Kuruman's Jews | Vryburg

Kuruman

The Vryburg district was massive and included Pudimoe, Stella, Taung, Kuruman, and Pokwane. Technically, some rural parts of Bloemhof and Schweizer Reinecke were also part of the district. My fascination with Bloemhof led me to create a separate website. The town of Kuruman warrants some attention.

The Jewish Life in the South African Country Communities (Volume II, page 390) study lists 18 Jewish family names in its section on Kuruman. Contrary to their research and my initial perceptions, Kuruman and wider area, which includes places like Olifantshoek, Kathu and Shishen, had a great many more Jews than I anticipated. According to Jewish Life in the Country Communities Study (Volume II), by SA Friends of Beit Hatfutsot, a Levy reached Kuruman in 1867, followed by Moses Abromowitz, the Falcke family (1899) and Joseph Mankowitz in 1899. The Weinberg family (from Latvia) and the Levin families were hoteliers in Kuruman in the early twentieth century.

We know of Daniel Abt the German Jew and Hotelier, who hailed from Vryburg and is buried in Kuruman. Between Vryburg and Kuruman, the Abt brothers made it to Geluk, before Daniel settled in Kuruman. By as early as 1910 Daniel was operating a business in Kuruman. A page has been created on the Abts who loomed large in Bechuanaland. We of course also know of Hermann Hammerschlag - a prominent local lawyer - who was linked to the Vryburg Hammerschlag's. He is first mentioned in 1916 in the local newspapers. In 1918 it was reported that he had returned from De Aar. According to a directory of Cape Lawyers, provided by Graham Brodovcky, Hammerschlag stayed in Kuruman up until 1932. He articled under a cousin Joseph Herbert Khan. Joseph Herbert Khan practiced in Kuruman until 1937. In addition to Daniel Abt, Lipman Israel Hyam. is buried in the local cemetery - which does not have a Jewish section. Hyam, a general dealer, passed away in 1917 and had a store in a place called Gamopedi. It is not clear what connection, if any Hyam had with the Vryburg community. Lipman is not mentioned in the Jewish Life in the Country Communities Study. He was born in Leeds. We also know that his parents were Meyer and Rose and he had three sisters: Rose, Hetty and Annie. From notices pertaining to his estate, we learn that he had stores at Tsinen and Gamopedi. Tsinen is near Hotazel.

Two other well-known Kuruman Jews were Jaennot Weinberg, who served as mayor and Kevi Levin. Both were hoteliers. Weinberg famously fought for the Boers in the Anglo Boer War and was imprisoned in Ceylon. Kevi Levin’s brother, Louis Levin is listed as living in Kuruman during his World War One Service. Inexplicably, Jaennot Weinberg does not feature in the list of local Jewish family names celebrated Jewish Life study. Ironically, he is discussed in the text. A 1928 Zionist Record Rosh Hashanah Greetings saw messages from Herman Greenberg, who later moved to Vryburg, and an I. Gold as well as Ellis Kanushefsky. Ellis was the brother of Sonia who married Morrie Kaplan. The local doctor Dr. Morris Cohen (whose family hailed from Upington) also paid for greetings in the Zionist Record.

From the notices in the Government Gazettes, one comes across yet more names of traders in the Kuruman / Olifantshoek district. None of these are acknowledged by the Jewish Life Study. I have found some information on these neglected pioneers:

Jacob Friedland
Jacob Isaac Blumberg
Harry Lipman and Robert Lipman
Israel Hyman Lipman.
Samuel Nathan Geber, Hirsch or Harry Sax Geber and Jacob Geber.
Isaac Geber
Harry Arkin
Harry Glass.
Charles Edelstein
Abraham Solmonson (Salmonson).
Isaac Rauff.
Samuel Rosenstein
Benjamin Israelson.

Solomon Weingarten
I. Gold
Henry Philip Sussman
Louis Gerber (a German Jew who was in business with Isaac Rauff at Takoon and is covered under Vryburg and has his own page).

I have tried to discover information on these pioneers who trekked to the outer reaches of Bechuanaland.

Harry Arkin and Harry Glass. were partners and later sold their store in Barton to Samuel Nathan Geber.

Charles Edelstein was in partnership with Abraham Solmonson (Salmonson).

Isaac Rauff was part of the Taung/ Vryburg Rauff clan, on whom we know a great deal and is covered in the Rauff profile.

Samuel Rosenstein had a store in Mamaghodi in 1915. Samuel later moved to the Warrenton District where he had a general dealership.

Benjamin Israelson bought Samuel Rosentstein’s store when he left Kuruman.

Solomon Weingarten was a German Jew bought a store at Wonderwerk in the district in 1916. Wondwerk seems to be between Kuruman and Danielskuil. He later made his way to Douglas.

Henry Philip Sussman (Hirsch Faival, son of Eliyahu) applied for naturalization in 1923. At the time he was living at Dingle seems to be a farm in the Kuruman district. Later, Henry moved to Zambia and died a bachelor in 1949 Ndola, Copperbelt, Zambia. He is buried in Kansenji, Jewish Cemetery. A photo of his tombstone is available.

Jacob Friedland hailed from Hasenpoth/ Aizpute in Latvia he reached the Cape in 1901. According to his Naturalization papers, filed in 1908, he lived in a place called Searle in the Kuruman District from January 1901 to 1904. He then moved to Longlands in the Barclay West District. Renowned writer Sarah Gertrude Millin grew up at Longlands outside Barkly West and her father opened the first shop in town. Jacob Friedberg died a bachelor at the age of 40 from alcohol poisoning and was a storekeeper. He was buried in Johannesburg.

Another Courland Jew who spent time in the Kuruman area was Jacob Isaac Blumberg. Like many of the Vryburg Jews he was from Talsen in Courland. From his Naturalization application we glean that he was a trader residing in the Kaap Ward (Ward 12) of Kuruman. At the time of his application. In 1905 he was 23 years old and had been in the Colony for 30 months - which implies he arrived in 1882. He seems to have arrived around the same time as Moses Lemkus, who also hailed from Talsen. It is not certain if he was connected to the Blumberg's who later came to town. Another Talsen connection I stumbled across was Wilhelm Jacobson Lahn - who was buried in the Jewish cemetery in Kimberley in 1920. He was a storekeeper in Christiana at the time of death. But I digress, somewhat……

Yet another Courlander who made it to the Kuruman area was Abraham Salmonson. The wonderful photo of the Mazaik smouse in front of their store from Raymond and Stan Ravinsky. From his wedding certificate we learn that Abraham was at the time living in Klipdam - near Windserton. Abraham was from Libau in Latvia and married Sarah Zasman in 1913.

There were other Lipman brothers in the Kuruman area, Harry and Robert. It seems there was no connection to Israel Hyman Lipman. The brothers owned a store at Rooiwal and Sutton which is near present day Olifantshoek/ Kathu. From the Government Gazettes we learn that the brothers reached the district, as early as 1910. From Gazette notices, we glean that the property called Sutton was in the Gamagara Valley – present day Kathu.

Harry married Margaretha Ansbruch in Port Elizabeth in 1918. He is listed as living in Kuruman at the time of his wedding. By 1919 Harry was living in Steytlerville. From his death certificate we learn that Harry Lipman was from Zagre in Lithuania. Zagre borders with modern Latvia and his less than 60 kilometers from Mažeikiai. From these documents we also learn that Harry Lipman parents were Edle and Chana Schlaperbersky. Hence there was no connection to Hyman Lipman. Robert passed away in Kroonstad in 1956.

We know quite allot about brothers Samuel Nathan Geber, Hirsch or Harry Sax Geber and Jacob Geber. From Harry Sax Geber’s last will – drawn up in Kuruman in 1918 - we glean that his brother Jacob lived in Kuruman and his brother Samuel Nathan lived in Barton – in the Kuruman district. Harry Sax and Jacob bought a general dealership in Olifantshoek in 1916. The surname seems to have originally been Shakinovsky and the family from Kovno in Lithuania. Oliefantshoek had another Geber, Isaac Geber. He applied for naturalization in 1924 from Olifantshoek and in 1915 he was listed as making a donation to Zionist causes and as listed in the Vryburg contributions to Jewish cuases. The last will of Harry Sax Geber mentions siblings, Hirsch Lipman, Meyer, Isaac, Getrude and Rachel. My assumption is that this was indeed Isaac Geber. Samuel Nathan Geber was a bachelor and was, at the time of his death in Kimberley, still living in Olifantshoek.