Bad Buchau (formerly Buchau) 48°3′58″N 9°36′36″E is a small town in Biberach district, Baden-Württemberg with about 4,000 inhabitants [2010]. Situated near the Federsee, Bad Buchau incorporates nine villages: Allmannsweiler, Dürnau, Kanzach, Betzenweiler, Moosburg, Alleshausen, Seekirch, Tiefenbach and Oggelshausen. Although the official language is German, the majority of inhabitants speak the Swabian dialect. From the Middle Ages to 1803, Buchau was the seat of both an Imperial Abbey and a Free Imperial City, the smallest in terms of area. Built on an island devoid of towers and walls, Buchau lost its secuirty when the water level of the Federsee diminished during the late 18th century. In 1577 The Free Imperial City welcomed a Jewish Community, which quickly gains prominence under the protection of the city. In 1650, a Jewish cemetery was constructed.In 1730 and 1837 synagogues were built. In 1806 Buchau became a township of the kingdom of Württemberg.1807 The Jewish community received the right to acquire goods.1828 The Jewish community receive their civil liberties.1847 Hermann Einstein, father of Albert Einstein, was born.In 1938, the synagogue and Jewish community ceased. [Feb 2013]
88422 Baden-Württemberg
SOURCE: Gerz
DISTRICT: Biberach
LOCATION OF CEMETERY: Buchauer Insel
ACTIVE:
Cemetery history and restoration information. [Feb 2013]
Jewish history. [Feb 2013]
Excellent Jewish and Cemetery history. "Until 1675, the Good Place was behind Kappel next to the Saulgauer Straße. The cemetery was built in 1650. The Jews from Mittelbiberach, Ravensburg and Aulendorf were allowed to be buried there, too./ The first funeral at the cemetery was in 1675. It was Levi Israel, son of Abraham Günzburger from Aulendorf who was first buried. Almost 1000 deceased are resting there. According to Jewish law, the last sleep is considered eternal. As it was impossible to enlarge the cemetery in the beginning, the dead ones were buried partly in three rows on top of each other. It wasn't until the emancipation in 1850 and 1892 that new sites could be bought. These acquisitions lead to the present size of the cemetery which has a surface of 6698 m² (8010.7 y²). All the tombstones are facing eastwards./ Unfortunately the cemetery was desecrated during the Third Reich. Tombstones were demolished and taken away." [February 2013]
- a mid-17th century cemetery was originally thought to be located in the Old Saulgauer Strasse.
- a 1659 document referred to Buchauer Jews joining with those from Aulendorf and Mittelbiberach to acquire land for a cemetery on the Buchauer Insel.
- 1675 oldest existing gravestone recorded in 1879 by Rabbi Elkan Weimann.
- oldest known person buried: Baruch Moses Ainstein 1635 (probable ancestor of Albert Einstein); last burial Siegbert Einstein 1968.
- the oldest gravestone dated 1771 was recorded in 1990. The relatively small cemetery area was re-used several times during the ensuing two centuries. These layers are still clearly visible. Burials included Jews from Ravensburg, Leutkirch, Riedlingen, Wangen and other local communities. The most recent burial took place in 2003. The cemetery still exists today. Custodian: Standesamt Bad Buchau. Source: George Arnstein, 2510 Virginia Ave NW, Washington, DC 20037.
DOCUMENTATION:
- between 1862 and 1879 by Rabbi Elkan Weimann in 1879 with list of graves and copies of inscriptions in German, original at the Leo Baeck Institute.
- 1990 photographs and cemetery plan by Zentralarchiv.
- 1992 full documentation with the use of these photographs by order of the City of Buchau and in collaboration with the State Office for Historical Monuments (editor: Tatjana Ilzhöfer).
- 1990-2005 complete documentation by Charlotte Mayenberger.
- history, list of graves and cemetery plan, inscriptions (in German) in 1879 by Rabbi Elkan Weimann.
- history by Vierfelder in 1924 page 102.
- history by Vierfelder in 1958 page 7.
- Photograph by Württemberg in 1932, page 63.
- Complete documentation by Mayenberger in 2005.
- prior to 1659 the Deceased Jews of Bad Buchau were buried in the cemetery of Kappel (Hahn 1988, page 121).
- the cemetery was desecrated in November 1988, when 17 gravestones were toppled over and defaced.(Stuttgarter Zeitung -15 November 1988)
- a memorial was erected in 1990 inscribed with the names of murdered Buchau Jews and also of those Jews from other places deported from Buchau during the Nazi era.
SOURCES: Alemannia Judaica and University of Heidelberg.
[Researched and translated from German December 2007]
To see information and photographs of individual gravestones in cemeteries in Baden-Wuerttemberg, click on this link and follow the directions on that page.