ZIKHRON YA'AQOV

'Zikhron Ya'aqov' (Hebrew: ; also 'Zichron Yaakov') (meaning "Jacob's Memorial") is a town in Israel, 35 km south of Haifa, part of the Haifa District. It is located at the end of the Carmel mountain range overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, near the coastal highway (Route 2), and is a 10-minute drive from the train station in Binyamina.

Contents

History

Modern-day town

External links

History

Zikhron Ya'aqov was founded in December 1882 when 100 Jewish pioneers from Romania, members of the Hovevei Zion movement, purhcased a strip of land in what was known as Zammarin. Even before the end of their first year in the region, however, difficult economic conditions caused by rocky soil and malaria from the swamps below forced some of the settlers to leave.
In 1883, Baron Edmond James de Rothschild became the patron of the settlement and drew up plans for its residential layout and agricultural economy. Zichron was one of the first Jewish agricutural colonies to come under the wing of the Baron (along with Rishon LeZion and Rosh Pina), who renamed it in memory of his father, James (Jacob) Mayer de Rothschild.
To accomplish his first objective, Baron de Rothschild brought in planners who designed and allotted housing lots along the main road for the use of settlement farmers. Each lot included a house facing the street, a long interior courtyard and a rear building for storing agricultural implements. The French-inspired architecture included tiled roofs and painted wooden windows. Each farmer was given a salary and placed under the direction of Elijah Shaid, the Baron's clerk. The Baron also commissioned the construction of a magnificent synagogue to serve the town, sparing no expense to build the edifice, named ''Ohel Yaakov'' ("Tent of Jacob," an allusion to his father's namesake, the biblical Jacob, who "dwelled in tents" according to Genesis 25:27) in memory of his father. The synagogue, which has a large main section for men and a second-floor, wraparound women's section, features a majestic ark made of white marble and marble interior walls. The synagogue opened in 1886 and has conducted daily prayer services continuously to this day.
Following a number of economic failures, in 1885 Rothschild helped to establish the first winery in Israel, Carmel-Mizrahi Winery, together with a bottling factory, in Zikhron Ya'aqov. This was more successful economically although it was initially short-lived as in 1892 the grapevines succumbed to phylloxera, a type of parasite. After a brief set-back, American seedlings which were resistant to phylloxera were grown and the winery began to flourish. Today, the winery remains in action, as do the huge wine cellars that were carved into the mountain over a century ago.


Zikhron Ya'aqov came to fame during World War I for the establishment of the Nili spy ring by Sarah Aaronsohn, together with her brothers, Aaron (a noted botanist) and Alex, and their friend Avshalom Feinberg. The group volunteered to spy on Ottoman positions and report them to British agents offshore. In September 1917, the Ottomans caught one of Sarah's carrier pigeons and cracked the Nili code. In October, they surrounded Zikhron Ya'aqov and arrested Sarah and several others. After four days of torture, Sarah managed to shoot herself with a pistol concealed on the premises. The Aaronsohn House–Nili Museum recreates the history of this period.
In the late 1930s and 1940s, Zikhron Ya'akov became a holiday resort and its population increased dramatically in the early 1950s following the foundation of the State of Israel in 1948. Between the 1960s and 1990s, the population remained quite constant with about 5,000 inhabitants. 1954 was a notable year in Zikhron's history as the remains of the Baron Edmond de Rothschild's were transferred to a Mausoleum in the town which he worked so hard to develop. Also buried in Zikhron Ya'akov is the labor leader David Remez, who spent many years in the village as a Halutz.

Modern-day town

Today, Zikhron Ya'aqov has a population of 16,100 (as of late 2005). Many residents continue to engage in agriculture, although upscale private homes have been built by families attracted to the scenic landscape. There is a sizable religious Jewish community in the town, including Haredi members of the Ohr Yaakov Yeshiva founded by Yeshivas Ohr Somayach of Jerusalem and members of a Chabad-Lubavitch community.
The original Carmel-Mizrahi Winery continues to make wine in Zikhron, whilst another winery, the Tishbi Winery founded by Jonathan Tishbi is also based here. The town draws many tourists attracted to its picturesque setting and historic city center whose restored main street of landmark buildings, called ''Derech HaYayin'' ("Path of the Wine"), houses coffeehouses and boutique shops selling locally-made crafts, jewellery, and antiques.

External links

★ History of Zikhron Ya'aqov

★ Photos of Restoration of Historic Zikhron Ya'aqov Project

★ Photo gallery by Benny Rochwerger