Telling the story of lost Jewish community

Parow’s lost Jewish community is the subject of an exhibition at the South African Jewish Museum in Cape Town.

Echoes of Parow – The Story of a South African Jewish Community, which runs until the end of February next year, explores the history of the community from the early 1900s up until 1993.

The full story of the community’s presence in Parow is also told in The Jews of Parow, a book by historian Professor Richard Mendelsohn, and details from the book are included on the museum’s website. Both the book and the website were launched at the opening of the exhibition in September.

The first generation of Jews to settle in Parow were mainly immigrants from Eastern Europe in the early 1900s, according to Gavin Morris, the director of the museum.

“They arrived there to try to make a better life for themselves. And so that was the first generation, and then over the next 90 odd years, they had children, many of the children became doctors, started businesses, etc.”

As the community grew, Frans Duminy, a local landowner and benefactor, funded the building of a hall, which opened in October 1927 and was used for prayers and religious activities.

In 1951, a synagogue was opened in Hopkins Street, in Glenlily, Parow.

“As they became more upwardly mobile, more middle class, they started moving either to Sea Point or the southern suburbs, closer to where the schools and other amenities were, and by 1993, Jews that had been in Parow, most of them had moved out of the suburb already,” Mr Morris said.

The then chief rabbi of South Africa, Cyril Harris, also known as Mandela’s Rabbi, oversaw the last service at the synagogue on June 6, 1993. The synagogue was deconsecrated and sold that same year and “marked the end of Jewish life in Parow”, said Mr Morris.

The museum is at 88 Hatfield Street Gardens. Entry is free for children under 12, R50 for South African students and R100 for adults. The book is also available at the museum for R380.

Email info@sajewishmuseum.co.za or call 021 4651546 for more information.