Abaújszántó Historical and Wine Museum
(Abaújszántó, Béke utca 42.)

The building functioned as a toll-house up until the end of the 19^th century, although its basement was also used provisionally by religious congregations. It has been home to the local museum since 1975.