Obj. ID: 51996
Jewish Funerary Art  New Jewish cemetery in Mikołów, Poland

According to ESJF European Jewish Cemeteries Initiative, the cemetery is located in the southwest part of the town, between Konstytucji 3 Maja and Stara Droga Streets, occupying an irregular triangle-shaped plot, with an acreage of approximately 1 hectare (ha). The cemetery was most likely founded at the beginning of the 18th century, as evidenced by recovered tombstones from 1726. Until the end of the 18th century, the cemetery was the burial site for Jews from Pszczyńskie Wolne Państwo Stanowe. Initially the cemetery occupied a triangular plot with an acreage of 0.56 ha. In 1828, the neighbouring western plot of land was purchased, with an acreage of 0.44 ha.

The cemetery survived World War II in good condition. On January 16th, 1945, the cemetery was the execution and burial site of 14 Poles who were killed by the Germans. Several days later, approximately 50 victims of the KL Auschwitz-Birkenau death marches were buried there as well. After 1945 the area fell into disrepair. Local residents gradually took apart the brick-stone wall and removed the tombstones. The undertaker’s house was occupied by a third party. The cemetery briefly became the site of Roma camps. In 1958, the Minister for Local Economy signed a by-law to close the cemetery. The accompanying documentation notes an acreage of 1.42 ha. In 1988 the local government cleaned and fenced the area. There are currently approximately 420 tombstones in varying states of preservation in the cemetery, including 289 with decipherable inscriptions (list available at https://sztetl.org.pl/pl/miejscowosci/m/445-mikolow/115-pamiec-w-kamieniu/21650-cmentarz-zydowski-ul-stara-droga). The area is wooded, and the ground is overgrown with ivy. The area is surrounded by steel spikes that are approximately 1 metre high. In the northwest, unfenced area, there is a memorial dedicated to those who fell in 1945. The cemetery is owned by the National Treasury and it is included in the voivodeship register of historical landmarks, but not the register of immovable monuments.