Those with ancestors from the Kraichgau region of Baden may be interested in a Mohel book that I recently came across on the website of the National Library of Israel at https://merhav.nli.org.il/permalink/f/ldj0th/NNL_ALEPH11340766590005171or also try https://www.nli.org.il/en/manuscripts/NNL_ALEPH997008553870105171/NLI#$FL135781875. 

 

This is not the original Mohel book, but instead is a German transcription prepared in the mid-1930s, by Sigmund Jeselsohn of Neckarbischofsheim. The original book recorded the circumcisions performed by Rabbi Seligmann from Hüffenhardt during the years 1687 to 1730.  An article from Jeseloshn wrote about the book in "Der Israelit" is reproduced at http://www.alemannia-judaica.de/hueffenhardt_synagoge.htm. 

 

There are about 1,200 entries in the book. The towns with the most entries are  Neckarbischofsheim - 68 entries, Odenheim - 42 entries, Neidenstein - 33, Heinsheim - 38, Ittlingen - 34, Eichtersheim - 34, Flehingen - 33, Weiler - 33,Steinsberg - 33, Stein am Kocher - 29, Mosbach - 31, Wimpfen am Neckar - 28, Rappenau -27, Michelfeld - 27, and Hirschhorn am Neckar - 24 .

 

I have started to extract some of the towns and you can see those entries on a spreadsheet at http://tinyurl.com/mohelbookindexsh . This is sorted by town and then by father's name. Although the Mohel was active in a particular town that does not mean that he was the only Mohel who families there would have used.

 

The second part of the book is a similar transcription of 636 entries from the Mohel book of Aron Kaufmann Baer of Neckarbischofsheim (and later Frankfurt) for 1836 to 1875.

Alex Calzareth
JewishGen Director of Research for Germany
alcalz@...
New York, NY