CHOL home page
Links to some Southern African Jewish communities, where somebody is making a web presence
On this page you can click on a community to see what material has been assembled for each one listed, and see how you can navigate around the sites. Some are well structured so that there is a logical way to navigate them and find the information you are looking for. Others have posted interesting material in a fairly random fashion. If you have information to contribute about any of the listed communities please send it to info@chol.website and we will pass it on to the 'driver' of each community site.
The most complete coverage available of country towns is that of the SA Friends of Beth Hatefutsoth. Over the last thirty years they have researched more than 1550 places, including towns, villages, railway sidings and farms. Six regional books have been published and the seventh and final one is in preparation. A vast and valuable resource, the six volumes of 'Jewish Life in the South African Country Communities' can be purchased from their office: museum@beyachad.co.za. Click this link to access the list of country towns covered in the books.
| Location | Driver | Platform or format | Date established |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beaufort West | Natie Finkelstein | CHOL | 2023 |
| Bellville, Cape Town | Stanley Loon | CHOL | 2024 |
| Benoni | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2016 |
| Bloemfontein | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2015 |
| Brandfort | Faisia Shaskolsky | PDF book | 2015 |
| Caledon | Steve Albert | CHOL | 2023 |
| Cape Town: Jewish Cemeteries Board | Sam Galansky | Virtual cemetery | 2012 |
| Cape Town: Synagogue: Chassidishe Shul to Arthurs Road | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2014 |
| Cape Town: Synagogue: Marais Road, Sea Point | Gwynne Schrire | Kaplan Centre, UCT exhibition | c2012 |
| Cape Town: Synagogue: Ponevez Shul | Eli Rabinowitz | Blog | 2015 |
| Cape Town: Synagogues in the Gardens: The Great; Vredehoek; Schoonder Street | Geraldine Auerbach | CHOL PDF | 2023 |
| Cape Town: Miscellany | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2014 |
| Cape: Western Cape synagogues | Steven Albert | Blog | 2013 |
| Ceres | Jos Kahn | CHOL | 2023 |
| Clocolan | Lynette Karp | CHOL PDF | 2023 |
| Darling | Steve Albert | CHOL | 2023 |
| De Aar | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2015 |
| Durban | Stephen Gary Cohen | PhD thesis, University of Natal | 1982 |
| Durbanville, Cape Town | Vicky Scher | 2023 | |
| Germiston | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2014 |
| Graaff Reinet | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2016 |
| Grahamstown | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2016 |
| Johannesburg: Miscellany | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2015 |
| Johannesburg: Baragwanath Hospital | Various | 2024 | |
| Kimberley | Geraldine Auerbach / Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2014 |
| Kimberley: Baronial Street Synagogue | Geraldine Auerbach MBE | CHOL PDF | 2023 |
| Kimberley: Memorial Road Synagogue | Geraldine Auerbach MBE | CHOL PDF | 2023 |
| Kimberley: Virtual Cemetery | Geraldine Auerbach MBE | Virtual cemetery | 2024 |
| Ladismith | Gwynne Robins | PDF, Cape Jewish Chronicle | 2021 |
| Laingsburg | Steve Albert | CHOL | 2023 |
| Limpopo | Charlotte Wiener | PDF book | 2016 |
| Maitland, Cape Town | Philip Stodel | CHOL | 2024 |
| Malmesbury | Steve Albert | CHOL | 2023 |
| Medical 'communities' | Various | Various | Various |
| Muizenberg, Cape Town | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2013 |
| Oudtshoorn | Eli Rabinowitz/Geraldine Auerbach MBE | CHOL | 2025 |
| Paarl | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2017 |
| Parow, Cape Town | Professor Richard Mendelsohn | UCT Ibali | 2024 |
| Pietersburg | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2014 |
| Pietersburg | Charlotte Wiener | MA thesis, UNISA | 2006 |
| Port Elizabeth | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2014 |
| Potchefstroom | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2018 |
| Pretoria | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2014 |
| Riversdale | Cedric Nainkin | 2025 | |
| Roodepoort | Geoff Boner | CHOL | 2024 |
| SAJAC (South African Jewish American Community) | Pamela Nathan | Web site plus Facebook | 1987 |
| Springs | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2017 |
| Stellenbosch | Eli Rabinowitz / Gerald Potash | CHOL / KehilaLinks | 2023 |
| Taung | Geraldine Auerbach | CHOL PDF (see also Taung in Memoirs) | 2024 |
| Uniondale | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2016 |
| Upington | Bramie Lenhoff | KehilaLinks | 2014 |
| Vryburg: Community, family albums | Gary Sussman | Wix | 2020 |
| Vryburg: Miscellany | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2020 |
| Witbank | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2013 |
| Woodstock and Salt River, Cape Town | Herschel Gelbart | CHOL | 2025 |
| Worcester | Jeremy Hodes | Blogspot | 2024 |
| Maputo, Mozambique | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2017 |
| Mauritius | Eli Rabinowitz | KehilaLinks | 2017 |
| Zimbabwe and Zambia | Dave Bloom | Website | 2004, updated 2022 |
If you are thinking of making a web presence for your community
Consensus seems to say that you might like to assemble your text and pictures under the following headings. For assistance, please contact us at info@chol.website. We will be happy to get you started.
- Homepage – welcome / who you are / where the community is, etc.
- Timeline – from when Jews started to populate the area
- People – an A-Z directory of families or individuals linking to their own page if you have a family story
- Activities - here you can write about anniversaries, picnics weddings, bar- and bat-mitzvahs, theatricals, etc.
- Synagogue – the story of where and when Jews gathered for prayer
- Cemeteries – the grounds where they are buried
- Articles – printed and written articles about your town
- Updates – your communication with residents and ex-pats, if any
- Images – galleries of pictures if you have
- Contact – how people can get in touch with you
Please join the CHOL interactive email list to hear about meetings, workshops and other activities of CHOL – Community History On-Line (join by sending an email to listserv@jiscmail.ac.uk. Leave the subject line BLANK and in the message say: SUBSCRIBE CHOL followed by your First name and your Last name only (please delete any automatic signatures). Or contact info@chol.website and we will add you to the list.