Searching for traces in the past and present
The University of Münster digital exhibition celebrating 1700 years of Jewish life in Germany.
Originally planned as a mobile exhibition on historical door panels, 14 digital doors with (hi)stories from different locations lead to the diverse Jewish past of Münsterland. The doors are juxtaposed with seven film episodes that make it possible to experience up close how the Jewish community in Münster currently lives its everyday life.
digital
Exhibition
of the Universität Münster
Münster
Jewish life
In Münster and in Münsterland –
an interactive map
With the help of citizen scientists, Expedition Münsterland has been exploring the Münster region for more than ten years, addressing various research questions and making science tangible and accessible for people on their doorsteps. The exhibition is based on traces that were found in four excursions through all parts of Münsterland, with mixed teams comprising academics, the general public, and students involved in co-creative processes to work on and present
content on a number of locations that they themselves chose.
At the suggestion of Expedition Münsterland, the FilmLAB of the University of Münster has also produced in close cooperation with the Jewish community of Münster a documentary film in several episodes that brings contemporary Jewish life alive.
Click on the texts in the key
Hover over
the coloured
dots on
the map
Münster
Einführung
AFO
Borken-Gemen
Mikwe
Telgte
Friedhof & Synagogen
Billerbeck
Friedhof
Münster
Jüdischer Friedhof
Münster
Marks-Haindorf-Stiftung
Burgsteinfurt
Jüdische Schule
Burgsteinfurt
Geschichte der jüdischen Schule & letzter Lehrer
Dülmen
Hermann-Leeser-Schule
Westerkappeln
Hachschara Hof Stern
Riga
Deportation-sort des Münster-landes
Lengerich
Lengericher Gedenkpfad LWL-Klinik
Borghorst
Synagoge & Villa Heimann
Lengerich
Stolpersteine
Jüdisches Leben in Münster und im Münsterland vor 1945
Until the Holocaust, there was Jewish life in many places in Münsterland – they are marked in grey on the interactive map. These places have been explored in the “Historical Handbook of Jewish Communities in Westphalia and Lippe”, a four-volume work published by the Institute for Comparative Urban History and the Historical Commission for Westphalia.
There is a volume each for the districts of Arnsberg, Detmold and Münster that explores locations where autonomous Jewish life is known to have existed. A further volume, “Foundations – Findings – Perspectives”, places the research results of the three volumes on a supra-regional level in the context of general history.
Entering the past
and present
We invite you to enter the past through the doors, to discover traces and remember Jewish stories. The film episodes provide insights into the present and allow you to learn about the Jewish community in Münster. The different perspectives and experiences result in an enthralling and contrasting overview that helps dismantle feelings of wariness and suspicion.
Scroll to
move on
to the
next door
Introduction AFO
Expedition Münsterland of the Innovation Office and its citizen science projects.
Film – Rites & tradition
Münster
The episode gives an insight into the rites and traditions of the traditional community in Münster.
Jewish cemetery
and synagogues
Telgte
Desecration of the cemetery left only
a few gravestones remaining.
Cemetery in Billerbeck
The missing graves at the Jewish cemetery in Billerbeck: the Albersheim-Eichenwald family history and the Shoah memorial
Film – Researching the history of a cemetery | Münster
The episode shows the old Jewish cemetery in Münster.
Jewish
cemetery,
Münster
The Jewish cemetery on Einsteinstraße in Münster is a testimony to 200 years of Jewish-German history in Münsterland.
The Marks-Haindorf Foundation
Münster
On 28 November 1825, the Jewish doctor Alexander Haindorf founded the “Association for the promotion of crafts among Jews and for the foundation of a school in which poor and orphaned children are to be taught and future Jewish school teachers are to be trained”.
Film – New beginning & change – 1945 until today |Münster
The episode is dedicated to the community’s recent past following the Shoa.
Film – Hatikvah – Young people in the community | Münster
The episode provides insights into working with children and young people in the community.
History of the Jewish school in Burgsteinfurt and its last teacher
In the middle of the old town centre of Burgsteinfurt, stands on Kautenstege an inconspicuous block of rented flats, surrounded by parking spaces. There is nothing to suggest that this is a building with a special, yet barely known, history: it is the former Jewish school of Burgsteinfurt.
The Jewish school, Burgsteinfurt
The Jewish school in Burgsteinfurt is one of the oldest Jewish schools in Westphalia.
Film – Place of the community
Münster
The episode follows members to choir practice, senior club, and community get-togethers at Club Judaica.
Farming as a point of escape: On Hakhshara in Westphalia
The “Kibbutz Westerbeck” near Westerkappeln: the forgotten vocational training centre for young Jews on a farm in Münsterland, 1933-1938/39
Film – Organization and commitment | Münster
In this episode, chair Sharon Fehr explains how the community organizes itself democratically.
Lengerich memorial
path, LWL
clinic
The memorial path of the LWL clinic in Lengerich commemorates the state-organized murders of the sick during the National Socialist era, and provides information on the injustices suffered.
Riga
Münsterlands site of Deportation
The deportation of Jews from Münsterland to Riga on 13 December 1941
Traces of Jewish life in Borghorst
The initiative “Stolpersteine Steinfurt-Borghorst” remembers the fate of Jewish residents, and calls for a living culture of remembrance.
Stolpersteine
Lengerich
Researching the lives of fellow citizens Leonore Kaufmann and Albert Abrahamson from Lengerich provides insights into the harrowing details of their lives and how they were murdered.
Film – The community in the city
Münster
In this episode, members talk about how the community interacts with the general public.
now furthe
to the right scroll
Introduction AFO
Expedition Münsterland of the Innovation Office and its citizen science projects.
Film – Rites & tradition
in Münster
The episode gives an insight into the rites and traditions of the traditional community in Münster.
Jewish cemetery and synagogues Telgte
Desecration of the cemetery left only
a few gravestones remaining.
Cemetery in Billerbeck
The missing graves at the Jewish cemetery in Billerbeck: the Albersheim-Eichenwald family history and the Shoah memorial
Film –Researching the history of a cemetery | Münster
The episode shows the old Jewish cemetery in Münster.
Jewish
cemetery,
Münster
The Jewish cemetery on Einsteinstraße in Münster is a testimony to 200 years of Jewish-German history in Münsterland.
The Marks-Haindorf Foundation Münster
On 28 November 1825, the Jewish doctor Alexander Haindorf founded the “Association for the promotion of crafts among Jews and for the foundation of a school in which poor and orphaned children are to be taught and future Jewish school teachers are to be trained”.
Film – New beginning & change – 1945 until today | Münster
The episode is dedicated to the community’s recent past following the Shoa.
The Jewish school, Burgsteinfurt
The Jewish school in Burgsteinfurt is one of the oldest Jewish schools in Westphalia.
History of the Jewish school in Burgsteinfurt and its last teacher
In the middle of the old town centre of Burgsteinfurt, stands on Kautenstege an inconspicuous block of rented flats, surrounded by parking spaces. There is nothing to suggest that this is a building with a special, yet barely known, history: it is the former Jewish school of Burgsteinfurt.
Film – Hatikvah – Young people in the community| Münster
The episode provides insights into working with children and young people in the community.
Farming as a point of escape: On Hakhshara in Westphalia
The “Kibbutz Westerbeck” near Westerkappeln: the forgotten vocational training centre for young Jews on a farm in Münsterland, 1933-1938/39
Film –Place of the community
Münster
The episode follows members to choir practice, senior club, and community get-togethers at Club Judaica.
Riga Münsterlands site of Deportation
The deportation of Jews from Münsterland to Riga on 13 December 1941
Lengerich memorial path, LWL clinic
The memorial path of the LWL clinic in Lengerich commemorates the state-organized murders of the sick during the National Socialist era, and provides information on the injustices suffered.
Film – Organization and commitment | Münster
In this episode, chair Sharon Fehr explains how the community organizes itself democratically
Traces of Jewish life in Borghorst
The initiative “Stolpersteine Steinfurt-Borghorst” remembers the fate of Jewish residents, and calls for a living culture of remembrance.
Stolpersteine
Lengerich
Researching the lives of fellow citizens Leonore Kaufmann and Albert Abrahamson from Lengerich provides insights into the harrowing details of their lives and how they were murdered.
Film – The community in the city Münster
In this episode, members talk about how the community interacts with the general public.
