Places of interest
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1. Jacob's Well Pub -- Hall Ings
Close to the Hilton Hotel, at Hall Ings, is to be found the Jacob's Well Pub. The pub's name commemorates the former famous Jacob's Well, which used to be close by. A local writer recalls, 'Since the Bronze Age, the Bradford wool trade has depended on its deep wells ofpure soft water. The most precious was known as Jacob's Well.'
Jacob's Well is placed on the Bradford trail, due to its antiquity and the fact that in some places the name 'Jacob's Well' has recorded a medieval mikveh site, such as at Bristol. Of course in this case, it may merely be an accolade paid to one of Bradford's most cherished wells, by reference to the famed, eponymous well of the Old Testament. This well may also be the one that appears on the original city coat of arms of 1847, as a 'well sable' another interesting Jewish association of the city
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2. Schiller Institute (Schiller Verein) - Darley Street
The Schiller Institute was the club for the German speaking elite of Bradford, which included the German Jews. The building was leased by the German community from 1862 for a number of years, until they gave up the lease and it became a masonic hall and in1910, the Oddfellows Society.There is still a sculpture above the top middle window of the German poet and dramatist, Friedrich Von Schiller (1759-1805), which recalls its hey-day as the centre for the German community.
Present day Darley Street, is off Duke Street, next to the Kirkgate Shopping Centre in the city centre.
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3. Arensberg's Jewellery Shop -- Ivegate
The former Arensberg Jewellry shop, half-way up the steep hill which forms Ivegate, and still survives as part of a larger more modern jewellers.The original firm of jewellers was established in 1860, by Henry Arensberg and his son Louis at the bottom of the old Post Office Steps in Hustlergate.
Henry at this time was already a cigar merchant in Market Street and Louis worked with a Sheffield firm. The business flourished opening branches all over the city and in Motley and Rochdale, the headquarters were at 68 70 Leeds Road, adjacent to Little Germany.
In 1899 Arensberg's moved to 32 Ivegate and although the shop front was altered in 1913 and though extended in 1934, it kept to its original design.
The last Arensberg to own the shop was Merton Henry's grandson. Merton was a bachelor and in the 1960s he sold the business to his manager and it passed out of Jewish ownership, but remained a jewellery business. It is currently Herbert Brown jewellers.
The original shop frontage survived into the 1980s, but the modern owners removed the original signage at the very front. However, vitally, they retained the original bay arcade and the door from the original shop which dates from 1900.
These are of exceptional interest, as the mohagany door still has the Arensberg name in guilded letters on the glass of the door, with the date of the foundation of the business in 1860 and the Arensberg name is also in mosaic letters in the floor of the bay arcade.
These survivals of original Victorian and Jewish shop signage are very rare and need to be preserved. The current owners of the shop said that they had kept these old features because they still had many people coming to visit the shop for nostalgic reasons, as many of their grand-parents had brought their engagement and wedding rings from the shop and it was nice for them to still see the original name.
Ivegate is an easterly extension of Westgate, and is close to the corner of the Kirkgate Shopping Centre.
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4. Jacob Behrens - Springfield Mount, North Parade (1880)
Behrens first lived in Manchester, at 35 Brown Street, then Chancery Lane (1840), then Leeds Road Bradford (1850). His most identifiable residence in Bradford was Springfield Mount; North Parade is off Manor Row, just before the Drewton Road, near to the city centre.Top
5. Little Germany
Bradford's Little Germany lies close to Bradford city centre, to the north of the Leeds Road, which links to Hall Ings. It is of great heritage importance and has been designated a Conservation Area since 1976, with many grade II listed buildings. It has the greatest concentration and most fascinating collection of listed industrial buildings in one small area in the country. Some 193 wool warehouses were built between 1875 and 1914 in Little Germany. A good many of these warehouses were built or used by the German Jewish merchants, and since a number of these Jewish merchants, were among the richest and most influential of the German merchant community, it is no surprise that some of the most notable of the warehouses belonged to these 'merchant princes'. Most of the Jewish warehouses lie in the area designated the 'Grand Warehouse' district in the conservation plan, which contain the most dramatic and architecturally important of the warehouses.The Jewish Link
The Jewish link with the area, which was also called Germania, or, 'New Germany', is irresistible. Leo Shuster, who was a Jewish convert to Unitiarianism, built the first German warehouses in Bradford in 1836. However, it was Jacob Behrens, who actually created the circumstances for the wholesale growth of the area, by his work with the Bradford Chamber of Commerce; his engineering a trade treaty with France in 1860 and generally improving communications to Bradford.
Once the foundations for the trade had been laid, the warehouses went up rapidly -- 80% went up between 1860 and 1874. The area, which was former glebe land of the local church, was originally chosen by the merchants, as it was close to Bradford's railways and the steeply-rising ground of the area was cheap development land. The warehouses functioned as export clearing houses for bulk goods, largely of 'stuff' (i.e. worsted) and yarn. In usage, the building used the basements for storage and the upper-rooms for stock, sale and packaging. The actual manufacturing went on largely at Goitside.
The best local architects of the day were used for the construction of the warehouses, such as Andrews and Delauney, Lockwood and Mawson, and Miles and France. In style the buildings are built of a mellow, local, brown sandstone and are in an 'Italianate' palazzo (palace) style. The buildings have many fine architectural details, with rusticated stone work on the ground floor, decorative string courses, fine window details on the large rectangular windows, and ornate entrances, as well as wagon entrances with decorative iron gates. Most have hidden slate roofs and dramatic parapet-lines and chimneys. The setting of the warehouses on narrow, sometimes, irregular streets, is part of their distinctiveness and charm.
Undoubtedly the scale and grandeur of these warehouses was partly due to rivalry between different Victorian cities as well as civic pride and the desire to impress clients. European visitors have commented how much the buildings remind them of Germany itself and central Europe and indeed the area was recently used as a film-set and stand-in for Berlin!
In 1977 John Roberts published his City Trail -- 'Little Germany' and it is his information which makes it possible to identify the following warehouses as being of Jewish origin and to give their dates, though there are more which could still be traced.
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6. 67 East Parade - Grattan Warehouse,
This warehouse was originally built for Sharp Sonnenthal and Co, in 1913.Top
7. 4 Burnett Street - Atomik House, now the Bradford Design Exchange,
This warehouse was designed by Eli Milnes and the plans were approved 2 September, 1857.The Bradford design exchange has been modernised as an art gallery and design studio and is a plain two storey office and warehouse corner block. It is a good example how these historic buildings have been adapted for modern use. It was named by Sidney Silver, father of Jonathan Silver and its original proprietor was David Heyn, in 1859. It is a grade II listed building.
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8. 64 Vicar Lane - Albion House, 1871 Kessler Warehouse
This five storey warehouse and offices was completed by 1875 and the plans included a second warehouse at 2/4 Hick Street. The building is grade II listed and was designed by Milnes and France and built for the son of J.P. Kessler of Frankfurt, who was one of the pioneer export merchants to GermanyTop
9. 6 Currer Street, (also known as 68/70 Vicar Lane), Stuff Warehouse, Reiss Brothers, 1857 -- 58
The plans for the building were first approved, in 1856, for Leopold Reiss. There is a record of naturalization for a Leopold Reiss in 1836 and the Reiss brothers appear to have started their work in England, in Leeds. There is an entry in an 1837 trade directory for Reiss brothers listed as merchants. There is also an 1876 portrait of Mrs Leopold Reiss, of Broome House, Eccles, in Manchester art gallery, by Millais.The warehouse is called the Stuff Warehouse, as 'stuff' was the contemporary term for worsted woollen cloth.
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10. 4 Currer Street, Nathan Reichenheim of Berlin, 1859
No. 4 was designed by Lockwood and Mawson and was a large warehouse cum office palazzo, built in 1859 and extended in1867. There is some contrary evidence that Andrews & Delauney may have designed the buildings, in so far as they are listed on the actual deposited building plansThe building was commissioned by H.J. Heydemann Esq. and plans were approved 4 May, 1859. Heydemann was Bradford agent and manager for Nathan Reichenheim & Co. of Berlin. Plans to extend the building, at the corner of Currer Street & Vicar Lane, were submitted in 1866, with the architects on this occasion being, Andrews Son & Pepper. It is a grade II listed building.
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11. 26 East Parade - S.L.Behrens, 1873
This warehouse has been awarded a grade II* rating, due to its exceptional interest. It was designed in 1873 by Miles and France and is notable for its grandeur and use of iron decorative details. The tall Venetian chimneys are also of considerable merit along with the details of the drain pipes as they pass through the stone string courses. From a Jewish heritage perspective, the preservation of the Behren's name, in the wrought iron screen above the wagon entrance, is of great importance. There is a plaque to Behrens on the wall of the building and it is important to note that Jacob Unna was the manager at the Behren's warehouse.Top
12. 25 Bolton Road - Semons Warehouse, 1877 8
This warehouse was built by Milnes and France and is now the Abbey NationalSadly, the warehouse of Schuster Fulda and Co, 62 Leeds Road (1869 1873) was demolished in 1986 for the new Bradford Ring Road.
The trade directories of the period, 1870 1900, show a much larger number of German Jewish merchants in this area. However many merchants listed had offices but not headquarters in Bradford, in the same way as chain stores today. A total list of merchants' names does not necessarily mean that all the people were Bradford residents.
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13. 2 Eldon Place -- Home of Jacob Unna
Jacob Unna, who was Behren's right-hand man and a founder of Bradford's Chamber of Commerce, lived at 2 Eldon Place, off Manningham Lane. The house still survives and is a Georgian-style, stone terraced town house. Eldon Place is west off Manningham Lane after the junction with Drewton Road and is within walking distance of the centre of Bradford.Many events of Unna's were naturally played out in the house, including the marriage of Jacob's daughter, Violetta Anna Unna, who married Leopold Levis on March 24th 1858 at the Registry Office in Bradford. This was followed by a religious ceremony at the Unna home at Eldon Place where Rabbi Dr. Schiller, the minister of the Reform Community in Manchester officiated. Unna's two other children were both married at the Registry Office.
When Jacob Unna celebrated his eightieth birthday, at Eldon Place, his grandson wrote a letter to his father (i.e. Jacob's son) telling him about the party. This letter gives us a unique window into life in this house and Victorian Jewish Bradford.
14 February 1880
My Dear Papa,
I am sure that we were all very sorry that you were not here on Grandpapas birthday and since you were not here I will give you an account of all that happened on that day: we had breakfast at eight o'clock and then we went down to Eldon Place; when we got there we found that the Lewis's had got there before us; we had to wait about a quarter of an hour, and then Grandpapa came down; just as he opened his bedroom door we began to sing a song called ............ , when he got downstairs (which of course took sometime), we all wished him many happy returns of the day; then he sat down in his chair, and we showed him all the letters and telegrams that had been sent; then he went round to see his presents, among which were; a big .........., from Auntie Ette, a foot warmer for his bathchair, and from Alice a picture of herself as she was at the fancy dress ball; from Auntie Emily a cake with eighty candles round it, and a big one in the middle; from Auntie Fanny a beautiful rug, the inside of which is like Mama's new cloak; from Auntie Annie a lot of notepaper and envelopes; from Uncle Leopold a new office chair; from Auntie¬ Yetta his armchair newly covered and from Fraulein Jeinsen a new domino box, outside covered with fern leaves, and inside with leather, and from Nellie and I the words of the song written on an ornamental piece of cardboard; after he had seen all his presents we went into breakfast; while we were yet at breakfast Mr. Hamburg came in and he was the first visitor who came to wish Grandpapa many happy returns of today; soon after breakfast the visitors began to come; after breakfast Uncle Joe gave him his present which was a hamper of port from 1798, among the visitors were Mr. and Mrs Lartzarous who had come from Manchester on purpose; visitors kept coming, all the morning till about half past one and at this time the gentlemen from the Lodge came; they came and wished him many happy returns of the day and then Mr. Crabtree first made a speech and after the speech gave him an illuminated address and after that the silver salver; then Mr. Wilsman made a speech and after him Doctor Strauss, after they had gone we went into dinner at which we were all present, after dinner the ladies and gentlemen came as before; I forgot to say that three gentlemen Mr Nathan, Mr. Thaliske and Mr. Voigt came before dinner to wish Grandpapa many happy returns in the name of Schiller Wirein.
Visitors came just after dinner and then at about four o'clock Mama and Nellie went home with Emily and Harry who had come down at about twelve, to dress for the party in the evening: in the evening there were all grandpapa's old gentlemen friends, all the relations and besides those Mr. Wood and Mr. Cohn; when the first half of the people were in at supper Grandpapa of course among them, a choir from Doctor Jufts choir came and sang two songs and as soon as they had sung they went away without anybody knowing who they were; we three children also sang the chorus of the song that we sung in the morning, when they proposed grandpapa's health: we went home at about half past nine, and Mama came home at about eleven; we had holiday all the day, although we expected that we should have had to go to school all the day; during the day forty five visitors came and grandpapa got about thirty five letters.
Just less than a year after these happy scenes at his eightieth birthday, Unna died. The esteem in which he was held was evident in his obituary, in the 'Bradford Observer', Saturday, 8 January1881 which stated:
'........ in 1844, two years before any railway was opened to Bradford. Messrs. S.L. Behrens and Co. finally removed their Leeds business to Bradford, since which period up to the year 1870 Mr. Unna represented them here as head of the concern.
It was largely due to the energy, the keen insight into foreign requirements, and the general business capacity of German gentlemen like Mr. Unna that Bradford owed that development of the worsted trade which resulted in its assuming such a position of importance in the commercial history of the world....
.... In private life he was the embodiment of undemonstrative goodness. It is not for us to tell of the good deeds he has done in an unobtrusive manner. Few men of his means have probably given away so much in this way, and with so much discretion.
.... He was a member of the Council of the Chamber of Commerce, and attended its meeting until the removal to the present rooms in the Exchange. He was also one of the promoters of the Bradford District Bank. In the establishment and support of the Bradford Eye and Ear Hospital he took great interest. It was as a Freemason, however that Mr. Unna found scope for his energy and benevolence. He was the founder of the Harmony Lodge in Bradford and was at one time Grand Master.
.... Mr. Unna was a widower having lost his wife about three years ago. He leaves a son, Mr. Charles Unna and two daughters both of whom are married. The interment, we understand, will take place on Wednesday next in the Jewish ground at Scholemoor Cemetery, the last rites being attended with Masonic honours.'
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14. The Bradford Reform Synagogue - Bowland Street
The Bradford Reform Synagogue is of exceptional interest, in terms of its history and its beautiful and elaborate Moorish architecture.The origins of the synagogue lie in the efforts of Rabbi Strauss. Once Strauss had succeeded in getting the Jewish Community functioning, he persuaded the congregation to raise money to build a synagogue.
Bernhard Cohen the head of Charles Semon & Co., paid £700 for a plot of land in Bowland Street, off Manningham Lane, which was to be used as a site for the synagogue. Building work on the site commenced on 5 January 1880, and on 6 April, 1880 Jacob Unna laid the foundation stone. Local Jewish residents including Jacob Moser gave very generously to the building fund. The synagogue was consecrated on March 29th 1881.
The Reform origins of the building are demonstrated in one important item -- the inclusion of an organ in the original appurtenances, as the Reform tradition used instruments as part of its liturgy.
The use of a Moorish style no doubt lay in the need to use an architectural style that was not redolent of church architecture -- the same impetus has led to the synagogue at Canterbury using an Egyptian style.
The following description comes from the local press report at the time of the consecration and gives a full description of the architecture and interior.
'The site of the synagogue is on the south side of Bowland Street, and is the gift of Mr. Bernhard Cohen. It admits of the correct orientation of the building, and is in many respects as suitable a site as could be desired.
The building consists of one large room, 44ft by 30ft and 27ft in height, entered on the west from a broad lobby containing double doors, to exclude the draught and the noise of traffic and also giving access to the back portion of the building and its premises. At the east end is a semi circular recess of 12ft in width, arched and vaulted, in which stands the Holy Ark, containing the Scrolls of the Law. The floor of this alcove is raised by several steps above the level of the main floor, and on which are placed two elaborately worked candlesticks of silver, the gift of Mrs. Dux, of Hildesheim presented to the synagogue by her son in law, Mr. Rothenstein, of Bradford. On the two sides of the ark stand two seven branched candlesticks of polished brass, to the north side the Rabbi's seat and desk, to the south a bench for those who are called to assist the reading of the law, both seats being of pitch pine. Suspended from the ceiling, and on silver chains, is a massive perpetual lamp of elegant design, with a suitable inscription taken from Exodus xxvii, 20 It is the gift of Mr. Emil Bielefeld, one of the wardens. A small vestry is obtained on the north side of the recess, with an outer doorway in Bowland Street, and on the south side is placed a staircase giving access to two school rooms, each 22ft by 17ft, placed at the south east angle of the site. A ladies' room and lavatory is obtained to the south west side underneath the lobby.
The style of architecture adopted is oriental in character, and to obtain contrast of colour bands of red stone are used in conjunction with the local ashlar. The synagogue has four two light windows on the north front and three on the south, the lights being divided by slender columns carrying tracery of appropriate character, enclosed by ogee headed arches. The principal doorway in the Bowland Street front is the feature that has a cusped and pointed arch, carried by four slender shafts of red stone, with carved capitals and well moulded bases. The spandrels are filled with carved arabesques, and the following inscription in Hebrew : - "Open ye the gates, that the righteous nation, which keepeth the truth, may enter in" (Isiah xxvi. 2). Above the cornice is carried a light stone balustrade.
A cornice, finished with a deep parapet, pierced and scalloped, is carried along the front, the centre portion being raised to admit a large panel, which contains a Hebrew inscription from Genesis xxviii, 17 "How awesome is this place! This is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven." Above is a circular medallion, enclosing the device known as the shield of David, "Magen David," an ornament also used in the vestry doorway and elsewhere.
Internally the synagogue is finished in plaster, with an arched and panelled ceiling arranged with a view to subsequent decoration. Four large chandeliers shed light upon the interior. Opposite the alcove containing the Holy Ark, a small gallery in an alcove over the lobby is obtained, where the organ is placed. The fittings throughout, of a substantial and elaborate character, are the gift of Mr. Moser. The windows are filled with ornamental glazing, sky tinted.
The principal feature internally is the apec containing the Holy Ark. It is spanned by an arch of horse shoe outline, with elaborate arabesques in plaster in the spandrels, and bound by a double border. The Ark is of Caen stone, rectangular in plan; it rests on a richly panelled dado, and the door is surmounted by a cusped Moorish arch springing from pilasters and red Devonshire marble. The tympanum of the arch is filled with pierced interfaced work, and the spandrels are enriched with arabesques, on the upper frieze are incised the words in Hebrew "Hear, 0 Israel, the Eternal is our God, the Eternal is One."(Deuteronomy vi, 4-9) The whole is surmounted by a carved cornice and dome, to the front of which two tablets of white marble are fixed, on which are incised, in Hebrew the Ten Commandments."
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15. Former Orthodox Synagogue (1906) -- 15-17, Spring Gardens
The Orthodox Synagogue of 1906, is close to the Bowland Street synagogue, off Manningham Lane. It still survives, but is now used as a madrassa, a Muslim religious school. Little of the interior survives, as it has been completely adapted for use as a school. However, the exterior features are still in evidence; there is a small tower above the entrance and a Hebrew inscription above the door, which quotes the famous verse, 'How goodly are your tents, O Israel'. The synagogue was closed in 1970 when the new orthodox synagogue opened in Springhurst Road.Top
16. Homes of the 'Merchant Princes' -- Manningham and Little Horton
The Manningham and Manningham Lane areas and Little Horton, became the area of choice for the homes of the German and the German Jewish elite and the more successful classes of Bradford. The area was developed from the mid-1850s onwards as luxury villas and better quality residences designed by Bradford's leading architects. St Paul's Road, Wilmer Drive, Spring Bank and Oak Lane were favoured streets for the Germans. There were schools that catered for the sons of the Germans and German Jews, including a school in Manor House, Rosebery Road, as well as The High School, Hanover Square (later amalgamated with Bradford Grammar).Top
17. Birth Place of Sir William Rothstein- 4 Spring Bank, Mannigham Lane
The Jewish portrait painter and unofficial war artist, Sir William Rothstein, was born at 4 Spring Bank in 1872. His father; a textile merchant, Moritz Rothstein, had previously lived at Trinity Terrace, Little Horton, before moving to Spring Bank in 1871. Rothstein moved to 6 Walmer Villas in 1881. Rothstein painted many leading people of his time, and was an unofficial war artist during the First World War -- his works are still exhibited in London at the Tate and the ImperialWar Museum and Cartwright Hall. Spring Bank Place is just off the eastern side of Manningham Lane, one road junction south of the junction of Manningham Road with Marlborough Road.The Rothstein family later moved to 6 Walmer Villas, in 1881. Walmer Villas are nearly opposite Spring Bank Place on Manningham Lane and are semi-detached villas.
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18. Humbert Wolfe, Writer and Poet - 4 Mount Royd
Humbert (Umberto) Wolfe CB, was the son of Martin Wolfe a German Jewish Merchant and his Italian Jewish mother, Consuela. He was a leading literary figure in Bradford, next to JB Priestley, and one of the most popular authors of the 1920's. While he converted he was always conscious of his Jewish back-ground. Mount Royd is just off the eastern side of Manningham Lane, two junctions north of the junction with Marlborough Road.Top
19. The Carlton Hotel -- Kinder Transport Hostel -- Parkfield Road, Manningham
After the atrocities of Kristallnacht, on November 10th 1938, when the Nazis burnt Synagogues, attacked, murdered and imprisoned Jews in Germany and Austria, a desperate attempt was made to rescue, 10,000 young Jewish children from the Nazis.'Childrens' Transports' ('Kinder transports') were organised and by the outbreak of war nearly 10,000 children had arrived in Britain. The Bradford Jewish community responded to the emergency by purchasing a large house, the former Carlton Hotel, in Parkfield Road, Manningham and turning it into a hostel.
Originally it was intended to be for girls. However the representatives from Bradford, after going down to Dovercourt in Suffolk where the young people were billeted in Warner's Holiday camp, brought 25 teenage boys back to Bradford.
The hostel was financed by the Bradford Jewish Community, but two men, Oswald Stroud, the son of Rabbi Strauss, and Joe Morris, were the driving forces behind the project.
In 1989, to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Hostel, fifteen of the original boys came back to Bradford and the BBC made a documentary of their lives and experiences.
The Hostel today is the Carlton House, a drug rehabilitation centre. In the 1980s the back entrance to the Hostel (and the front entrance before the recent renovations) still had a mezuzah, on the right hand side of the door frame.
One of the former children, who arrived at the hostel gave this interview in 1984. He describes his life in Germany, escape to Great Britain in 1939 and life in the Bradford Hostel.
'Well 1 was about thirteen, fourteen. So we were starting to get out of Germany and everyone more or less went out the best way they could. Now, 1 came to England with the Children's Refugee Transport that meant the Jewish community in the United Kingdom arranged to take on children, because their parents etc. couldn't get a visa. So 1 came in fact in February 1939, with the Children's Transport, and 1 was put into a camp which had been rigged up which was a holiday camp in Harwich... From there we were distributed, either into hostels, or homes, or adoption; or whatever and the Jewish community of Bradford opened a hostel for young boys which happened to be in
Parkfield Road which is now a hotel... there were twenty boys which came into the hostel... The hostel itself was very comfortable... we had a warden there who was an ex-German, Jewish solicitor, which Is why he looked after us the Governor of the Committee was a certain Mr Stroud who is a well known personality here in Bradford. It was basically financed by the Jewish community.'
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20. The Scholemoor Cemetery, Reform and Orthodox Jewish Cemeteries -- Scholemoor Road
The Scholemoor municipal cemetery contains two Jewish sections, one Reform and the other Orthodox. Unusually, the Reform section, at the top of the hill, pre-dates the Orthodox, at the bottom of the hill. The Reform section is of considerable interest, as it contains the tombs of the great and good of the German Jewish community and the grave monuments are remarkable for their individuality and in some cases, imposing grandeur. The cemetery is in an attractive setting with an interesting small ohel building. The more modern Orthodox section, is more modest, and lacks the flamboyant manifestation of ego seen above.Before the foundation of the Reform cemetery Jewish burials took place in the un-consecrated section of the cemetery, though it is likely that most took place in Leeds or Manchester. The Bradford Cemetery, colloquially known as 'Undercliffe Cemetery', has an un-consecrated section, where there were over 10,000 interments between 1858 and 1874. At most there were some 20 Jews among these 10,000 people. They included members of the Hertz family, Hermann Koppel; an infant of 3 weeks, whose father or grandfather was the first person to be buried in the Jewish section at Scholemoor; Willy Leo Bielefeld, aged 4 months, of Eldon Place whose father was to become a warden of the Synagogue and Isaac Schloestein, aged 41, resident of Eldon Terrace.
The most important tomb in this section is that of Jacob Behrens, which is a massive and imposing edifice of sky-scraper dimensions, surrounded by even taller obilisks.
The cemetery records show that no Jewish person officiated at the funerals however the relatives may have said prayers in Hebrew with a Christian minister in attendance.
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21. Reform Section (1877)
The Reform section is some 200 yards from the main gate of the cemetery, along the boundary wall and had good access. It is easily found if you turn immediately right at the gate and follow the path.The cemetery, which is compact being less than a quarter of an acre in size, contains the tombs of the leading Jewish citizens of Bradford, including the 'merchant princes', whose lives have been described earlier. The tombstones for the 'merchant princes', are exceptional for their size and grandeur, or for their individual design, though they largely follow the general styles of tombs in the surrounding necropolis. The inscriptions are largely in English, with some English and Hebrew and exceptionally some German.
The most imposing memorial is that to Charles Semon, Bradford's first Jewish mayor. It is a towering, polished granite memorial, at least 20 feet high -- one of the largest Jewish tombs in the country. The inscription is modest, even minimalist, even if the stone work is not! The tombstone of Rabbi Strauss is not far off, and is a tasteful, inscribed, granite column. The ranks of the industrialists of Bradford include the rustic-stone tomb of Jacob Moser, the industrialist and Zionist. The stone stele, that marks Jacob Unna's tomb, may also be seen, as well as the tombstones of Leopold Fulda, Justus Heyn, Sylvester Sichel whose tomb is a stone pyramid!
Of other members of the Jewish community, the tomb of Henry Arensberg can be seen on the edge of the cemetery. Henry was the founder of Arensberg Jewellers.
An unusual gravestone for August Hamburg (d. 1885), is exceptional for being purely in German and may be the only Jewish gravestone in the country to be entirely in this language. One other gravestone has German and Hebrew elements (Hugo Dreshfeld, d. 1905). The memorial of Harry Kramrisch notes that he was Jugoslav consul for Bradford and that he died in Abergavenny in 1946.
The gravestone of Bertha and Moritz Rothstein, the parents of the artist Sir William Rothstein also stands in the cemetery, and is notable for its fine calligraphic style of lettering and its decoration motif at the top of the stone, which shows two suns, or large stars, whose rays extend to and intersect four smaller stars below -- this is most likely to be an original design by Rothstein himself and the motif probably represents his parents (the large stars) and their children -- touching tribute to his parents and a previously unattributed example of his work.
The stone ohel, has a Star of David window, and a Hebrew inscription and is a pleasing example of its kind.
There is a modern, separate extension of the cemetery some yards away, with intervening Christian burials and this section has additional modern burials. The new plot may be identified by its wrought iron gates with a pair of Stars of David that can be seen from the original cemetery.
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22. Orthodox Section
The Orthodox section of the cemetery lies at the bottom of the hill next to the main entrance of the cemetery. While it is larger than the Reform section it is more modest over all, with the tombstones and memorials largely conforming to the more modest memorial requirements of orthodoxy, though some of the older memorials while modest in size are notable for their ornamentation. There is a small modern brick ohel at the entrance to the site.The tombstones commemorate the local Bradford families, and like many Jewish cemeteries suggest other avenues of research in Bradford Jewish history. One of the most extensive Jewish families of Bradford were the Maisels family, who were a very extensive clan by head-stone count and indeed, the tombstone of Abraham Maisels (d. 1944) notes that he was a founder and President of the Orthodox congregation. Some of the tombstones note family lost in the Holocaust, and the recent tombstone of Abram Aronovsky, notes the particular connection of Bradford with the victims and survivors of the Kaunas (Kovno) Ghetto.
Another memorial, to Ben Kline (d.1918) notes his membership of the Bradford Lodge (No. 68?) of the Grand Order of Israel and carries the emblem of the lodge at the head of the stone -- another reminder of the importance of the masons to Victorian and Edwardian Jews and a significant tombstone in illustrating this facet of Jewish history. It is recorded that leading Bradford Jews were buried with Masonic rites.
Of the War dead, there is a memorial to Pte Joseph Bernstein who died in France in 1917. There is a memorial to a Bradford Jewish airman of World War II who went missing in action (Pilot Officer, Julius Bergson, 1942). There is one formal war-grave to E. Ohrenstein, 'A Victim Of German Facism', (d. 1945), another RAF man.
One of the more imposing memorials, notes that the son of Harris Silman; Jonah Sivan Silman of Jerusalem, was attach
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23. Orthodox Synagogue - Springhurst Road, Shipley
The Springhurst Road Orthodox Synagogue was built in 1970 and consecrated by Chief Rabbi Jakobovits, on 21 June 1970. This particular Synagogue was the replacement for the Spring Gardens Synagogue. The new building is a modern brick structure, with a striking menorah on the exterior, with the interior laid out in a traditional format including a women's gallery. There is also a Memorial plaque to the victims of the Holocaust.Top
24. St George's Concert Hall -- Bridge Street
St George's Hall was built in 1853 and overlooks the end of Hall Ings. It is a fine neo-classical building by the architects Lockwood & Mawson. The interior of the building is distinguished by its loftiness which enables all the audience to feel close to the stage, though Charles Dickens felt that the stage was too narrow.The concert hall was built by the city's German merchants and it represents their cultural aspirations and civic philanthropy. The German Jews were particularly active in the building of the cultural venue, and Jacob Moser was a prominent supporter of the project.
The Jewish merchants were apparently responsible for bringing the Hallé Orchestra to Bradford from 1865 and for forging the Hallé's special relationship with the town. The Hallé had been founded in 1857 in Manchester, by the German-born pianist and conductor, Charles Hallé and was England's first professional orchestra.
After Hallé's death in 1895, Gustav Behrens, was one of three guarantors who undertook to preserve the orchestra.
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