Raphael's Ground was dedicated in 1867 for Jewish burials. The site was a private burial ground provided by J G Raphael and L W Levy for members of the New Synagogue in Macquarie Street, Sydney. In 1970, the last stones were transferred to a group burial plot in Rookwood Cemetery and the site was converted into a park, named Jewish Reserve, on the corner of Raphael Street and Davey Street, Lidcombe.
A number of lists have been prepared over the years, listing the burials in the cemetery. The burial register of the Great Synagogue notes about twenty who were buried here between 1877 and 1904. In 1901 the sexton of the Jewish cemetery at Rookwood recorded the positions of 51 tombstones relocated from Devonshire Street Cemetery to Raphael's Ground. In 1922 a list of 79 tombstones was compiled, but this list has not been found. In 1949 the sexton of the "Jewish Cemetery, Rookwood" prepared two handwritten lists. One was titled "names of the people buried in the Raphael Cemetery which includes those removed from the Devonshire Street Cemetery." The other list was titled "Headstones in the Raphael Cemetery on which inscriptions are readable." A number of the names appeared on both lists. Seventy tombstones were identified at that time.
Three typed lists compiled between the mid 1960s and early 1970s by members of AJHS , undated but apparently later than the 1949 list, provide a list of names together with further information about the deceased, apparently from headstone inscriptions supplemented by research of related records.
In 1922 and in 1930 a number of tombstones of the Raphael family and relatives are recorded in the minutes of the Jewish Cemetery Trust as being transferred to Rookwood cemetery to the locations noted in the list below. The surnames include Raphael, Paris, Rosenthal, Mandel and Lee. The tombstone of Enid Cohen was another relocated to Rookwood in 1901 when three other children of this family died during an influenza epidemic. These are the only tombstones from Raphael's Ground which still exist. For two of these it is the second relocation, being originally for burials in Devonshire Street Cemetery.
Another list, dated 1973, is a list of names, together with the date of death.
The information set out below contains information from a detailed analysis of all these sources. The year of death has, where possible, been confirmed by referring to the internet page Historical Index Search at the New South Wales Registry of Births Deaths and Marriages internet site and, in some cases, from newspaper announcements of funerals.
SURNAME OTHER NAMES DATE OF DEATH HEADSTONE/COMMENT
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AARONS Joseph 04/12/1865 Died 6/12/1866. Transfer from Devonshire Street
AARONS Rachel 20/07/1866 78 yrs old. Transfer from Devonshire Street
ABRAHAM Mordecai [01/12/1856]? Transfer from Devonshire Street
BARNETT Abraham 30/09/1880
BARNETT Charlotte 01/07/1870 Wife of Henry. Died July 1st (?) 5630, 1870, 51 years.
BARNETT Henry 22/12/1871 Died 1870, 63, 2nd Dec (1878?)
BARNETT Henry Samuel 23/06/1852 16, who was drowned off Tugen on June 21st
and whose remains were deposited here July 20th 5612.
Transfer from Devonshire Street.
BARNETT Jacob 05/06/1871 2nd son of Mark and Julia Barnett, died 5/6/1871
BARNETT Margaret 01/01/1844 wife of Moss Barnett. Transfer from Devonshire Street.
BARNETT Matilda [06/08/1853]? Transfer from Devonshire Street
BARNETT Moses 27/05/1871 1st son of Mark and Julia Barnett, died 22/5/1871
BROCKSTAYNE Esther D [11/10/1855]? wife of George. Transfer from Devonshire Street
BRODZIAK Kate 10/06/1885 Died 10/6/1885, 59 years
BRODZIAK Meyer 06/08/1885 Died 6/8/1885, 68 years
CANTOR Hyam 30/08/1865 Son of Coleman and Leah Cantor, 2½.
Transfer from Devonshire Street.
COHEN Edward Daniel 05/10/1847 Transfer from Devonshire Street
COHEN Eleazer Keeba 05/05/1849 4th son of E D and E D Cohen, 3 ½.
Transfer from Devonshire Street.
COHEN Enid 12/05/1894 18 mths. Now buried at Rookwood
COHEN Jacob Charles 28/09/1873 died 28/9/1874, 69 years (A.M. 5634)
COHEN Lewis 17/04/1894 83 years. Now buried at Rookwood
COHEN Sarah 23/11/1838 Wife of Jacob Charles Cohen. Now buried at Rookwood
CRABB Frances (Francis) 10/12/1846 Mrs Emanuel Crabb? Transfer from Devonshire Street
CRACKNELL Sophia 24/05/1866 died 21/5/1866 from Devonshire Street.
DAVIES Hannah 15/04/1866 wife of Raphael (or Israel or Samuel) John Davies. Died 13/4/1866, 76.
Transfer from Devonshire Street
DAVIS Charles Moses 17/08/1853 child of Michael Davis, 17 years, died 18/8/5613. Transfer from Devonshire Street.
DE METZ Andrew Lewis 08/02/1852 81 (or 51) years. Transfer from Devonshire Street.
DE METZ Anne 25/02/1860 wife of the late Andrew Lewis de Metz. 84. Transfer from Devonshire street.
DE METZ Isabella 31/03/1844 Miss. Transfer from Devonshire street.
DYER[S] Rebecca [1857]? Transfer from Devonshire Street
FERNANDEZ Rebecca 15/01/1877 wife of David Fernandez, died 1877
GOLDSMITH Caroline 17/09/1872 wife of Leopold Goldsmith, died 18/9/1872 (A.M. 5632), 42 years
GOLDSMITH Cecilia 28/12/1897 daughter of Leopold S Goldsmith, died 28/12/1897, 36 years
GOLDSMITH Leopold Samuel 17/03/1891 67
GOOLEY Abraham 20/09/1883 of Poland. "I have no son to keep my name in rememberance"
(Recorded as Cooley on stone) Correct spelling is Gooley.
HALEVI Jacob Ben Avroom died 23 Ellul (?)
HART Asher [06/02/1860]? Transfer from Devonshire Street
HART Phoebe 02/03/1864 Transfer from Devonshire Street
HEN(D)RIKS John Herman 18/11/1859 Son of late Aaron and Ann Hendricks of London, resident of Braidwood, Vic.
Died 17/11/1859 (5670), 37 years. Transfer from Devonshire Street
HERMAN Edgar Nathan Phillip 15/03/1888 only son of Mark and Fanny Herman of Coonamble, died 15/3/1888. 7 1/2 years.
HYMAN Hyam 18/06/1860 died 18/6/1860 (5620), 45 years. Transfer from Devonshire Street
HYMAN Jane 18/03/1878 died 18/3/1878, relict of late Hyam Hyman, 62 years. Re-erected in Rookwood?
ISAAC Joseph Ben tombstone all in Hebrew
JACOBS John Herman 22/09/1859 Transfer from Devonshire Street
JACOBS Rebecca Julia 26/10/1858 Transfer from Devonshire Street
LEAR Simeon 18/09/1847 died 1847. Transfer fron Devonshire Street
LEE Benjamin 12/05/1889 died 12/5/1884 (or 1889), 87 years
LEE Benjamin Woolfe 08/01/1864 Now buried at Rookwood. Transfer from Devonshire street
LEE Joseph 27/04/1881 died 27/4/1881, 41 years. Son of Benjamin Lee.
LEE Rebecca 30/09/1878 wife of Benjamin Lee, died 30/9/5639, 72 years
LEE Rosetta 24/10/???? Now buried at Rookwood
LEE Simeon Sydney 05/02/1891 Freehold Cemetery Lidcombe. Now buried at Rookwood
LIPMAN Albert 24/03/1860 Transfer from Devonshire Street
LIPMAN Phillip [19/11/1854]? Transfer from Devonshire Street
LIPMAN Sarah 08/04/1865 Transfer from Devonshire Street
MANDEL Elisabeth Dinah 24/07/1882 Freehold cemetery Lidcombe. Now buried at Rookwood
MANDEL Meyer (Mayer?) 07/09/1897 freehold cemetery Lidcombe. 65years. Now buried at Rookwood
MANDEL [MENDEL] Samuel 03/07/1883 Now buried at Rookwood. 12 yrs 8 mths.
MARKS Eve Sarah [03/01/1858]? Transfer from Devonshire Street
MEYER [MYERS] Julia 20/08/1857 Transfer from Devonshire Street
MOSES Abraham [30/06/1858]? Transfer from Devonshire Street
MOSES Hannah Rachel [07/07/1857]? Transfer from Devonshire street
MOSES Isaac 22/05/1846 Transfer from Devonshire street
MOSS Hannah
MYERS Joseph 11/04/1875? Now buried at Rookwood cemetery.
MYERS Louis 04/05/1869? 31? May have been transferred to Rookwood. Transfer from Devonshire street
MYERS Maurice 20/08/1857? Transfer from Devonshire Street
MYERS Phillip 02/10/1865 A.M. 5626. Transfer from Devonshire Street
MYERS Rachel 20/08/1857 Transfer from Devonshire Street
PARIS (Caroline)Sarah(Raphaela)13/02/1861 Now buried at Rookwood. Transfer from Devonshire Street
PHILLIPS Hyam [Block] 14/06/1877 Grandson of Raban Eliasz, syn Salamon z. Wilne. 65 years? 14/6/5637, 60 years.
May have been re-erected in Rookwood.
RAPHAEL Joseph George 02/02/1879 Now buried at Rookwood
RAPHAEL Julius George 03/01/1899 Julius George Raphael Rosenthal 3/1/1899. 27years.
Son of Jacob Rosenthal and Esther Matilda Raphael Rosenthal. Accidental death.
Now buried at Rookwood
RAPHAEL Maria Hannah 24/10/1899 Now buried at Rookwood
ROSENTHAL Julius George See RAPHAEL, Julius George
SAMUEL Mary 06/09/1884 wife of Henry Samuel died 11/9/5641? (1881?)
SELIG Rieke 01/06/1889 wife of Joseph Selig, died 1/6/1889, 67 years
SIMMONS David 04/06/1850 died 18/6/1850, 18 years old at Armidale, son of James Simmons.
Transfer from Devonshire Street
SIMMONS Isaac 20/08/1857 4th son of James and Agnes Simmons, died 20/8/1852. Transfer from Devonshire Street
SIMMONS James 02/05/1849 father of Isaac 2/5/1849 (5609), 55 years. Transfer from Devonshire Street
SOLOMON Deborah 03/12/1879 died 3/12/1879, 58 years
SOLOMON Elias 06/01/1863 died 6/1/5623,, 74 years. Transfer from Devonshire Street
SOLOMON Samuel 08/04/1831 Transfer from Devonshire Street
SOLOMON Simon 03/04/1900 Jehiel Shlomo ben Zwi, died 3/4/1906 (1900?) 88 years.
Husband of Deborah, Dora, grandfather of Millie Rosenbaum
SOLOMON Vaiben (Vabien)(Vabian) 20/06/1860 died 20/6/1860, 62 years. Transfer from Devonshire Street
SPYER Joseph 01/03/1841 son of Lawrence Spyer. Transfer from Devonshire Street
SPYER Rosetta 22/02/1841 died 22/2/1841, wife of Stephen Spyer. Transfer from Devonshire Street
STONE Joseph Ernest 07/02/1901
TOLANO Rachel 07/01/1858 Transfer from Devonshire Street
VAL(L)ENTINE Benjamin 22/04/1876
WA(N)GENHEIM Bet(t)ina Sarah Agnes [19.08.1858]? Transfer from Devonshire Street