Of all the stones at Bikur Sholim, perhaps the most intriguing tombstone is one that reads: "in memory of Marx Schoenberg, Born in Germany, 1833, Murdered November 9, 1870. May he rest in peace.” Marx Schoenberg was not simply a Jewish merchant who was killed by a thief or a jealous husband. He was the mayor of Donaldsonville during the tumultuous period of Reconstruction. Born in Germany, Schoenberg moved to Donaldsonville from New Orleans in 1868. His brother-in-law, Morris Marks, also lived in Donaldsonville at the time. Both Marks and Schoenberg were strong Republicans who were politically connected with the party who controlled the state government in New Orleans. Marks was elected as a parish judge in 1868, while Schoenberg was appointed mayor of Donaldsonville in 1870 by Republican Governor Henry Warmoth. During the contested election of 1870, Schoenberg was killed during a standoff with militia troops after a dispute over counting ballots; the exact circumstances of Schoenberg's death were shrouded in conflicting claims and testimony. Marks, who took in Schoenberg's orphaned children, went on to have a long and controversial career in state politics, including several unsuccessful runs for the U.S. House of Representatives.
