Staryy Chortoryysk Jewish Cemetery

Cemetery Information

Country
Ukraine
Region
Volyn
District
Manevychi
Settlement
Staryy Chortoryys’k
Site address
Opposite 5 Zelena Street.
GPS coordinates
51.22798, 25.87787
Perimeter length
296 metres
Is the cemetery demolished
no
Type and height of existing fence
The cemetery has a fence installed in October 2020 by ESJF.
Preservation condition
Fenced and protected Jewish cemetery
General site condition
The cemetery is well-maintained. The fence is in good condition.
Number of existing gravestones
18
Date of oldest tombstone
1914
Date of newest tombstone
1938
Urgency of erecting a fence
High
Land ownership
Property of local community
Preserved construction on site
Drone surveys
Yes

Historical overview

The cemetery was most likely established in the 16th or 17th century. In the mid-19th century, it appears on Russian maps. The cemetery was once larger than the fenced area.

The Jews began to settle in Staryy Chortoryys’k in 1577. In 1765, 473 Jews lived there. In 1887, the Jewish population had grown to 822 (29.6% of the total population). During WWI, the village was situated on the front line and many houses were burnt. Jews were expelled from the village, and only a quarter of the Jewish population returned: in 1921, the population included 220 Jews. In 1941, the number of Jews in Staryy Chortoryys’k was estimated to be around 300. On June 26, 1941, the Wehrmacht occupied the town, killing 300 Jews near the village cemetery. In 1968, survivors paid for the erection of a monument on the site of the shooting. The Jewish journalist Yona Rosenfeld was born in Staryy Chortoryys’k.