Obj. ID: 8030
Jewish Funerary Art  Jewish Cemetery in Bačka Topola, Serbia

Jews settled in Bačka Topola in 1770. The cemetery dates back to 1835 (according to some sources to 1750). The first synagogue, built around 1840, was located at today's address 20 Glavna Street. The second synagogue was built in the same place in 1863. Over 500 Jews lived in Bačka Topola prior to World War II. The deportation of the Jews took place between April 16 and June 20, 1944. Only 98 of them survived the Holocaust. The building of the synagogue was destroyed in the 1950s. No memorial plaque has been installed. The building of Rabbinate, built at the beginning of the 20th century, still exists at the address 16 Glavna Street. Today the building is used by the 'Juhász Erzsébet' Library. There is no memorial plaque on the building.

The cemetery has about 1800 graves and only a small part of the cemetery has been cleared. It was neglected for years and exposed to vandalism and thefts of tombstones. Thanks to Mr. Antal Kocsis and a group of enthusiasts gathered around him, the cemetery was cleared of vegetation.