Mitzpe Beit Eshel

In August 1943, at the height of the Second World War, the Yishuv decided to establish three settlements in the Negev as a show of defiance of the White Paper policy and to examine the feasibility of agricultural settlement in the desert with the thought that the Negev must be included in any partition plan. Three lookout settlements were established: Beit Eshel, Revivim and Gvulot. The name Beit Eshel is derived from the biblical story of Eshel Avraham (Genesis 21:33). Mitzpe Beit Eshel was founded, with the help of the JNF, on the property of A-Sir (south-west of Be'er Sheva). The founding members were from the Yogev Group, mostly Austrian born, Youth Aliyah graduates from Kfar Vitkin and Kfar Chaim (from Germany). They were trained first in Be'er Tuvya and then in Shimron, near Nahallal and sent to the Negev through the Moshav Movement. They were joined by graduates of the Youth Aliyah (from Germany) from Beit Shearim. One year after moving they were joined by a group of Romanian olim, a few Israeli born people and some Holocaust survivors. The members were forced to deal with difficult living conditions- challenges of living in the desert (finding water sources, developing an agricultural settlement and maintaining relations with the Bedouins). However, in the end they managed to build a 'green island' in the middle of the desert with a model agricultural farm and a rich community life. They held out throughout the siege that included daily attacks and shelling from the Egyptian army that was camped in Be'er Sheva, from November 1947 until the IDF captured the city in December 1948. The settlement was totally destroyed during the War of Independence. A few months after the war, the members of Mitzpe Eshel left the settlement and most of them founded Moshav Yogev in the Jezreel Valley. The settlement, on a total area of about 10 dunam, was surrounded by a fence. In 1945, a permanent camp, surrounded by a wall, was built for 25 people. It included the House of Arches in the northern part, with five rooms, including a kitchen and living quarters, and on the west side a clinic and doctor's quarters, a dining hall, a small armory and a two storey security building. The construction was done by the Solel Boneh Company based on the plans of the architect, Yaakov Metrikin. The rooms served as dormitories for the children (this was the first settlement in the Negev that had children among its members). The rest of the people lived in tents, huts and clay shacks outside the yard of the Mitzpe. In the courtyard there was also a bakery, a shower for the men and women and a stash for illegal weapons. The settlement grew crops in what is today 'Emek Sarah'. There was also a cowshed, chicken coops and a vegetable garden. In the area of the settlement there were also attempts to grow hydroponics. Extensive attempts were also made at Beit Eshel, by the Volcani Institute, to cultivate various grains such as; wheat, barley and rye, in order to verify their compatibility to the soil and climate in the eastern Negev. There were also attempts at developing an industry. From the time of the founding of the settlement, they suffered from a severe water shortage. Despite having drilled a well to the depth of 70 meters, so as not to be dependent on water tankers, the quality of the water was poor. There was a plan to transfer water in the eastern part of the water pipe from Kibbutz Nir Am, but due to the difficulties of passing through the Arab part of Be'er Sheva the pipe did not reach Beit Eshel and Nevatim. Instead a well was dug in Old Nevatim to provide water for the fields. The well was built according to the principles of wells found in deserts throughout the world. In November 1947 at the start of the war, the construction of well was halted. As part of the agricultural experiments a terrain dam was built in Wadi Sagiv, at the junction of three tributaries and fruit orchards, that were based on the damming of flood waters and the overflow of beds, were planted. The orchards were successful, but were destroyed during the war. At the end of the 1960's the Beit Eshel Association, to nurture and care for the place, was founded. It was founded by Gideon Sapir and its members are a group of volunteers. It serves to cultivate Mitzpe Beit Eshel and its environs. The Beit Eshel Association serves as an educational facility for groups of youngsters, soldiers and others, who for a few hours, do manual labor. The JNF began renovating and restoring the Beit Eshel site in the beginning of the 2000's. Today it welcomes visitors who receive an explanation about the place and the period. The site is part of the Nahal Be'er Sheva Project. The pictures in this album were chosen from the collection of Ofer Hochberg and given to the Yad Ben-Zvi Archives by Ze'ev Grozovinski, one of the founders of Mitzpe Beit Eshel. For those interested in broadening and deepening their understanding of the pioneering story of Beit Eshel you are invited to read Shmuel Segal's book, "Mitzpe Beit Eshel-Pioneers in the Desert"- The Story of the Beit Eshel Pioneers and the Palmach Fighters, edited by Michael Pe'er and published by 'Maof Beriiyah Acheret', 2015. Another source is Dan Bar-On's book, "Rebels in the Wilderness: The Story of Beit Eshel 1943-1948", published by Moshav Yogev, and the book, "Be'er Sheva and its Sites" published by "Ariel", May 1991. Read more