Encyclopedia of Southern Jewish Communities - Holly Springs, Mississippi
Overview >> Mississippi >> Holly Springs
Overview
Holly Springs, a town of approximately 8,000 residents in North Mississippi, sits roughly 50 miles southeast of Memphis and 30 miles north of Oxford (home of the University of Mississippi). The town was founded along with Marshall County in 1836 and serves as the county seat. Both were established on land that had been occupied by the Chickasaw Nation for centuries before Indian Removal. As Holly Springs grew in the mid-19th century, it became a prosperous trading hub for the surrounding countryside. The area was majority African American by the time of the Civil War, and the Black majority increased in subsequent decades.The most famous Holly Springs native was Ida B. Wells-Barnett, a Black journalist and activist known for her campaign to end lynching.
Holly Springs attracted Jewish settlers by the mid-19th century, and a small Jewish population remained there until the 1970s. The first Jews likely arrived in the area as peddlers, and those who put down roots in Holly Springs most commonly made their livings as merchants.
Holly Springs attracted Jewish settlers by the mid-19th century, and a small Jewish population remained there until the 1970s. The first Jews likely arrived in the area as peddlers, and those who put down roots in Holly Springs most commonly made their livings as merchants.
Jewish Life in Holly Springs
The Mid-19th Century and the Civil War
Although Jewish pedders may have made their way through Holly Springs before the 1850s, the first documented Jewish settler in the town was I.C. Levy, a French immigrant who started a clothing store there in 1858. His family remained in business in Holly Springs for more than three generations.
When the Civil War broke out in 1860, the railroad connections that had made Holly Springs a commercial hub also made it an attractive military center. General Ulysses S. Grant and his troops established their winter headquarters there in late 1862.
Both the Union and Confederate governments made efforts to control trade for their own strategic purposes during the Civil War, and Jewish traders came under suspicion of profiteering from both sides of the conflict. In order to control the cotton trade in occupied areas of Mississippi and adjacent states, the United States Treasury Department mandated that all merchants in the area sell their cotton at a price of 25 cents per pound. Merchants and farmers in Union-controlled territory had to take an oath on this order and follow the government-mandated system.
In 1862 Union officers believed that Jewish traders were smuggling goods across Union barricades in defiance of their efforts to maintain economic order within the region. On December 17 General Grant issued General Orders Number 11, a decree that expelled all Jews from Holly Springs and the rest of the military district under his control. This even applied to Jews who were not involved in the cotton trade. General Grant claimed that Jews were “a curse to the army.” The order was not carried out, for the most part, but a handful of Jews in Holly Springs were temporarily detained and more were forced to relocate—in some cases by foot—to Memphis. Officials in Paducah, Kentucky, also expelled Jewish citizens there. News of the order quickly spread, angering Jews nationwide. After intense lobbying from Jewish leaders, President Abraham Lincoln soon rescinded it, and the order came to be regarded as a stain on General Grant’s career.
Although Jewish pedders may have made their way through Holly Springs before the 1850s, the first documented Jewish settler in the town was I.C. Levy, a French immigrant who started a clothing store there in 1858. His family remained in business in Holly Springs for more than three generations.
When the Civil War broke out in 1860, the railroad connections that had made Holly Springs a commercial hub also made it an attractive military center. General Ulysses S. Grant and his troops established their winter headquarters there in late 1862.
Both the Union and Confederate governments made efforts to control trade for their own strategic purposes during the Civil War, and Jewish traders came under suspicion of profiteering from both sides of the conflict. In order to control the cotton trade in occupied areas of Mississippi and adjacent states, the United States Treasury Department mandated that all merchants in the area sell their cotton at a price of 25 cents per pound. Merchants and farmers in Union-controlled territory had to take an oath on this order and follow the government-mandated system.
In 1862 Union officers believed that Jewish traders were smuggling goods across Union barricades in defiance of their efforts to maintain economic order within the region. On December 17 General Grant issued General Orders Number 11, a decree that expelled all Jews from Holly Springs and the rest of the military district under his control. This even applied to Jews who were not involved in the cotton trade. General Grant claimed that Jews were “a curse to the army.” The order was not carried out, for the most part, but a handful of Jews in Holly Springs were temporarily detained and more were forced to relocate—in some cases by foot—to Memphis. Officials in Paducah, Kentucky, also expelled Jewish citizens there. News of the order quickly spread, angering Jews nationwide. After intense lobbying from Jewish leaders, President Abraham Lincoln soon rescinded it, and the order came to be regarded as a stain on General Grant’s career.
Late 19th and Early 20th Centuries
In 1878, around 50 Jews lived in the Marshall County area. I.C. Levy, who had done business in Holly Springs since 1858, was a member of the building committee for the local Masonic temple. Charles Schneider sold dry goods there by 1870, and new families began to arrive in the area with names such as Shumacker, Behr, Meyer, Grosskin, Leibson, and Sessels. While most were French, some were Russian immigrants, representing the increasing number of East European Jews who arrived in the United States throughout the late 19th century.
The Jewish community in and around Holly Springs never developed its own institutions due to its small size and proximity to Memphis. Holly Springs Jews travelled to Memphis for the High Holidays and other important religious events. Most Jewish residents of Holly Springs chose to be buried in Memphis Jewish cemeteries as well.
While Holly Springs only attracted a limited Jewish population, several Jewish families did well for themselves in the small town. In the early 1900s, Isidor Blumenthal’s Lady’s Clothing Store was known for selling quality goods at fair prices. Blumenthal’s shop became popular throughout Marshall County for its bargain fairs, which attracted people from outlying areas to the store. About the same time, the Shumacker brothers outfitted men with all types of clothing, and their success translated into other ventures; one of the brothers became a director on the executive board of Merchants’ & Farmers’ Bank. Other successful merchants entered the field of banking, and the Merchants' & Farmers' Bank of Holly Springs included at least one Jewish board member for many decades.
In the 1920s, Mr. H. Myers ran a haberdashery, The Style Shop, while Leo Leibson excelled in high quality shoes and shoe repair. Aside from the longstanding I. C. Levy Department Store and the shorter-lived Esler’s store, fewer Jewish businesses existed between 1930 and 1950, but optometrist Dr. J.W. Rothchild advertised his Oxford, Mississippi, business in the Holly Springs newspaper. While some clients travelled to see him in Oxford, for many years Dr. Rothchild visited Holly Springs on a weekly basis to see patients there.
Beyond business successes, Jews in Holly Springs enjoyed relative acceptance in white Christian society. Several local Jews reportedly attended weekly services at the First Presbyterian Church. According to these stories, these Jews were under no pressure to worship there, but the church’s tolerant and wholesome nature attracted Jews to come on Sundays. This practice continued even as late as the 1970s when some of the last Jews left Holly Springs. Interestingly, most Jews were buried in Memphis, but the Kohner family of the 1960s specifically requested burial in the Presbyterian Hillcrest Cemetery.
The story of Jews attending First Presbyterian Church certainly reflected tolerance among the Holly Springs community as well as assimilation by Jews into white southern society. As elsewhere, assimilation also led to interfaith marriages. In the 1920s, the South Reporter described an Oxford gentleman named Sam Friedman marrying a Christian woman and celebrating Easter with non-Jewish families.
In 1878, around 50 Jews lived in the Marshall County area. I.C. Levy, who had done business in Holly Springs since 1858, was a member of the building committee for the local Masonic temple. Charles Schneider sold dry goods there by 1870, and new families began to arrive in the area with names such as Shumacker, Behr, Meyer, Grosskin, Leibson, and Sessels. While most were French, some were Russian immigrants, representing the increasing number of East European Jews who arrived in the United States throughout the late 19th century.
The Jewish community in and around Holly Springs never developed its own institutions due to its small size and proximity to Memphis. Holly Springs Jews travelled to Memphis for the High Holidays and other important religious events. Most Jewish residents of Holly Springs chose to be buried in Memphis Jewish cemeteries as well.
While Holly Springs only attracted a limited Jewish population, several Jewish families did well for themselves in the small town. In the early 1900s, Isidor Blumenthal’s Lady’s Clothing Store was known for selling quality goods at fair prices. Blumenthal’s shop became popular throughout Marshall County for its bargain fairs, which attracted people from outlying areas to the store. About the same time, the Shumacker brothers outfitted men with all types of clothing, and their success translated into other ventures; one of the brothers became a director on the executive board of Merchants’ & Farmers’ Bank. Other successful merchants entered the field of banking, and the Merchants' & Farmers' Bank of Holly Springs included at least one Jewish board member for many decades.
In the 1920s, Mr. H. Myers ran a haberdashery, The Style Shop, while Leo Leibson excelled in high quality shoes and shoe repair. Aside from the longstanding I. C. Levy Department Store and the shorter-lived Esler’s store, fewer Jewish businesses existed between 1930 and 1950, but optometrist Dr. J.W. Rothchild advertised his Oxford, Mississippi, business in the Holly Springs newspaper. While some clients travelled to see him in Oxford, for many years Dr. Rothchild visited Holly Springs on a weekly basis to see patients there.
Beyond business successes, Jews in Holly Springs enjoyed relative acceptance in white Christian society. Several local Jews reportedly attended weekly services at the First Presbyterian Church. According to these stories, these Jews were under no pressure to worship there, but the church’s tolerant and wholesome nature attracted Jews to come on Sundays. This practice continued even as late as the 1970s when some of the last Jews left Holly Springs. Interestingly, most Jews were buried in Memphis, but the Kohner family of the 1960s specifically requested burial in the Presbyterian Hillcrest Cemetery.
The story of Jews attending First Presbyterian Church certainly reflected tolerance among the Holly Springs community as well as assimilation by Jews into white southern society. As elsewhere, assimilation also led to interfaith marriages. In the 1920s, the South Reporter described an Oxford gentleman named Sam Friedman marrying a Christian woman and celebrating Easter with non-Jewish families.
The Decline of Cotton and the Holly Springs Jewish Community
While cotton had once been king in Holly Springs, economic changes brought new trends to the one-time trading hub of northern Mississippi. The local, cotton-centered agricultural economy suffered during the early 20th century, and the county’s overall population declined for several decades. Economic stagnation and the out-migration of potential customers led to fewer opportunities for Jewish merchants, even as reduced Jewish migration from Europe and the death of some longtime Jewish residents caused the local Jewish population to decline to as low as 20 individuals by 1937. Although the arrival of new industrial jobs bolstered the Holly Springs population during the mid-century period, the Jewish community continued to dwindle. As the older generations of local Jews disappeared, younger generations were attracted to the lucrative opportunities of Memphis and left Marshall County for good.
With the passing and the migration of the last two families, the Levys and the Kohners, the Jewish community of Holly Springs ceased to function by the 1970s. As of the early 21st century, older locals still remember the Jewish families who once resided in Holly Springs—local citizens who contributed to multiple facets of Holly Springs history.
With the passing and the migration of the last two families, the Levys and the Kohners, the Jewish community of Holly Springs ceased to function by the 1970s. As of the early 21st century, older locals still remember the Jewish families who once resided in Holly Springs—local citizens who contributed to multiple facets of Holly Springs history.