Home - Surveys - Poland - Lesser Poland Voivodeship

Nowe Brzesko Jewish Cemetery

Cemetery Information

Country
Poland
Region
Lesser Poland Voivodeship
District
Proszowice
Settlement
Nowe Brzesko
Site address
The cemetery is located in a field, at Partyzantów Street. Turn left about 200 meters before the GSM transmitter, going from Nowe Brzesko towards Szpitary. The cemetery is at the northern edge of plot No.123.
GPS coordinates
50.1375251, 20.3637815
Perimeter length
209 metres
Is the cemetery demolished
yes
Type and height of existing fence
No fence
Preservation condition
Demolished Jewish cemetery that has not been built over
General site condition
It is a demolished Jewish cemetery. The location was indicated by the owners of a nearby farmland. However, location is not confirmed. No traces of the existence of the cemetery have survived.
Number of existing gravestones
No tombstones preserved
Date of oldest tombstone
N/A
Date of newest tombstone
N/A
Urgency of erecting a fence
High
Land ownership
Other
Preserved construction on site
No
Drone surveys
No

Historical overview

The Nowe Brzesko Jewish cemetery is located approximately 1 km northwest of the town square, about 180 metres west of Partyzantów Street, in the northern part of geodetic plot no. 123. The land is irregularly shaped – roughly similar to an elongated rectangle (10 x 350 m). There is no information regarding the cemetery’s specific establishment date, though it was established after 1862. At the beginning of the 20th century, it was fenced with barbed wire, and was flanked by a mortuary. One part of the cemetery, which was free of tombstones, was used as farmland.

Presumably, during World War II, the cemetery was destroyed and fell into further disrepair in the following decades. Following the decision of the National Council of Nowe Brzesko from November 6th, 1970, on January 17th, 1971, the Minister for Communal Economy signed a by-law commencing the closure of the cemetery. The included documentation states that the cemetery “occupies plot no. 123 with an acreage of 35 by 80 square metres, […] comprising the property of the Jewish kehilla. The property is maintained by the National Council of Nowe Brzesko. It is leased to Czesłam Skiba, resident of Hebdowo, for 400 złoty per year.” Due to the destruction, there are no aboveground traces of the cemetery: the fence is gone, as are the tombstones, the mortuary, and contemporary information markers of memorials. The borders are imperceptible, and it is overgrown with tall grass, shrubbery, and self-seeding trees. The cemetery is part of the county and voivodeship register of historical landmarks.

The Jewish community in Nowe Brzesko began to develop after residential bans were lifted for Jews in 1862. In 1897, there were 213 Jewish residents in the town, and 457 in 1921 (24.8% of the total population). During World War II, following an influx of refugees due to deportations, the number of Jewish residents increased to 934, most of whom were killed in November 1942 by the Germans with the aid of the Polish Police of the General Government.

Back to the map