Paweł Mazanka

Jewish cemetery in Szydłów

Jewish cemetery in Szydłów near Staszów is one of the oldest cemeteries in Poland. The cemetery in Szydłów was set up more or less in 1350 (!), so people have been buried there for about 670 years. During The Second World War the cemetery was devastated.

There were 680 Jews living there before The Second World. This long-lasting history was broken dramatically after the outbreak of The Second World War. In January 1942 the Nazis set up Jewish ghetto in Szydłów. The ghetto was liquidated in October 1942. The Jews were transported to the extermination camp in Treblinka, where they were killed in gas chambers and their corpses were burnt. As the list, which is stored in the Jewish Historical Institute, says, only 27 Jewish people survived the War.

Nowadays cemetery is desolate and there are only 12 Jewish tombstones there. There is no sign that it is the cemetery area. We want to renovate the Jewish cemetery in Szydłów. In 2024 we plan to make several large marble plaques and write the names of the Jews buried here. We found in the archives in Kielce a list of those buried here from 1884 to 1914, and the Szydłów Municipality Office has a list from 1918 to 1941. In total we have 556 names.

The money for this purpose comes from contributions from people of good will, those who see the sense and value of this project, and from various institutions. We will list them on a special plaque. We ask for your help in completing this project.

Bank account for donating money for the Jewish cemetery in Szydlow:
Parafia Rzymskokatolicka p.w. św. Władysława w Szydłowie
Bank Spółdzielczy w Szydłowie, POLAND
SWIFT: POLUPLPR
IBAN: PL 22 8521 0006 2001 0004 5737 0003

I invite you to watch the film: “Jews of Szydłów in the memory of neighbors”

Contact:
Prof. Paweł Mazanka
Chairman of Metaphysic Department
Institute of Philosophy
Cardinal Stephan Wyszynski University in Warsaw
e-mail: p.mazanka@uksw.edu.pl
www.pawel.mazanka.com.pl