Drawsko Pomorskie Jewish Cemetery

The cemetery lasted till the end of war, about 200 people were buried there. Last burial took place in 1935 – last president of the community, mentioned before George Manasse, who was respected citizen of the city. In his funeral took part also polish citizens, one city council member who was a national socialist supporter. When the mourners approached the cemetery a group of wearing uniforms Nazis joined. They wrote down names of all non-Jews, persuading them that it is not worth to feel sorry for the death of a Jew. The names were printed in the Nazi weekly „Der Stürmer”. The council member was fired and excluded from the party. More less in the 40ties the tombstones were taken from the cemetery and were used to pave the part of the sidewalk on Wiesenweg street, placed in a way that the inscriptions were visible. However, many city inhabitants, sympathizing with Jews, were passing it round, using the middle of the road or the other side of the street. According to the data from Gerhard Korth, by the end of 1992 the wall around the cemetery did not exist. The tombstones were taken and used for unknown purposes. The wall was replaced with the wooden fence. The cemetery was supposed to be covered and was used as the waste dump. Short before 1992 the cemetery was recognized as the monument and became protected. The enamelled plaque was placed there with the inscription in polish, which unfortunately was quickly destroyed. On one side of the cemetery two symbolic tombstones out of sandstone were placed, dated 1885, that originally were located in a different place of the cemetery.