Stemwede under National Socialism

The Jewish community

A few Jewish families lived in the area of today's municipality of Stemwede for several hundred years. in 1689, the presence of Jews is recorded for the first time in the area of today's municipality of Stemwede. They married within their own religion. This created close ties between the Jewish families between the Wiehengebirge and Dümmer.

The Jewish families mainly settled in the villages of the then official seats of Wehdem, Dielingen and Levern. Around 1880, for example, there were around 60 Jewish citizens there. They were mainly businessmen and traders (cattle and small traders), but also craftsmen (dyers, butchers). The trades and businesses were often carried on by the next generation. They were an established part of economic and social life in the towns. The Jewish merchant Coblenzer from Wehdem was even elected as a municipal councillor after 1871. Coexistence with the rural and Protestant population was largely characterized by mutual acceptance. There were social contacts in clubs, business and professional connections.

At the beginning of the 19th century, a community was formed in Levern, which acquired a plot of land in 1872 on which a synagogue was to be built. The synagogue community explicitly included the Jews from Wehdem. In 1873, the building at Judengasse 98 was constructed.

With the effects of the Great Depression of the 1920s and under the propaganda of National Socialism from the 1930s onwards, the mood gradually changed. Everyday contacts were reduced and club members were excluded. Centuries-old prejudices were revived alarmingly quickly, even in this country. The synagogue building was destroyed by arson as early as 1937. During the National Socialist era, this was dismissed as a "stupid boy's prank". A large part of the inventory was lost. The last headman, Simon Sauer from Wehdem, was forced to sell the property in 1938. The number of Jewish families in Levern had already dwindled by the early 1930s due to emigration, apart from a few descendants of the extended Hurwitz family, cattle dealers and butchers. The last Jewish citizens were the members of the Philipp Sauer family from Wehdem. They fled the municipality one night in 1939, shortly before their house was set on fire.

A Jewish cemetery was approved in Niedermehnen as early as 1862 and was used until 1936. The cemetery was devastated during the National Socialist dictatorship and only rebuilt after the war. Today, a stele in the Jewish cemetery commemorates the Jewish past of our community.

Stemwede under National Socialism

The Jewish cemetery

Today, only the cemetery grounds of the Jewish community in Stemwede bear witness to its former existence. The merchant Bernhard Löwenstein donated it to the synagogue community in 1862. It is the only Jewish cemetery in the Stemwede area. It was used until 1936. The plot came into private hands at the end of the 1930s. The area was afforested and gravestones were broken in the process. The perpetual right of rest so important for Jews was disregarded. It was not until 1954 that the site was restored as a cemetery. However, the remaining gravestones are probably no longer in their original locations. Today, a stele in the cemetery commemorates the Jewish community. The Leverner Heimatverein organizes guided tours of the site to keep the memory alive.

Stemwede under National Socialism

The Jewish cemetery

Stemwede under National Socialism

Fates

Arthur Hurwitz

Arthur Hurwitz was born on 16.06.1903 in Levern. He was married to Grete Hurwitz, née Vogel, and they had a son Hans. Before the war, he lived with his family in Levern and later in Raalte in the Netherlands. He was deported to Auschwitz, where he was probably murdered on February 28, 1943. The information was submitted by his sister Hilda Diamant (Hildegard Admanit, née Hurwitz).

Grete Hurwitz, née Vogel

Grete Hurwitz, née Vogel, was born on August 24, 1902 in Rahden. She was married to Arthur and they had a son, Hans. Before the war, she lived in Levern and later in Raalte in the Netherlands. She was deported to Auschwitz, where she was probably murdered on 17.9.1942. The information was submitted by David Diamant (a relative).

Hans Hurwitz

Hans Hurwitz was born on August 17, 1936 in Twistringen. Before the war, he lived with his parents Arthur Hurwitz and Grete, née Vogel, first in Levern and later in Raalte in the Netherlands. He was deported from the Westerborg camp in the Netherlands to Auschwitz in 1942, where he was presumably murdered on September 17, 1942. The information was submitted by Hilda Diamant (Hildegard Admanit, née Hurwitz).

Betty Hurwitz, née Schachner

Betty Hurwitz, née Schachner, was born on 24.12.1906 in Berlin. She was married to Erich Hurwitz and lived in Levern until Erich died in a motorcycle accident in 1936. Betty Hurwitz moved to Berlin with her two sons Hans Arnold and Gerhard on December 20, 1937. Betty Hurwitz was deported from Berlin to Auschwitz-Birkenau on March 12, 1943, where she was presumably murdered.

Hans Arnold Hurwitz

Hans Arnold was born on April 23, 1929 as the son of Erich and Betty Hurwitz in Levern. Like his brother Gerhard, he went to elementary school there until all Jewish pupils were registered in 1937 (the two brothers were the only Jewish pupils in Levern). Hans Arnorld Hurwitz moved to Berlin with his mother and brother on December 20, 1937. Hans Arnold Hurwitz was deported from Berlin to Auschwitz-Birkenau on March 12, 1943 and presumably murdered.

Gerhard Hurwitz

Gerhard Hurwitz was born on 30.10.1930 as the son of Erich and Betty Hurwitz in Levern. Gerhard moved to Berlin with his mother and brother on December 20, 1937. There Gerhard Hurwitz was deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau on March 12, 1943 and presumably murdered.

Erna Kaufmann, née Löwenstein

Erna Kaufmann, née Löwenstein was born on 23.12.1883 in Levern. Before the war, she lived with her husband Siegmund in Heiligenhaus, then in Düsseldorf and later in the Netherlands. She was deported from Westerborg to Sobibor on 25.5.1943, where she was probably murdered on 28.5.1943.

Marta Meier, née Hurwitz

Marta Meier, née Hurwitz was born on 6.10.1893 in Levern. She lived with her husband Fritz in Herford and later Berlin. On January 26, 1943 she was deported to Theresienstadt (Czech Republic) and on October 16, 1944 to Auschwitz, where she and her husband were murdered. (The information comes from a friend, Käte Levison).

Paula (Pauline) Rhee

Paula Rhee was born on 29.9.1869 in Levern. She was a housewife and single and lived in Bonn before the war. She was deported to Theresienstadt (Czech Republic) on July 27, 1942 and probably murdered on August 10, 1942. (The information was submitted by a distant cousin Erich Weinberg and the researcher Alex Salm)

Hedwig Saul, née Hurwitz

Hedwig Saul was born on February 13, 1895 in Levern. Before the war she lived with her husband Friedrich and their children Ingeborg and Ruth in Rahden, in Münster and in Berlin. On March 28, 1942, the family was deported to the Piaski ghetto and the Trawniki (Lublin) camp in Poland and murdered in the Shoah.

Frieda Stern, née Wissbrun

Frieda Stern was born on 9.12.1868 in Levern. She was married to Max Stern. She lived in Dortmund before the war. During the war, she was deported to Theresienstadt (Czech Republic). She was murdered there in the Shoah. (The information comes from her daughter Margaret Marcus)

Irma van Zuiden, née Hurwitz

Irma van Zuiden was born on March 31, 1905 in Levern as the daughter of Ferdinand and Ida Hurwitz. She was married to Jozef and lived in Enschede in the Netherlands. She was deported to Sobibor on May 9, 1943 with her children Ferdinand (9 years), Israel (11 years) and Benno (5 years) and was presumably murdered together with her children on May 28, 1943 in the Shoah. (The information comes from her sister Hilda Diamant (Hildegard Admanit, née Hurwitz)).

Emilie Blaschke, née Beverstein

Emilie Blaschke was born on 25.2.1880 in Levern. Before the World War she lived with her husband Karl in Bielefeld. She was deported from there to Theresienstadt (Czech Republic) on July 31, 1942. She was probably murdered there on May 24, 1943.

Bendix Benjamin Eichmann

Bendix Benjamin Eichmann was born on October 5, 1869 in Levern. He lived in Hanover before the war. He was married to Sophie (née Neuhaus), who was born on 4.10.1873 in Nordstemmen. He and his wife were deported from there to Riga (Latvia) on 15.12.1941 and murdered in the Shoah.

Selma Frank, née Hurwitz

Selma Frank was born on August 21, 1896 in Levern. Before the war she lived in Neuenhaus. She was married to Julius and had a son, Günter. She was deported to Riga (Latvia) on 13.12.1941. There she was murdered in the Shoah, as were her husband and son.

Clara Ginsberg, née Hurwitz

Clara Ginsberg was born on May 27, 1891 in Levern. She was married to Julius, with whom she had four children: Werner, Helmut, Hannelore and Ruth. The family lived in Rahden before the war. On March 31, 1942, she was deported to the ghetto in Warsaw. Like her husband and children, she was murdered in the Shoah.

Nathan Hurwitz

Nathan Hurwitz was born on January 20, 1874 in Levern. Before the war, he lived in Bielefeld. From there he was deported to Theresienstadt (Czech Republic) on July 31, 1942 and to Auschwitz (Poland) on May 16, 1944, where he was murdered.