Ryn Jewish Cemetery

There was a small group of Jews in Ryn who dealt in merchants. In the mid-nineteenth century, only two Jewish families lived here, while the tax register from 1861 on the occasion of the taxpayers' census from Ryn mentions six people. A small number did not prevent the establishment of a small community in the town in 1862 with its own cemetery, which also included Jewish residents of the surrounding villages. The kehilla did not have a synagogue, although a house of prayer could have been located there, or a private apartment was allocated for its use. In the case of the cemetery, we are not entirely sure when it was founded, however, it was undoubtedly already around the middle of the 19th century. The necropolis was established approximately 750 meters south of the historic city center on a picturesque hill on the eastern shore of Lake Ryn, at the then Nikolaikenstraße. In 1928, about 150 meters north of the cemetery, there was a sawmill. The cemetery still existed in 1944, although it was no longer used. The cemetery was preserved in the post-war period in the area belonging to the Forest Production Company "Las" from Suwałki, then it was also desecrated by establishing a latrine in its area. The enterprise, realizing that the plot was occupied by a necropolis, applied in the 1970s to the Department of Non-Roman Catholic Denominations of the Office for Religious Affairs for permission to liquidate the cemetery. The management at the time did not approve it, ordering the fencing of the area and the preparation of photographic documentation at the same time - it is not known whether these requirements were met. In the 1990s, the area was handed over to a private investor, who applied in April 1995 to the City Council in Ryn for consent to the liquidation of the cemetery in order to use the plot for recreational and tourist development. At the cemetery, which, despite being in a state of permanent ruin, there are still traces of fourteen burials, including nine sandstone and granite matzevot (there is also a photo of a well-kept grave plaque from Miriam's daughter Moshe). After the owner of the land received a negative reply, the property was purchased by another investor, who in November 1995 arbitrarily unplanted the site, explaining that he did not know that there was a necropolis on the purchased property. The tombstones were taken to a landfill, buried in a pit and covered with a layer of garbage. The case was publicized by the local media, the city authorities and the prosecutor's office intervened to stop the devastation and secure the area. To this day, the remains of the cemetery, covering about 0.04 ha, are located within the “Jocz” door and window production company at 38 Świerczewskiego Street. The only trace of the necropolis is the preserved old trees and a small elevation. Access to the cemetery is difficult, even from the lake side. (“Żydowskie domy modlitwy oraz cmentarze na Warmii i Mazurach – stan obecny” book by Seweryn Szczepański, 2017; doi.org/10.26774/rzz.165)