​Local Jewish farmers:

There were a number of Jewish farmers as well. These included Laurie and Cyril Jocum, married to Hannah and Anita respectively. Laurie’s son, Isaac and his wife Liesel, still farm in the district, near to Reivilo on farm called Kokwaan. Isaac's grandfather purchased the farm in 1933. He arrived in South Africa in 1910, having fled the Czar's army and 25 years of conscription. Laurie reached the farm in 1938 and the others followed. Kokwaan was massive - spanning some 30,000 morgan.

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Morris Grace and David Salmonson (who both married out) farmed in the Vryburg District. Brothers Abbie and Louis Lewis farmed in the district in the 1930s - as did Morris Edelstein, who farmed at Steinsrust in the 1930’s and 1940’s. Graham Brodovcky reports that the farm was near Armoedsvlakte on the Kuruman road and that Morris Edelstein "was known for breeding  black Afrikander cattle." Morris retired to the local International Hotel and passed away in Johannesburg in 1964. His brother, Louis Edelstein - also called Lipman Edelstein - was a butcher, speculator and a farmer  and passed away in Vryburg in 1933. There was also an S. Edelstein who farmed at the same time as Morris. The family was apparently originally from Hope Town, which had quite a few Edelstein’s. Louis was married to Rosa Goldstuck, whose family were from Hope Town. Rosa and Louis were married in Hope Town in 1912 and according to the marriage certificate, Louis was listed as living in the Warrenton District. The Goldstruck family, also from Courland, were steeped in the livestock speculating. There are references to a Simon Golstruck, who passed away in Strydenberg in 1914 and another Simon Goldstruck who passed away in Britstown in 1942. Isaac Golstruck married in 1904 as a feather merchant. He passed away in 1951, aged 72 in Britstown, a stock farmer. Another Jewish butcher was Nicolaas Friedberg, who died in 1927 and was from Douglas.

 

From the  birth certificate of Basil Blumgart, issued in 1930, we learn that his parents Cecil and Rhoda (daughter of Herman Rosenblatt) were farming on a farm called Laurencedale. Another Jewish farmer was Elias Helfer who was buried in Vryburg in 1948 and originally from Židikai, Lithuania. Elias owned three farms - Putpan, Geluk and Warden - on the road to Kuruman. Geluk farm also had a store. Simon Maurice Suchet (Suchedowitz), who married Fannie Katzin (28 December 1926) lived and worked on Geluk for about six to seven years before leaving for Johannesburg. Simon Suchet's father Nachmon Benjamin was married to Elias's sister Chana Pere. Nachman passed away in 1942 and Elias left his estate to her and her children. Ben Oshry farmed near Taung and Reivilo. Oshry was related to Cyril Jocum and his farm was called Hoek Plaas. According to Arnold Bayer, Oshry was a phenomenal marksman and joined the circus with an Afrikaans partner, who became his wife, an equally good shot. Fred Abrams also farmed near Taungs on a farm called Bowood. His father was Jewish. Sam and Amelia Joffee farmed near Delareyville and lived on a farm called Driehoek, just outside the town on the road to Vryburg. No Delareyville auction would be complete without seeing them. Anney Garnett found an advert from 1955 announcing the retirement of an M. Cohen and the resultant sale of Iffley Ranch. M. Cohen is in all likelihood Max Cohen, son of Moses Cohen who owned the Grand and brother of Jack Cohen. We know that Alphonse Blum was a farmer and trader, Ludwig Solomon lived on Mooifontein  for a while and that Mooifontein was owned at some point prior by the Rosenfels brothers - who seem to have been located on the Free State in Rouxville.

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This preceding description of Vryburg Jews in the meat industry is not unique. In Julius Kopelowitz's  2002 essay on Frankfort's Jews, he mentions - Harry Goodman, a cattle speculator, the Bernstein and Gross families who were farmers, Dave Nisleow the butcher and the Bregin Family who were "produce dealers and founders of the "Frankfort Cold Storage" for the sale of refrigerated kosher slaughtered poultry." What held for Vryburg and Frankfort held for any other towns in South Africa. Julius is the brother of Norman Kopelowitz who passed away in Vryburg in 1962.  

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Jewish town folk who also farmed:

Some Jewish town folks also farmed. This tradition dated back to the early days with the Sonnenberg's and Rosenblatt's buying land. Max Sonnenberg writes of a 20,000 morgan ranch near Tlaping. As an aside, Sonnenberg (p. 147) narrates an unsuccessful - in his words "tragi-comic" - attempt to settle German Jewish refugees on the ranch.

 

"Money was provided to send them off,  and a Jewish farmer placed in charge. One gentleman who had been a communal official was given the duty of running the baker shop, whilst some others read up in books all they could find about cattle-breeding and dairying, before trying their skill at milking cows. The neighboring Boers were astonished but kindly and came round to see what they could do. We also supplied them with a lorry and a considerable sum was spent on the provision of stores and supplies. For several months the colony of Tlaping struggled to get started, but after a number of visits, I soon realized that the whole enterprise was doomed."

 

Julius Rosenblatt also owned a number of farms. In 1916 these farms were sold after his death. They included: Dwarsrivier, Uitzoek, Ryno, Kruisfontein, Kalahari, Holpan and Khaw and totalled more than 27,525 morgan of land. The farms Kuie and Masilibitsani belonged to a consortium, which included Maurice Sonnenberg and Harry Joseph Sonnenberg (by then residing in Cape Town), Julius Levin, also of Cape Town, Elise Hartog of Kimberley, Jeanette Rosenblatt and Daniel Hendrik Willem  Wessels.

 

Later, Harold Scheckter owned a farm called Amalia. Phil Rauff also owned a farmstead (name not ascertained yet). According to his relative, Cynthia Garb, the hotelier Jack Perel had four farms. Though in retail, Joe Joffe owned several farms: Messilibetswani, Doxen, Langgewacht, Battle Mount, Tweefontein, Mashowing Ranches, and Lynridge. Joe also had an impressive Afrikaner Stud collection entitled Langgewacht. His prize bull was Glen Maritz. When featured on his 88th birthday by the Argus, Joe defined himself as a cattle farmer.

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Joe Joffe’s brother Harry also owned some farms: Springbok Farm, Lessfontein, Josephsdal  and Duffield. Max Cohen of Vryburg Wholesalers also has a farm in partnership with Harry. In 1948 Harry Joffe and Monty Ross (Chairman of the Epol Group, founded Vicedale Hereford Stud. The Epol story is linked to Sammy Marks and Adolf Sacks. The stud was sold to Bokkie Niselow and Morris Hyman in 1957. According to Graham Wald, his father Henry Wald, owned the majestic farm Brussels, on the road to Kimberley - and a smaller farm called Bernau - near the railway station. Graham Wald reminisces: "Brussels had a magnificent stone built colonial style house, huge inside, sparsely furnished, but my parents used to arrange outings to the farm house on the weekends for card playing, rummy, klaberjas, poker and general socializing. The house was electrically supplied by a huge petrol/oil-powered generator attached to the house." The Brodovcky and Allen families owned Vicedale. 

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The out of towners:

Two major names who lived in Joburg but loomed large in Vryburg were Joe Datnow and Bokkie Niselow- Niselow, whose names come up repeatedly. Joe Datnow was from Pumpian (Lithuania) and moved to South Africa aged 16. Joe owned Coleville Ranch, Compton Ranch and a few other farms. His daughter Lynne recalls: "He loved going to what we kids called the 'far farms. He would go to check on the stock and how the managers were going every month. The journey would take five hours. I seem to remember. Dad had a hooter that was like a siren fitted to the car so that he could switch it on as he was driving down the road to the farm and on the farm to have the cattle get out of the way.  He would drive around the paddocks with the manager to check on the water holes for the cattle which were fed by windmills from underground bores." 

 

Bokkie Niselow owned the farms Vicedale and Grassy Bend (previously owned by the Sussman's), as well as a slew of farms in the Kalahari. When he passed away, aged 73 in 1977, he had amassed 24 farms - controlling some 96,000 hectares. As reported at the time, the sale of his farms fetched R 3,9 million. In 1978 that was a substantial amount. His story is a true tale of rags to riches. He came to South Africa  penniless and illiterate, first working as a laborer in the abattoir and ended up owning SA Meat Wholesalers Though unable to write - he had a scribe accompany him to auctions -he had a phenomenal memory. He was also fiercely competitive at auctions. Arnold Beyer recollects that "if he wanted to buy a lot, the others buyers knew to walk away and go to the tea room." Steven Scheckter recalls; "When the Afrikaans farmers bid against him, he used to shout 'Kishmir in tuchas!'” Kiss my ass in Yiddish. Joe Davidovitz recounts that he once went on a mission to Israel with Bokkie Niselow. On that trip the group met with the Israeli leader, Golda Meir and Niselow took great pride in explaining to her that his land holdings were larger than the State of Israel.

 

Graham Brodovcky recalls Joseph Mankovitz, who in partnership with Morris Hyman, they owned large tracts of land in the Kalahari and near Vryburg. Joe Mankovitz's grandson Mike - son of Louis Jaffe -  and Morris Hyman owned Florodora ranch, which was 200,000 hectares in size. In a 1996 note on East London Jews, Manfred J. Schwartz, wrote: "Louis Jaffe had a few Cheese Factories: Fort Mongomery Cheese and the one at Cross Roads, he also had ranches in the Northern Cape at Vryburg." In the same piece he refers to a Joe Mankowitz, originally from King Williams Town. Louis Jaffe was the son of Morris Jaffe from Kimberley and Becky Joseph (nee Ray - who remarried Benjamin Joseph). Many years later, Oom Joe Scher from Durbanville operated out of Vryburg, buying a plot on the road to Mafeking.

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