The Jewish Merchants of Edgefield

The Jewish Merchants of Edgefield. . In the years following 1900, a number of immigrant Jewish merchants moved to Edgefield and actively participated in the commercial life of the Town for nearly a century. All of these merchants sold 'dry goods," meaning textiles, ready-to-ware clothing and notions, as distinguished from hardware, jewelry and groceries. , Jacob Rubenstein (1877-1948), a native of Latvia, arrived in Edgefield around 1903, establishing a business which continued here until 1987. J. Goldsberg and Son purchased the business of James E. Hart in 1909, but sold out to Israel Mukashy (1882-1964) in 1911. Mukashy, a native of Russia, continued to operate this business until his retirement in 1950. Abram Daitch (1884-1968), a native of Poland, operated another business here from 1916 until the late 1930s. Jacob Altstok (1883-1884), a native of Poland, who was a half-brother of Mrs. Israel Mukashy, came here in 1926 and engaged in the dry goods business until his death in 1944, after which time his wife continued to operate the business for several years. , These Jewish families were all members of the Adas Yeshurmon Synagogue in Augusta and are buried in the Jewish section of Magnolia Cemetery in that city. , The Jewish Merchants of Edgefield were an important part of the commercial activity of the Town for many decades and became much beloved citizens. Herman and Maurice "Bully" Rubenstein, sons of Jacob Rubenstein and the last of Edgefield's Jewish merchants, both died in 1992, closing a meaningful chapter in Edgefield history.