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The Atlit, Givat-Ada and Kfar-Saba villages were founded in 1903, during the last year of the First Aliya (wave of immigration to Eretz Yisrael). Atlit and Givat-Ada were established by the Jewish Colonization Association (JCA) which was the driving force behind the expansion of Jewish settlement at the beginning of the 20th century. The JCA was mainly active in Samaria working to create continuity of Jewish settlement in the area. Another characteristic of the Atlit and Givat-Ada villages is that they developed slowly until the establishment of the State. Their agriculture was based on the cultivation of grains and plantations, mainly vineyards.
Atlit was named after the Crusader fortress that was situated on the site. Ten farmers from Zichron Ya'akov began work on the land and at a later stage they built themselves permanent housing. The settlers suffered terribly from malaria and many died from the disease. At the beginning of the 1920's JCA established a salt company near the village. The British Mandate government set up an illegal immigrant prisoners camp near the Atlit village during the Second World War. After the establishment of the State, an immigrant transit camp (maabarah) was annexed to the Atlit village and some of the immigrants moved to new residential neighborhoods. The village expanded and adopted the characteristics of a semi-urban town that attracted also the more established population of the country. Today approximately 5,000 people live in Atlit.
Givat-Ada was named after Baron Edmond
de Rothschild's wife. The land was purchased from the owners of the Arab village, Marah. Farmers from Zichron Ya'akov, Meir Shfeya and Bat Shlomo originally worked the land. During the week--they lived in buildings of an old "Khan" (inn) and they returned to their families for the Sabbath. In 1909, JCA built eight buildings for the first permanent settler families. The settlers were attacked several times by Arabs from the surrounding villages who robbed the inhabitants' property and burnt their plantations.
During the British Mandate agricultural farms and tens of buildings were added to the village. After the State of Israel was established, Givat-Ada was connected to the main electricity and water supply and absorbed hundreds of new immigrant families, new neighborhoods were built and the some of the more established Israeli community built their homes there. Today, the population of Givat-Ada is approximately 2,500 people. Only a few work in agriculture but the country village atmosphere is still preserved.
Kfar-Saba was named after an old settlement,
probably from the Hellenistic period, as mentioned in ancient sources. The land was purchased from Arab owners in 1892. In 1903 a group of farmers from Petach Tikva began to cultivate the land. The first building called "the Khan" (inn) was built in 1906 and was used as living quarters for both men and animals. The farmers would work during the week mainly in almond plantations and return to Petach Tikva for the Sabbath. In 1913 twelve buildings were built for the first settler families. Kfar-Saba was demolished in the First World War during fighting between the British and Turks. Renovation of the village began at the end of the war but it was destroyed again by the Arab riots (1921). In the years to follow, Kfar-Saba was rebuilt and was agriculturally based mainly on citrus plantations. By the end of the British Mandate the village had a population of 5,000. After the establishment of the State of Israel, many settled in the village, building new quarters and therefore contributing to the process of transforming Kfar-Saba into a growing town. Today, in 2003, the population of Kfar-Saba is approximately 85,000 and the town is central to the area in the fields of education, culture, commerce and industry.
Dr. Dan Giladi