The 70th anniversary of Rishon Lezion, one of the oldest settlements in Israel, was observed here today in a festive mood at a huge celebration attended by more than 20,000 people and addressed by Israel’s Foreign Minister Moshe Sharett.
The town, which is known for its famous wine cellars, was decorated with flags and the celebration was marked with a wine festival. In his address, Mr. Sharett reviewed the 70 years’ progress made by Jews in Israel since the founding of Rishon Lezion. He emphasized that the first settlements were established by pioneers who came from the ranks of Russian Jewry which is now isolated from the rest of the Jewish world.
Situated 12 kilometers from Tel Aviv, Rishon Lezion was founded in 1882 by 17 families, all members of the Chovevei Zion Society of Russia. The town now enjoys a population of more than 15,000. Its wine cellars for the manufacture of wines and spirituous liquors rank among the greatest in the world.
The Rishon Lezion cellars were built on funds advanced by Baron Rothschild who greatly contributed to the development of the settlement in its early years, when the colony suffered from scarcity of water, from poor conditions of the soil, from the inexperience of the founders in farming and from frequent raids by marauding Arab neighbors. Today Rishon Lezion is a modern all-Jewish town with elementary schools, high schools, a public library, theatre, motion picture houses, and enjoys all the conveniences of modern city life.
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