Synagogue Schweinfurter Straße (Niederwerrn)

First there was a prayer hall, then a first synagogue (small "shul", which belonged to the family of Löb Kaz). In 1786 the Jewish community built a new synagogue on today's property Schweinfurter Straße 23. Thanks to the generous support of the banker Löb Kent, who came from Niederwerrn, a monumental building could be erected, comparable in its dimensions and layout to the synagogue in Heidingsfeld (near Würzburg). The synagogue was rebuilt in 1885 and renovated in 1913. The building is notable for its characteristic mansard roof; a cornerstone bears the Hebrew year for 5546 = 1785/86. 
   
In the November pogrom of 1938, at noon on November 10, about 50 SA people came from Schweinfurt, equipped with hatchets and hammers. After devastating the Jewish houses, they entered the synagogue, destroyed the furniture and ritual objects, including Torah scrolls and Torah shrine curtains from the 18th century. The debris of the interior furnishings was thrown in a pile inside the synagogue and set on fire. Since a fire in the building would have posed a danger to the neighboring houses (used for agricultural purposes, among others), the fire department extinguished the fire. The political community bought a little later the synagogue for 3,000 RM and the Jewish school and community house for 7,000 RM (the value was estimated at 15,000 RM). 
   
In 1958, the former synagogue was converted into a cinema. Until 1987 it served as a storage hall of a factory and as a training room of the Chamber of Crafts. In 1999/2000, the building was converted into a municipal library and opened on January 19, 2001. With the help of urban development funding, monument preservation and library funding, the former synagogue was once again transformed into a gem for the entire community. For the design of the seven-meter-high room, architect Dag Schröder had a gallery built in, which takes into account the former sacral character of the room. In the furnishing, the space was left out on the east side where the Torah shrine stood in the former synagogue.