The Jews of Potchefstroom

Lennie Gouws

The Jewish community all over the world celebrated Rosh Hashanah on Wednesday, 21 September but, in Potchefstroom, the day was no different from any other day.
That was not the case when Potchefstroom still had a large Jewish community. During the middle of the previous century, so many businesses were closed during Jewish holidays that Church Street (currently Water Sisulu Avenue) resembled a Sunday.
Heritage Potchefstroom Erfenis recently celebrated the Jewish heritage of Potchefstroom with a slideshow presentation during their annual general meeting.
The most visible symbol of this heritage is the former synagogue building in James Moroka Avenue, which currently houses the Potchefstroom Academy.

The first Jews

The first Jews came to Potchefstroom with the Voortrekkers in 1838. One of them was Asher Singer, the father of Mokey Singer, who later became the mayor of Potchefstroom. Asher was a tailor and made the wedding suit of President MW Pretorius.
A large group of Jews, mostly from Latvia and Lithuania, arrived during the 1870s. These two countries are on the shores of the Baltic Sea.
Many of these immigrants founded small shops on outlying farms and these became a social gathering place for the farmers in the area.
Other Jewish traders travelled from farm to farm with their wares by ox-wagon. In 1897, a synagogue was erected on the site in Du Plooy Street that now houses the buildings of the Seventh Day Adventist Church.
On 29 September 1920, the cornerstone of a new synagogue building was laid in Lombard Street (currently James Moroka Avenue). At the time, more than 100 Jewish families resided in Potchefstroom. The Herald reported: ‘There was a large attendance from town and district and prominently displayed in the decorations were the Zionist flag side by side with the Union Jack …’
The cornerstone was laid by the widowed Mrs Rebecca Rachel Nathanson, in memory of her deceased husband.
A sum of £3 000 was initially required for the project. The building, excluding furniture and fittings, eventually cost £4 000 with a £1 000 more required for furnishings. On the northern side of the synagogue was the Louis Klivjansky Hebrew School.
Ten years later, a hall was built to the west of the synagogue. The cornerstone, dated 17 September 1930, was laid by Mrs Rebecca Cowen. She was formerly Mrs Nathanson who laid the cornerstone of the synagogue.

Singer becomes mayor

One of the well-known members of the Jewish community was Mr Mokey Singer who was the mayor of Potchefstroom from 1956–1957 and deputy mayor from 1967–68 and 1970–71. He served as a member of the city council from October 1944 to February 1982.
Singer founded the Mooirivier Pharmacy and became an optician after he retired from the pharmacy. His first wife, Chanie, died in 1979 and he later married Pauline. Mokey Singer passed away in Cape Town on 3 January 1985.
His son, Jack, inherited the pharmacy but later emigrated to Canada. Jack wrote books, largely based on his memories of Potchefstroom.
Older residents of Potchefstroom will remember the Gamsu Butchery, owned by that Jewish family.
The Fleischacks, after which a law firm was named, were longstanding, respected members.
The local Jewish community also had much appreciation for the fact that Prof. Jan Lion-Cachet, who came to Potchefstroom in 1905 as the rector of the Theological School, was of Jewish descent. Out of the Theological School grew the NWU Potchefstroom Campus.
The last full-time rabbi to serve the community was Rabbi Engel who served the Potchefstroom and Klerksdorp communities from 1982 to 1993.
From a group of 145 families in 1945, the Jewish community steadily declined. In 1953 alone, 20 families left Potchefstroom. By 1988, only 18 families were left and, in 1992, they dwindled to 15.
In 2000, only 27 Jews still resided in Potchefstroom and there were fewer than 10 Jewish men to form a quorum to keep the synagogue functioning.
The last meeting took place at the synagogue in August 2000 and, shortly afterwards, the property was sold. Potchefstroom Academy restored the synagogue and still owns it today.