In 1811 the name of the 27-year-old Samson Nathan Eisendrath first appears in the town records. He is the third Jew to receive the right to settle in Dorsten. He is married to Julia Isaak. In 1812 their first son Baruch is born in Amsterdam. Over the years many more children followed; we assume there were 18 births. When an official will was made in 1855, Julia and Samson Nathan Eisendrath spoke of 11 children still alive, namely: Baruch, David, Moses, Levi, Nathan, Oskar, Jeanette, Cosman, Benjamin, Adelheid and Eva.

At first the Eisendrath family lived outside the city wall but Samson Nathan soon bought a large piece of land on Wiesen Strasse close to the market place and later purchased other lots as well. For seventy years the house in Wiesen Strasse, located close to the synagogue, was the centre of the Eisendrath family’s life and business.

"Portraits of Samson Nathan and Julia Eisendrath, around 1870, from family property"

»All for one and one for all.«
Julia Eisendrath was the heart of the house. She died at the ripe old age of 85 and survived her husband by 21 years. The descendants say that she was the matriarch who was the boss in the family. She was proud and very convinced of herself, they say. But above all she worked very hard and must have been a remarkable housewife who managed to run such a complicated household. The children loved and worshipped her. She could not read or write herself but she forced her children to learn. The family supported each other, the older siblings helping to bring up the younger ones and all of them stood up for each other. The Eisendrath clan still has the family motto which originates from their Dorsten history: “All for one and one for all.” Julia was also regarded as very generous and charitable particularly to the poor and needy of any religion. The records show that she donated money to the Catholic hospital and a new church building. Samson “son of Nathan” developed into one of the most important personalities of the Jewish congregation in Dorsten. He was the first head of the synagogue, co-author of the statutes, treasurer of the congregation and of the Marks-Haindorf-Foundation, but he was also responsible for the split in the Dorsten synagogue which was due to his wishes for reform. For that time Samson Nathan Eisendrath for a very progressive man. He did not only send his children to secondary school but also supported the education and training of other Jewish children. His professional work involved the purchase and sale of food; he also owned a manufacturing business and he worked as a butcher and tanner. His sons became traders and merchants but there were also skilled craftsmen such as tanners and candle makers among them. His growing prosperity made Nathan a much respected citizen of Dorsten.

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