Cheers,
Happy Passover to those who celebrate. There’s no synagogue in Ipswich or Suffolk for that matter; however the local Sainsbury sells matzos. Here is some interesting Jewish history about Ipswich.
Ru
After visiting a number of churches in Ipswich I wondered if there were a synagogue. Nope, not since 1877 when the derelict synagogue was demolished.
http://www.jewishgen.org/ describes the “once upon a time” Jewish community in Ipswich.
A Suffolk synagogue?
“John Gottesman says there’s no focal point in Suffolk at the moment "The last community of any size was, I think, in Ipswich in 1884, and there’s still a small Jewish cemetery near the docks, but that’s the last community that I know of."
Another Suffolk Jew, Beverley Levi, says that’s unlikely to change: "At the moment there isn’t any kind of established community in Suffolk but we are working towards building up the community for people who live in the Ipswich area. We do have services sometimes, led by Rabbi Aaron Goldstein, at the Suffolk Inter Faith Resource Centre at Suffolk College.” http://www.bbc.co.uk
Old Jewish Cemetery.
There is an old, small, locked Jewish Cemetery not far from the marina. I found some directions on the internet and Randal and I went off to find it.
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Where we are… The badly drawn black arrow is the lock we entered into the marina area from the River Orwell. The small black dot straight up from the arrow is where we are berthed in the marina. The small circle is the area where the cemetery is located. The bigger circle is the center of Ipswich. It takes less than 15 minutes to walk to the center. |
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These are the directions I used to find the cemetery. Apparently it’s not marked to avoid anti-Semitic vandalism. I had seen photos on the Internet and had looked at a map to located Fore Rd and Salthouse Rd so vaguely knew where it was and what to look for. That was helpful as we came from the harbour rather than town centre as the directions seem to suppose. “Yes, this is the Old Jewish Cemetery, hidden away inside Paul’s car park. Cross Fore Lane from the Lord Nelson to the side with the tattoo parlour, and continue walking around the one way system towards the custom house but then sharply turn right into the car park with the private car park sign. The cemetery is around the corner. It contains about 20 headstones from about 1825 to 1850, all with Hebrew inscriptions. As with all urban graveyards, it was closed by Act of Parliament in the 1850s, and after that local Jewish people were buried in the Jewish plots of Ipswich Cemetery, which is equally fascinating. (Maybe will have to go see the Ipswich Municipal Cemetery some day.) |
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The Lord Nelson on Fore Lane |
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The Tattoo Parlour |
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Sort of back behind here through the private car park |
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Whatever might have been in the light square stone imbedded in the brick is no longer legible. The small sign is a recent caution sign. |
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The locked entry gate and a lock photo for Peter Field which says Squire Leopard. |
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I don’t know which one might be Sarah Lyon. Interesting that the Jewish cemetery in Muslim Georgetown Penang Malaysia was better maintained. |
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Jewish burial ground in Salthouse Lane, Ipswich “This small burial ground is situated in the middle of a car park off Salthouse Lane. Its red brick boundary walls date from around 1764, with later repairs. The burial ground has been in use from 1796 to 1855. The Grade II listed walls – known as Rogers’ Court after the then owner – enclose the burial ground on four sides and access is via a (padlocked) iron gate on the east side. There are two boundary marker stones set into the walls, said to date from the reign of George II. The marker on the exterior right side of the entrance gate is for St Clements Parish and the one in the internal left corner of the north wall is for St Mary Key. There is a buttress on the inner side of the north wall. The burial ground contains 36 tombstones of limestone, marble and Yorkstone, including 3 smaller footstones. The stones are all upright and arranged in seven rows in largely chronological order, and have inscriptions in Hebrew or Hebrew and English. Two or three stones have broken at the top, and the inscriptions on a number of the stones are no longer legible due to weathering. The earliest dated tombstone is 1797/8 (Jewish year 5558), and the latest is 1850. The stones are dedicated to members of the Ipswich Jewish community and other Jews from Harwich (2), Bury St Edmunds, Colchester (3) and one from London. At least three of the stones are dedicated to children. One of the burials was Sarah Lyon or Lyons, who died in 1808 at the age of 105. She was famous for her ripe old age and John Constable painted her portrait in 1804 when she was 101 years old. She was said to be the earliest Jewish settler in Ipswich in modern times. The burial ground was closed on 1 July 1855 under the Burial Act, and a Jewish plot was acquired in the municipal cemetery for future burials. After the closure the burial ground fell into disrepair, and was used as a poultry yard and later a refuse dump. The prayer hall that adjoined the burial ground had also fallen into a state of neglect and was claimed by a neighbour as his own property. In 1912, the firm of R & W Pauls (later BOCM Pauls) owned all the land and buildings surrounding the burial ground. After WWII the adjoining tenements were demolished but the burial ground was preserved and maintained by BOCM Pauls for the Board of Deputies.” |
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Sarah Lyon
Painting on the left by John Constable; one of his few portraits. 1822 Lethbridge engraving on right “Sarah Lyon was born in 1703, died Ipswich 1808. Constable painted her portrait when she was 101 years old. A miniature was done of her by Lethbridge at the age of 104, engraved by R. Roe and published by W.H. Smith Cambridge, September 4 1822. At age 105 her portrait was again engraved by J. Kinnerley from a miniature by W.S. Lethbridge, and published July 5th by W.S. Lethbridge at 96 Strand London. Another portrait of her at the age 105 is supposed to exist in Dublin, but whether this is an oil painting or an engraving I cannot say. Constable also painted the portrait of her son Isaac in his old age. Some of the Ansell family and its connections are descended from this remarkable centenarian. (Jewish Chronicle June 19, 1896 p21)". https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/soc.genealogy.jewish/kcVVFXApH3k |
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Sarah Lyon (1703-1807) Jews Burial Ground, Salthouse Lane, Ipswich. Sarah Lyon or Lyons was known for living to a great age and for being the subject of a John Constable painting. Sarah was probably born in the German village of Ashich in 1703. ‘She went into service at Amsterdam, Holland, where she lived till past her 27th year, at which time she married to Jacob Abraham, by whom she had one child only’ (Letter from J.A. to the Editor of the Monthly Magazine, March 10 1808 stating the information was given by her son, Isaac Abraham). She came to England after the birth of her son and married Abraham Lyons soon after her arrival. She would have been one of the early settlers, when people of the Jewish faith were allowed into this country again (in 1290 Jewish people were expelled from England). The Jewish Chronicle of 1896 wrote that Sarah had a son and a daughter, both also lived to be upwards of 90 years old and all lived in St Peter’s Parish, possibly in St Peters Street. The reference to Sarah having a daughter is contested by information in the Monthly Magaszine 1808, which indicates she had only one child. Ipswich was one of the few towns outside London where Jews settled. By 1750 there was an established community. The plot for the Jewish burial ground within the parish of St Clements was purchased by the community in 1796 and was in use for around 55 years. Sarah Lyon’s grave can be found in this burial ground. There are two portraits of Sarah Lyon. A large oil painting said to be ‘painted by John Constable about the year 1804 when she was 101 years old’ (Jewish chronicle 1896). The portrait hangs in Skirball Cultural Centre, Los Angeles. The second portrait is a print engraved from a lost miniature by WS Lethbridge. http://ipswichwomeninhistory.co.uk/1700s/sarah-lyons/ |
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http://www..galt-crtn.org/birman/ansell3a/ansell3a.htm tells the story of one family’s connection to Sarah Lyon |
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JCR-UK Susser Archives THE RISE OF PROVINCIAL JEWRY (The Early Communities – Section 3 – Exeter to Ipswich) Ipswich http://www.jewishgen.org/ gives more details about the Jewish community in Ipswich and Sarah Lyon |
