Little is known about the history of the Jewish community in Găleşti. The first Jewish community in Mureș County, where Găleşti is located, was founded in 1850. In 1866 the community established a synagogue. The community grew steadily in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

In the 1920s, 60% of Jews in Găleşti worked in trades. An additional 22.5% worked in industries and crafts. Mureș County’s predominant industries were wood, food, textiles, glass and ceramics, construction materials and musical instruments. Others worked in clerical positions, were independent professionals or worked as community employees.

In 1940, the northern portion of Transylvania, including Mureș County, transferred from Romanian to Hungarian rule. After King Carol II of Hungary formed an alliance with Adolf Hitler the treatment of Jews deteriorated. In March 1944, Germany invaded Hungary. By May of that year, centralized ghettos were formed in two of Mureș County’s larger cities, Reghin and Târgu Mureș. The Jews of Găleşti were presumably sent to one of these locations.

In May and June of 1944, approximately 7,500 Jews were deported from the Târgu Mureș ghetto to Auschwitz. An additional 3,000 were deported from Reghin in June.

Approximately 800 Jews returned to Mureș County following the war. Most later emigrated.