Jewish CemeteriesJewish Cemeteries

American and otherwise

American Jewish American Jewish CemeteriesCemeteries

Roberta HalpornOne must understand the variationsNot all Jewish cemeteries will be a likeBackground about Jewish community is important to the Research

Jewish Thought runs down two pathsOrthodox – “strict constructionists”Adaptive – believe in assimilationHistory includes fleeing from country to country over the past 5,000 yearsWave after wave of state-sanctioned terrorEach time they adapted to the local culture in which they lived

American Jewish Cemeteries are a byproduct of three distinct European influences Therefore when looking at a cemetery you must ask yourselfWhen did the founders of the cemetery arrive in the U.S.?What country did they come from?Are the Orthodox or Adaptive?

There will be commonality following basic beliefs but differences as well“Dust thou art and to dust returneth.” (Genesis 3:19)In early years they did not believe in Embalming (like Egyptians)Did not believe in cremation (like the Greeks and Romans)The body must be allowed to disintegrate naturally – returning to the earth

By the 12th century bodies were placed in the earth in community graveyards rather than put in caves“Golel” (when stone is put in place) now means basically when the last dirt is placed on the graveThis starts the mourning period

The SephardimThe Sephardim

The Spanish/Portugese JewsLife in Spain prior to 1492 seemed wellAfter 1492 the Inquisition started attacking all non-Catholic To avoid being burned at the stakeConvert and practice in secretLeave the country

The big move was to the NetherlandsLearned customs and languageThe Dutch East India Company enticed movement to Brazil and from there spread out to other parts of the CaribbeanAgain Portugese take Brazil 30 years later and the Non-Catholic suffered again

They loaded onto ships and headed back to HollandOne ship for whatever reason did not make itThe passengers were put to shore in what became New YorkThis pretty much starts the history in the U.S.

CuracaoCuracao“The best preserved colonial Jewish cemetery in the Americas may be found in Curacao, a Dutch island floating off the coast of Venezuela.” (page 133)Graveyard founded in 1659Elevated horizontally with above ground tombs because of high water table

Headstones made of local rock embedded with sea shells and marine fossilsMuch of the design motifs are ChristianBut Hebrew epitaphs identify it as a Jewish cemeteryThere are some common Jewish motifs as well such as:– Crown of learning– Broken flowers

Also commonly found is the Death’s Head of Puritan and Spanish Catholic useThis violates one belief forbidding ‘graven images’ or representations of peopleThe early cemeteries in the U.S. seem to be models of restraint when it comes to marker material and designNot surprisingly three cemeteries are found in Manhattan

Another is found in Newport – founded in 1677 (owned by a N.Y. congregation)The ‘Shearith Israel I’ founded in 1682Because of changes the cemetery is not surrounded by Chinese restaurants and by and Italian funeral homeThis cemetery is raised above the street levelMany original makers were moved in 1859-1860

Two types of markers foundFirst, rectangular above ground tombs at least 7 feet long made of red brick sidewallsSecond, vertical tombstones discrete rectangular stones with little writing

By 1790 there were from 1500 to 2000 Jews in the U.S.

DiscriminationDiscriminationThere is an irony in Jewish graveyardsMany minority groups are clearly identifiable when alive because of skin colorJews adapting to the dominate culture where indistinguishable in lifeOpposite for Jews, Hebrew writing on headstones clear identification

German JewsGerman JewsFrom 1839 to 1850 the Jewish population increased from 2,000 to 150,000Almost all from German speaking countriesAt this time we also find movement to Midwest and SouthTherefore also the start of many cemeteries

By 1870 there were over 80,000 Jews in New York City aloneThe cemeteries mirrored many Christian cemeteries as they adapted to life in the U.S.Not uncommon to find Victorian urnsGreek columnsRoman influences

Russian JewsRussian JewsThe majority of Jews come from countries dominated by Russian influenceYiddish language is commonThe push to come to the U.S. came from the assassination of Czar Alexander IIThe pull from U.S. capitalists needing workers

The Jewish community in the U.S. increased 500 fold, to more than one million peopleThe large numbers settling in the New York area meant growth in Jewish cemeteriesThe terrible working conditions and long hours resulted in many deathsPrime example is one of the worst factory atrocities in U.S. labor history

Triangle Factory Shirtwaist fire in 1911, 159 died, mostly JewishOne of the worst factory disasters in U.S. Labor historyThis added to the already socialist leanings of many and helped fuel the labor movement Very bad living conditions and work conditions lead to a high mortality rate

Not having much money yet needing to bury the dead (could not cremate)Lead to very small plots very close togetherStill seen in cemeteries on the east coast over 50 years oldHeadstones no longer look like works of artRather than stonecutters, head stones were machine made

Design on these early machine stones is crudeIncrease use of pictures of the deceased on headstones (although not accepted by all Jewish communities)Burials were often 6 or 7 people to a grave with a specified amount of dirt between bodies (back to dust)Coffins were made of wood but thin to keep the body close to the earth and natural decay

Now many graves only have the persons name and date of deathAlso there is a growth in the use of laser photoenengraving (seen on many modern stones for Jewish and Non Jewish alike)Jewish Star was not common, found now but wasn’t the distinguishing symbol (Hitler used it more commonly to distinguish Jews)

Menorah – the seven branched candle stick was more commonOther symbols includePitcher and ewerHands of blessingPalm branch and citrus fruitTree of lifeBook shelf

The practice of leaving a pebble or stone on the grave to indicate you were there is fairly commonNot sure where it came fromIt is highly unlikely you will see the double maker indicating a spouse that is still alive, Currently the Mason’s symbol is commonUsually there will be no pictures