1905The Wallach Family

Looking at the list, one notices that a prominent family name is missing: the Wallach family.

The Wallach family was very prominent in Alsfeld. They were a Jewish family who settled here in the early 19th century. Meier Wallach (1806–1880), married to Sophie Spier (1808–1885), is considered the founder of the family.

Leopold Wallach (1833–1901) achieved prestige and wealth in Alsfeld: He owned a brewery, a timber trade, and was active as a local politician on the town council for over 20 years. From 1893 to 1898, he was also head of the Israelite community in Alsfeld. He was succeeded by Wilhelm Wallach (1862–1921) as head from 1905 to 1910. In 1875, Leopold and Hermann Wallach donated a piece of land to the Jewish community for a Jewish cemetery.

In the 20th century, Karl Wallach (1866–1935) continued the family business and expanded the brewery. However, he converted to Protestantism on December 14, 1905, just two weeks before the inauguration of the new synagogue! Although the family had felt committed to the Jewish community since the 19th century and its family members were buried in the Jewish cemetery, the name Wallach cannot be found on the synagogue box. The reasons for this are unknown. It is possible that the Wallach family was not Orthodox and therefore did not agree with the stricter regulations. By 1933, very few family members still lived in Alsfeld, most notably the master brewer Emil Wallach (1847–1933). His personal documents were found in the synagogue and handed over to the Historical and Museum Society in 1939. Karl Wallach had apparently become alienated from the Jewish religion. After being forced to sell his brewery in 1935 to the Genossenschaftsbrauerei GmbH in Alsfeld, he moved to Frankfurt. There, he passed away in the hospital of the Jewish community (Gagernstraße 36) on October 23, 1935.