Koden Jewish Cemetery

Kodeń was founded as a town in 1511 under Magdeburg Law, and was privately owned. The earliest record of Jewish residents in the town concerns the renting of the owner’s factories during the 16th century. Owing to the location of the synagogue facilities (just outside the northwest corner of the square) it can be assumed that Jews were given the area soon after the town’s founding. In 1827, among 2,086 residents, 665 were Jewish (32% of the total population), and, in 1921, of 1,639 residents and 541 were Jewish (33%). During World War II the Germans destroyed the kehilla facilities. In 1942, Kodeń’s Jewish residents were transported to Międzyrzecze Podlaskie and from there to the death camp in Treblinka.

The cemetery’s exact establishment date is unknown, and its history and appearance were not recorded. It can be assumed that the cemetery was established soon after the town’s founding, owing to the cemetery’s location near the town centre (about 250 metres west of the square) and its proximity to the synagogue facilities. The earliest recorded mention of the cemetery concerns the destruction of tombstones in riots in 1698. In 1941, the Germans completely destroyed the cemetery and used the tombstones to pave the road to Piszczac. After the war, the empty area was abandoned. In the 1970’s, the local government erected a temporary fence around the area and planted trees. The entire area has presumably been preserved, with a rectangular shape covering an area of 0.39 hectares. There are no remaining traces of the cemetery and no tombstones have been found outside of its borders.