People

Wolf Hirsch Michaels was born in 1803 as the son of Moses Michaels and Jette, née Elkan. Dessau, his place of birth, was home to a large and very influential Jewish community for a long period of time. Wolf Hirsch" father died early. His mother, who originated from Winsen/Luhe (not far from Lüneburg) seems to have moved back to her hometown as a widow.

Around 1810, Michaelis came to Lüneburg as part of his apprenticeship. For fourteen years, he worked as an assistant at the banking firm Simon Heinemann. In 1834, Wolf Hirsch Michaelis submitted his first application to be recognized as a "Schutzjude ("protected Jew") . Apparently, he had not previously discussed this move with his employer—at the very least, Simon Heinemann immediately dismissed his employee Michaelis and also opposed establishing him as a "protected Jew" in Lüneburg. The government initially denied the application. Wolf Hirsch Michaelis then worked for a few more years as an employee in the textile business of Levi Isaak Ahrons. 

In 1838, Wolf Hirsch Michaelis again applied to be granted the status of a “protected Jew” and to be allowed to go into business for himself. This time he was successful. He established his own money-changing business, which soon became serious competition for the Heinemanns. In 1843, Michaelis, along with Moritz Salomon and Simon Heinemann, was among the very first Jews to obtain citizenship in Lüneburg. Shortly thereafter, in 1846, he purchased an old Lüneburg patrician house at Große Bäckerstraße 25, which became the family’s home and business premises.

In 1843, together with Moritz Salomon and Simon Heinemann, he was among the very first members of the Jewish community to become a Lüneburg citizen. Shortly after this, in 1846, he bought an old Lüneburg patrician house at Große Bäckerstraße 25, which he and his family used as a residential and commercial building.

Around 1839, he got married to Sophie Lehmann from Hoya, and together they started a family in Lüneburg: son Albert Hirsch was born in 1849, daughter Jenny Henriette in 1853. In 1863, Moritz Jacobsohn from Nienburg joined W. H. Michaels as a volunteer and soon became one of his most important employees.

In 1869 Michaels died in Hanover after a long illness and was buried in Lüneburg at the Jewish cemetery with a large attendance. The Jewish weekly newspaper "Der Israelit," whose editor Marcus Lehmann was a brother-in-law of Michaels, published an obituary which stated, among other things: "His funeral proved how much the dear deceased was universally adored. Many friends and relatives had rushed here from near and far; in Lüneburg itself almost the entire town attended. An immense crowd, composed of all classes and all confessions, followed the corpse to the Israelite cemetery, where Dr. Lehmann from Mainz, the brother-in-law of the deceased, held the funeral oration. The tears that flowed from the eyes of serious and aged men, distinguished officials, outstanding merchants, testified to the general mourning for the departure of a good, noble man, a brave Jehudi."

Wolf Hirsch Michael"s longtime employee Moritz Jacobsohn took over the bank as owner. He continued to run it very successfully in Lüneburg under the name “W.H. Michaels Nachfolger” until it was sold to Barmer Bankverein in 1921.

Sources and info (in German):

History of the Dessau Jewish Community

Wolf Hirsch Michaels Obituary, in: Der Israelit, March 17, 1869

Name variants: Michaelis