Haiti was the magical island, full of palm trees and lush flora, where Micheline Caracocly nee Chrem, grew up. The youngest of five children born to Antoine and Salha Chrem (nee Safdieh), Egyptian Jews, Micheline has fond memories of life in Haiti.
Sephardic Jewish families have been in Haiti since the 1492, when Luis De Torres, an interpreter for Christopher Columbus, settled there. Haiti was colonized by the French in 1633 and Dutch Jews from Brazil, who were employees of sugar plantations, emigrated to Haiti. A few years ago, archaeologists uncovered an ancient synagogue of Crypto-Jews in the city of Jérémie, the only one found on the island
At the end of the 19th century, approximately 30 mostly Sephardi Jewish families had arrived from Lebanon, Syria, and Egypt; many Jews from the Middle East felt secure emigrating to Haiti, as a law in France had been passed during this period that gave French citizenship to minorities in the Americas. Antoine Chrem was among those who arrived in Haiti during this period.
From 1915 to 1934, the United States occupied Haiti to stabilize its political and financial interests. During that time, many Syrian Jewish families settled there including the Ades, Suttons, Danas, Dayans, Bijous, Bigios, Silveras, Ashkenazies and Shaloms. Gilbert Bigio has been the unofficial leader of the Sephardic community in Haiti. Bigio owns the only Torah in all of Haiti. He serves as Israel’s Honorary Consul to Haiti. Gilbert Bjgio’s uncle went to Haiti in 1896 and his father followed during World War I, when he was escaping the Ottoman Empire and conscription in the Army.
Antoine Chrem had a good business selling textiles. In those days, people bought the fabric and took it to a tailor to make their clothing. Jews generally preferred to settle on the coastline in port cities, as many were involved in commerce and trade, establishing communities in major industry centers.
Antoine’s mother wanted him to marry a Jewish woman so she went to Egypt and found Salha, age 16. Salha had lost mother her as a young child and was working. Antoine’s mother convinced her to marry Antoine and told her she was going to America. Salha was enticed by going to American and insisted on bringing her younger brother. Once in Haiti, Salha was disappointed as she thought she was going to America.
Antoine and Salha married in 1923 in Haiti and had five children–Isaac, Esther, Molly, Albert, Micheline. They lived in Porto Prince. Micheline remembers a very large home with many servants who cooked, did gardening and other chores.
“There were no Jewish schools or synagogues,” she said. “So the Jewish children attended the public schools, which were all Catholic. The nuns used to kneel and make the cross. At one point, my older brother was doing it and when my mother found out, she took him out of school. They wanted him to be a priest. There was a lot of non-Jewish influence. That’s why people sent their daughters to Brooklyn, to get married.”
Although there was no official Jewish sector in Haiti, the Sephardic Jews settled in neighborhoods surrounding Port-au-Prince. Unlike the Jewish communities of Curacao and Suriname, the Jews of Haiti had no synagogue, no rabbi, no schools, and no community center of their own.
Since there was no rabbi or center of Jewish life on the Island even the Jewish ritual of circumcision had to wait until a mohel was brought in from the United States. The ritual might be delayed for years. For example, Elie Abady did not receive a bris until the age of two.
On holidays, local Jews got together in the Bigio home, which was large enough to accommodate services. The community would bring a rabbi to the island for the holidays. On Passover, they brought matza and whatever else they needed was shipped in. If someone had a boy, they had to wait for a mohel to come to do the bris.
“We kept the religion. My mother koshered the beef herself. We kept Shabbat and all the customs,” said Micheline. “She did a fantastic job to make sure we kept our religion and heritage.” Micheline’s best friend was Irene Bigio. Irene came to Brooklyn a few years after Micheline.
“I was 11 when I came to Brooklyn in 1954. I stayed with my older sisters in Bensonhurst and went to Seth Low JHS and Lafayette HS. My sisters were working in the city. A neighbor took me to school and picked me up. I learned English from watching TV and from school. It was a big adjustment. I had an Italian friend, Maria from Italy.”
Isaac Caracocly left Egypt with his brother Albert during the time of Nassar, when Jews were expelled. He attended Mirrer Yeshiva on Ocean Parkway.
Micheline married Isaac, also from Cairo, on Nov 25, 1962. Married 62 years, they have three daughters, Ninette a”h, Sharon and Jacqueline. She worked with her husband in the jewelry business, selling women’s accessories and handbags. Micheline enjoys spending a few weeks in Florida each winter with her family, especially her grandchildren and great grandchildren.
A genealogist and historian, Sarina Roffé is the author of Branching Out from Sepharad (Sephardic Heritage Project, 2017). She is researching a new book: Syria – Paths to Freedom. Sarina holds a BA in Journalism, and MA in Jewish Studies and an MBA.
Sarina Roffé
