The Jewish community of the small village of Höchst im Odenwald first arrived in the 1600s CE. Over the next centuries the Jewish population continued to grow and by 1871 had reached a peak of about 190 residents. In 1904 the Jewish community built a third synagogue which was followed by a neighboring community center in 1918.

Survivor Fred Floersheimer was born in Höchst on November 27, 1931, the town where his family had lived for generations. Floersheimer recalled that his grandfather served as the “well-respected” rabbi of the town’s traditional Orthodox Jewish community. Floersheimer explained that “he did all the weddings, did all the funerals, [and] he also koshered the meat.”

Floersheimer’s parents were similarly active in the life of the community. Both were members of the town choral and bicycle clubs. Floersheimer remembered that “our Christian neighbors celebrated Jewish holidays with my family, and my mother celebrated their holidays like Christmas.” Floersheimer’s father also served as the cantor, or prayer leader, of the synagogue.

However, many members of the Jewish community began to leave Germany as anti-Jewish political parties gained popularity across Europe. By the time Hitler came to power in Germany in 1933 only about 90 Jews remained in Höchst im Odenwald.

Over the next five years Jews’ rights were systematically curtailed. As a prominent member of the community, Floersheimer’s father received threats and fled to Frankfurt for safety. The family was forced to give up their home and business. Floersheimer recounted how during the Kristallnacht pogrom of November 1938 his father was sent to the Dachau concentration camp and Nazis “burned down the synagogue where my grandfather led services.” Floersheimer’s mother worked tirelessly to secure her husband’s release and find a relative to sponsor the family’s immigration to the United States. The family succeeded in departing for New York a few weeks later.

In 1942 the last 14 Jews still living in Höchst were deported to concentration camps, signaling the end of the centuries-old Jewish community.