Jewish history at Broken Hill
The Jewish community in Broken Hill dates to the Gold Rush in the late 1800s in Australia thanks to the large iron ore, silver and zinc deposits found there.
Two benches will be dedicated in August at the historic Broken Hill synagogue, in honour of key figures of the Jewish community and will highlight the town’s unique Jewish history.
The dedication event, which will take place as part of a weekend trip from August 11-13, is expected to attract between 40 and 60 visitors.
One memorial bench will be dedicated to Reverend Abraham and Mrs Franceska Berman, the synagogue’s last serving full-time rabbi and rebbetzin, who left Broken Hill in 1944.
The second bench will be dedicated to Alwyn Edelman, a former trustee of the synagogue, and Harold Griff, former Broken Hill Historical Society president.
Together they worked on transferring the building to being permanently identified and maintained as a Jewish building.
Visitors can experience a Friday night and Shabbat morning service and kiddush at the synagogue, which has not been in active use since 1960, and will be invited to take part in historical tours of Broken Hill and the Jewish section of the Broken Hill cemetery.
The Jewish community in Broken Hill dates to the Gold Rush in the late 1800s in Australia thanks to the large iron ore, silver and zinc deposits found there.
Jewish immigrants from Europe and Russia made their way to the isolated town, becoming involved in many sectors of business and society, and a Jewish cemetery was consecrated there in 1891.
The foundation stone for the Broken Hill synagogue was placed at 165 Wolfram Street in 1910, which until the 1960s served the approximately 200 members of the Jewish community.
In 1991 the synagogue was converted to the Synagogue of the Outback Museum, owned and maintained by the Broken Hill Historical Society.
The guided historical walk will be led by Leon Mann, a professor of psychology who was born in Broken Hill in 1937 and co-authored Jews of the Outback highlighting Broken Hill’s Jewish past.
Speakers at the event will include mayor of Broken Hill Tom Kennedy and Synagogue of the Outback Museum coordinator Margaret Price, and the Broken Hill Community Voices choir together with local musician Robyn Sanderson will perform.
comments