The Jews were mostly from Russia and Poland and their taking on of Jewish labour corresponded exactly with the massive influx of Eastern European Jews from persecution. Not all of the Jews worked at Holloways as some went to work for Hill Paul, the other major company in the town.
It is of note that while most of the Jews in Stroud recorded in the 1881 Census had come from Eastern Europe, most had come more immediately through a large number of other English towns and cities - London, Middlesborough, Nottingham, Liecester, Falmouth (Rabbi Orler), and nearby Painswick. Some also came from Methyr Tydfil (Rabbi Samuel Shynman) in South Wales. A small number seem to have come direct from the continent - for example from Louhenburg, Germany and even New York! This can be seen by looking at age and birth place of their children, which given the number and frequency of the children provides a good general curriculum vitae of the Jewish families of Stroud. Unfortunately this method does not reveal any data about the more immediate travels of the single Jewish men of Stroud.
One can only speculate on the psychological impact that the advent of this alien community had on the locals in Stroud. Here were people with cosmopolitan origins, languages, experiences and culture that many of the local people could hardly have imagined before their arrival.
Next
