In 1844, a synagogue was built on this site. By the 1860’s, thanks to the work of Rabbi Mordecai Eliasberg, they city became the center of education for Jews in Zemgale.
By the end of the 19th century, the Jewish community comprise two-thirds of Bauska’s inhabitants and formed the core of its trade and crafts. Many Jews were also prominent doctors and teachers. From 1896-1904, the Rabbi of Bauska’s Jewish community was Avraham Kook who went on to become the first chief Rabbi of Palestine.
In 1915 during the first World War, all Jews were deported to Russia. In the 1920’s, families began returning to Bauska. By 1935, the city was home to 778 Jews. In 1940, the USSR occupied Latvia and nationalized businesses and properties. During this period a number of Jews were deported to Siberia.
On June 22, 1941, the German army invaded Latvia. Within weeks the synagogue was burned and the Jews of Bauska were subjected to detention, public humiliations, and severe restrictions of their civil liberties. In late July, all Jews were forced to move to a holding area on the outskirts of the city. In the first weeks of August, more than 600 Jewish men, women and children were murdered and burned in a mass grave in the Likverten Forest.