The picture above presents quite a striking portrait of Rosa Isay. Not only does she seem rather dressed up for the occasion, but she also has a calm, friendly and confident gaze. Unfortunately, as the biography of Rosa Isay has only been partially constructible, which character traits and behavior were actually unique to her will remain unknown. But the few known details suggest that she led quite an eventful life. Sadly, many questions remain unanswered, which leaves a lot of room for interpretation.

 

Rosa was born in Laupheim on December 26, 1863 as the daughter of Babette Bernheim, a single mother (1838-1893). Her mother was known as Peppi Bernheim and is buried under this name in the Jewish cemetery in Laupheim, in grave S 17/3. Rosa grew up in Laupheim. On June 15, 1890, she married Isidor Isay in Pittsburg, who was born on December 30, 1863 in Schweich, near Trier. He was also from Germany, but from the Prussian area, as a remark in the registry record reveals. It is completely unclear how and where the two met and why she moved to Pittsburg, U.S.A.

 

The emigration and immigration of Jewish citizens of Laupheim, but also from other rural Jewish communities, started in the 19^th century. Nevertheless, the Jewish community in Laupheim continued to grow until 1869, at which point it consisted of 843 people. The following statistics, however, show a significant decrease thereafter: in 1886: 570; in 1900: 443; in 1910: 348; and in 1933: 235. Destinations of the Jewish citizens of Laupheim were bigger German cities like Ulm, Munich or Stuttgart, which offered better living and working conditions. The United States was also a destination for the emigrants, as it embodied the hopes of personal and religious freedom and the American dream of happiness and success. These hopes were unfortunately not to be fulfilled for Isidor and Rosa Isay. The birth of their daughter, Karoline Isay on April 16, 1891 in Pittsburg, was a promising start, but only two months later, on June 14, 1891, Isidor Isay died.

 

This stroke of fate might have led the young mother and her six month old daughter, who was known as Carry, to return to Laupheim in October 1891. Even though her husband’s relatives were living in Pittsburg, she preferred to move back to her hometown and her family. After all her mother was living in Laupheim.

 

As of October 1891 they were living at 59 Kapellenstrasse. The house had presumably been Peppi Bernheim’s parents’ house, and had therefore originally belonged to Leopold Bernheim and his wife Esther, neé Einstein. Nine of Peppi’s eleven siblings had died within a few days or weeks of their birth. Her two older brothers did reach adulthood and get married, but neither were buried in Laupheim. This suggests that they had left their hometown and Peppi Bernheim would have probably inherited her parent’s house. After Peppi died, Rosa Isay inherited it. Eventually, after Rosa’s death on July 24, 1939, the house was passed on to Rosa’s daughter Carry.

 

Very little is known about the lives of the women of Laupheim. Carry Isay attended the Jewish Volksschule (primary school) on Radstrasse. She is shown below on a class photo from 1904 or 1905 with her teacher Mr. Haymann. She is the girl in the second row from the top, second one from the right. This is the only existing picture of her. According to city records, after graduation she worked as a clerk and her mother, Rosa Isay, was a teacher, but where she had been employed could not be determined. In an interview from March 8, 1995, Pastor Burkert mentioned to Benigna Schönhagen that the Isays had once lived next door to the Kirschbaum sisters and across from the Burkert family. Carry used to work at the Bergmann’s hair salon. The Isays and the Burkerts visited each other so regularly that they were almost like housemates. The friendship between the Burkerts and their Jewish neighbors was well known, which remained steadfast during the period after 1933. After the war Rosa Burkert helped the Isay relatives as an authorized representative in matters regarding restitution.