Asta Bidspirit | Archive of Historical Documents and

Archive of Historical Documents and Letters from the Establishment of the Moshava Bnei Berak in 1925 until the First Years of the State - An archive that includes approximately 35 letters, documents, certificates and invitations, from the first years of the agricultural Moshava Bnei Berak until its first years as the city of Torah and Hassidism. The archive also includes important and rare autographs of the most prominent rabbis in Israel, Zionist leaders and well-known writers and journalists. The various documents reflect the special spirit that had accompanied the establishment of Bnei Berak and describe the challenges and deliberations that its first settlers had to face. The archive contains valuable historical material. Its documents have never been published until now. Following is a partial list of the documents, according to subjects: The purchase of the land and the building of the Moshava On the fifth of Iyar 5682 (3.5.1922), the founders purchased the first plots of land of Bnei Berak from several Arab families from the village of Ebn Ibraq. The sale was negotiated by the ”Geulah” company and the efforts of its manager, Bezalel Yaffe, who signed some of the documents before us from the first days of the Moshava. Two years later, in Sivan 1924, the first group of immigrants from Poland settled in Bnei Berak and built its first houses. Before us are important documents from the first years of Bnei Berak: • Official document by the ”Geulah” Company, to ”Agudat Bayit Ve'Nachala” in Tel Aviv and its heads, Y.L. Pinchas and Yisrael Chavas. (On the upper part of the leaf it is written: ”Leaf 2”. The first leaf is missing). The document details various terms related to the purchase of the lands of Bnei Berak and the conditions of the sale. Stamp of the Geulah Company and the signature of Bezalel Yaffe, its manager. Undated. Most likely, summer 1922, when the lands of Bnei Berak were purchased. On the reverse side of the leaf, various stamps. This document is early, even before the first settlers came to Bnei Berak. • Official letter by the Geulah Company to Yisrael Chavas an Y.L. Pinchas, the managers of ”Bayit Ve'Nachala” in Tel Aviv, about the suggestion of Dr. Moshe Wallach of Jerusalem. 25th of Kislev 5684 (3.12.1923). Stamp of the Geulah Company and the signature of Bezalel Yaffe, its manager. This letter is also early. • Official letter by the Geulah Company, by its manager Bezalrl Yaffe and with his signature, to Reb Yitzchak Gershteinkoren, one of the founders of Bnei Berak. 17th of Iyar 5685 (11.5.1925). • In the letter before us, Yaffe describes the difficulty to reach the big city - Tel Aviv: ”the cars are worn out, the wagons break down and the beasts of burden cannot carry their load … and although the road is greatly neglected, the traffic between the Moshava (and other Moshavot in the area) and Tel Aviv is heavy, since it is the major consumer of the land's products …”Yaffe explains that ”a good road is a prerequisite for the development of the Yishuv, the increase in production and reduction of prices”. Therefore, he asks the committee of ”Bayit Ve'Nachala” in Bnei Berak ”to send a representative for a delegation that will present the case before the Baron Rothschild, complaining about the state of the road and the government's attitude, and ask him to help influence the government to help the Yishuv”. The letter implies that Bnei Berak as a Moshava, together with the other Moshavot, supplied agricultural products and milk to Tel Aviv. The initiative to appeal to the Baron Rothschild was unknown until now! • Letter by Rabbi Ben Zion Meir Chai Uziel, the rabbi of Tel Aviv, on official stationery from the 6th of Tishrei 5689 (20.9.1928) to the committee of Bnei Berak. • Rabbi Uziel thanks the settlers for their greeting for the New Year and blesses them: ”Be strong and for good courage in your work, which combines Torah and work … we shall help in what we can to develop your Moshava on the base of the healthy foundations of Torah and Avodah…” his signature with an addition of a line in his handwriting. • An additional letter by Rabbi Uziel, on official stationery of the Rabbinate of Tel Aviv, signed by him, to the committee of the Moshava, from the 17th of Elul 5690 (10.9.1930). • In the letter, Rabbi Uziel apologizes for not being able to accept the invitation to the party that will take place in the Moshava and adds his greetings: ”May you spread to the right and the left to build the wilderness of our country and settle it with Jews who will be in soul and mind like the disciples of Rabbi Akiva with his Torah and nationalism!” • Letter from the Prime Minister David Ben Gurion's Office to Reb Yitzchak Gershteinkoren about a housing cooperative for the residents of the transit camp of Bnei Berak. 1951. Security challenges Another area which the documents of the archive relate to is the security of newly founded Moshava. During these years,