Introduction 

Established in 1907 by Russian Jewish immigrants its location is in Changyang Road in Hongkou District inside the former Ohel Moshe Synagogue where the refugees came together for religious activities. Refugees started to arrive in this area between 1937 and 1941 when they were not accepted anywhere else in the world but they left between 1940 and 1960 

Shanghai took in at least 30,000 refugees without refusing even one making the city the only metropolis with an equal number of refugees taken in by countries like Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and India. It has become a tourist destination for curious visitors digging information about what the Holocaust scholar David Kranzler called the “Miracle of Shanghai” and a legacy that spells the humanitarian and egalitarian nature of Chinese culture. 

Major attractions and activities to do on a visit

Exhibitions

A tour to this place shows you two permanent exhibits with stories about 20 Shanghai Jews in words and pictures with artifacts from the time the area was a Jewish ghetto to displays about Judaism. Amongst the artifacts are unused tickets  for a variety show the refugees set up to get funds from Britain, a wedding dress passed down by Betty Grebenschikoff who was also a refugee, newspapers and even evidence of souvenir programs from locals set up to benefit the refugees. 

The Synagogue has been well preserved overtime with many distinctive objects staying intact as they were like the commemorative plaque given by the government of Israel, a glass star of David inscribed in Hebrew with the Torah and an enormous metal memorial wall with the names of thousands of refugees who called this place home.