Hrytsiv Jewish Cemetery

The exact period of the cemetery’s establishment is unknown. The oldest gravestone relates to the end of the 19th century, so it can be assumed that the cemetery emerged during that period. First, it appears on maps of the 1900s and 1917.

Jews are known from the period of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Jews were attacked by the Cossack troops during the Khmelnytskyi massacre in 1648-49 and by the Haidamaks in the 18th century. Hasidism predominated from the early 18th century. In the 19th century, Jews were engaged in crafts, wholesale and intermediary trade. In 1847, the Jewish population reached 1,194 and declined to 979 (37% of the total) in 1897. In 1850, three synagogues existed. From 1878, Joseph-Leib Derbarimdiker served as a rabbi. In 1907-17, the Zionist circles carried out underground activities in Hrytsiv. In 1910, a Jewish school was opened without permission from the authorities. In September 1917, a pogrom was staged. In the 1920s, under the Soviets, a branch of the OZET and secret youth Zionist organizations operated. Jewish children attended heders functioned in Hrytsiv. A drama circle and a Jewish library were created by the Jewish Communist Youth. The community built a new mikvah. In 1923, the Jewish population numbered 1,325 people. In 1932–33, the Jewish population of Hrytsiv suffered from hunger. In the 1930s, a Jewish rural council functioned. In 1935, the Soviet authorities closed 16 synagogues in the district. In 1939, 1,373 Jews (16% of the total population) resided in Hrytsiv. A ghetto was established in early August. On August 4, 1941, 286 Jews were shot. In autumn and winter of 1941, several actions were carried out. During the German occupation, from July 5, 1941, to March 6, 1944, 1,913 Jews died.