Jews lived Savannah almost since the 1733 founding of the town by Oglethorpe. 42 Sephardic Jews, including a physician, from Recife, Brazil settled there. Five main burial sites for Jews in the city consist of the following:
SYNAGOGUES:
Agudath Achim: 9 Lee Blvd, Savannah, GA 31405 (912-352-4737), Contact: Harvey Rosenzweig, 213 Oxford Drive, Savannah, GA 31405 (912-355-3419)
B.B. (Bnai Brith) Jacob Congregation
Temple Mickve Israel, 20 Gordon Street, Savannah, GA 31401 (912-355-5439). Contacts: Clara G. Levy (912-356-1709) or Martin S. Leffler. Used Sheftall Cemetery and have records. Used Cohen Street since 1733.
1) Bonaventure Cemetery
2) Bull Street Cemetery
3) Laurel Grove Cemetery
4) Old Cemetery (a.k.a. Sheftall Cemetery)
5) Sheftall Family or Cohen St. Cemetery
Bonaventure Cemetery: See pictures. Bonaventure Cemetery, 330 Bonaventure Road, Savannah, GA 31410. Telephone: 912-651-6843. History of Bonaventure: http://www.geocities.com/midnightinsavannah/bonaventure2.html . Person to contact about grave locations: Jerry Flemming, Director. This huge city-owned cemetery originally did not set aside sections.
In order to have a separate Jewish section, the Orthodox Jewish community bought a very large portion, immediately off the cemetery road to the right as you enter the gates. A large two-story brick and glass preburial house is in the Jewish section. The main office at the entrance has cards for all the burials. The names are in alphabetic order, not by section. Source: Arline Sachs This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
All cemetery burials are indexed. No burial cards have biographical data, next-of-kin information, or health department numbers. Some have funeral director information. Cemetery hours are 8 AM to 5 PM. The suburban cemetery is active. Access is open to all. The cemetery has a gate that locks. The current size is 160 acres. The cemetery is divided into special sections and has special memorial monuments to the Holocaust. The present owner is the municipality: City of Savannah, Department of Cemeteries, PO Box 1027, Savannah, Georgia 31402. The cemetery is visited frequently. The City of Savannah, Department of Cemeteries, supplied information.
Bull Street Cemetery {indexed}. The oldest Savannah cemetery is located on the corner Bull Street and Oglethrope Avenue. In the median strip of the street next to a church across from Juliette Lowe's home is a sign that commemorates the original Jewish settlers. The back of the sign lists those known be buried there. See sign. A description of these founding settlers can also be found in Levy, B. H. Savannah's Old Jewish Community Cemeteries . Macon, Ga.: Mercer University Press, 1983. (ISBN: 0865540764 F294.S2 L47) The book includes short genealogies and biographies of persons interred. Available at the Leo Baeck Institute: ID # F 295 J5 L4 [LBI] and also in Small Collections at (AJA) American Jewish Archives, 3101 Clifton Ave. Cincinnati, Ohio 45220-2488; phone (513) 221-1875. (tel) 513-221-7812 (fax). This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Book is for sale at Mikve Israel Synagogue in Savannah. Source: Dr. Leonard Spialter This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
Old Jewish Cemetery: One set of names lists Catholics buried in Hebrew Cemetery. A second are from the Levy book
Cohen St. Cemetery: - Burials of the Sheftall Family (1797-1882). At Cohen & Spruce Streets, interments began in 1773. Because the 'old cemetery' also has the name Sheftall on the sign, this site is often confused with Mordechai Sheftal Cemetery. See: Postal & Koppman Jewish Tourist's Guide to U.S. . Phila: Jewish Publ. Soc., 1954, p. 131. Also called Broughton St. Cemetery, interments date from the 1770s. Source: Dr. Leonard Spialter This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
Website: http://www.cviog.uga.edu/Projects/gainfo/statues/jewishcem2.htm .
"Small Jewish Burial Ground" tombstone inscriptions may be found at SC-10880 and Microfilm No. 3004 at (AJA) American Jewish Archives,
3101 Clifton Ave. Cincinnati, Ohio 45220-2488; phone (513) 221-1875. (tel) 513-221-7812 (fax). This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Mordecai Sheftall Cemetery: List of persons buried in Mordecai Sheftall Cemetery, Savannah GA. 1771-1802. SC-11345 and Microfilm No. 3002 and in Vital Statistics file at (AJA) American Jewish Archives, 3101 Clifton Ave. Cincinnati, Ohio 45220-2488; phone (513) 221-1875. (tel) 513-221-7812 (fax). This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
Laurel Grove Cemetery: {10736} 802 West Anderson Street, Savannah, GA 31410. Telephone: 912-651-6772. Person to contact about grave locations: Jerry Flemming, Director. Names from Kaye Kole, 219 East Jones St. Savannah 31401; (912) 236-5461. Laurel Grove Cemeteries also is listed in Rabbi Stern's book First American Jewish Families. A Laurel Grove lot number is given; some information is from the Registers of Death volume with page number given in parenthesis. Many indicate "from Old Hebrew Cemetery" possibly removals from the old cemetery. The current size is 67 acres. Burial records. 1830-1893. SC-10878 and Microfilm No. 3002 at (AJA) American Jewish Archives, 3101 Clifton Ave. Cincinnati, Ohio 45220-2488; phone (513) 221-1875. (tel) 513-221-7812 (fax). This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.