Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum

An interesting and enlightening exhibition that tells the little-known story of the tens of thousands of Jewish refugees who fled Germany and Austria on the eve of World War II and found refuge in Shanghai. The wide exhibition describes, through many photos and authentic items, the background to this event and especially the life of the refugee community in terms of physical survival, daily life, cultural life, and more. The renovated museum holds a much larger and more interesting exhibition than the older museum held, so even if you visites the place in the past, there's much more to see now. Highly recommended!

Uncover the untold stories at the Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum—a powerful testament to Shanghai’s role in World War II and the resilience of the Jewish people.

Great museum representing the Jews who took refuge in Shanghai. Shows the level of respect and love the Chinese people have for the Jewish people. The synagogue is currently closed for renovation, but you can walk around the neighborhood and get a feel of the history. Make sure to visit the park across the street!

Originally built by the Russian Ashkenazi Jewish community in 1928, this synagogue lies in the heart of the 1940s Jewish ghetto. In 2007 it was restored using original blueprints discovered in archives. Today the building houses both the synagogue and the Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum, with exhibitions on the lives of the approximately 23,000 Central European refugees who fled to Shanghai to escape the Nazis. Unfortunately, I went there on Monday and on Monday this Museum remains closed and I just have to feel the place from outside. The museum is a touching testament to an era, a place, and a community of peoples helping each other, and I recommend that anyone, everyone, even without a connection, visit. It is very profound. Next time this will be the first place to visit...

I had the pleasure of visiting the museum in October 2005. There is such a rich history of the relationship between the Chinese people and the Jewish people. The docent kindly took my friend and me up to the caretaker's room where there was a Chanukah menorah on a table. I told him how I would sing a Hebrew prayer when lighting the candles. He asked me if I would sing it for him, and I gladly did so to his delight. After we left the museum, we walked around the neighborhood which still looked similar to when the Jewish refugees lived there. At the end of the street was a park called Peace Park and there was a bronze plaque in Chinese, English, and Hebrew dedicated to the Jewish refugees. Here I am in front of the museum, the neighborhood, and the plaque at Peace Park.

Last day in Shanghai and decided to pay a visit to the museum since is 5 mins walking distance from my hotel. Was early as they opened at 9am. You can buy your tickets via wechat or alipay but because I'm a foreigner without local number, just go to the counter to buy the tickets with your passport. Walked up the stairs to the history of why and how Jewish flee to Shanghai and also some other countries to seek refugee. Their sufferings were unimaginable but the Chinese gave them the warmth and shelter greatly needed during these trying times. Worth a short visit. Took me about 30-45 mins to finish the exhibition.

This memorial in the former Ohel Moshe Synagogue preserves wartime passports with ingenious forged stamps—some made from carved potatoes. The "Wall of Names" uses different metals to denote fates: copper for survivors, iron for those lost. Hidden under floorboards, a 1942 diary was found written in a mix of German and Shanghainese, a linguistic fossil of displacement.

Everywhere I go, I also check for jewish history. I knew that Jews were able to escape to China, but not all details. Not the stories, not how Chinese helped refugees while being under captivity themselves.....