Jewish Cemeteries in Latvia by Mejers Melers and Latvian State
Historical Archivist Rita Bogdanova has glossy illustrations and
gives historical information on the cemeteries in Latvian,
Russian and English. Preface contains other points of historical
interest. The first person in the new community was the butcher
(Shokhet) and not the rabbi. He had ministerial duties as well as
direct duties until the community was able to afford a Rabbi. A
large map of Latvia has a blue Magen David marking the cemetery
locations. A summary report gives the conditions of the Jewish
cemeteries in Latvia. Only 24 of the 58 surveyed have been
maintained or restored and at least 8 are still in use. Source:
JewishGen Digest. Arlene Beare, UK arl@dircon.co.uk [July 2006]
latvia gostini
THE CEMETERIES
Skip to THE CEMETERIES starting with
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AIZPUTE: (Hasenpoth)
Most of the cemetery was destroyed, but about 100 tombstones
remain. Many are dated from the early 1800s. Mr. Feigmanis has
pictures of all remaining stones. Aleksandrs Feigmanis, Kahovkas
2-12 LV-1021, Riga, Latvia aleksgen@mailcity.com
AUCE:
Only about 10 to 15 tombstones remain; the rest were
destroyed in this site located near the Christian cemetery.
Aleksandrs Feigmanis, Kahovkas 2-12 LV-1021, Riga, Latvia aleksgen@mailcity.com
Jewish cemetery destroyed in the 1960s. Aleksandrs Feigmanis,
Kahovkas 2-12 LV-1021, Riga, Latvia aleksgen@mailcity.com
BIKERNIEKI:
During World War II, 30,000 Jews were murdered in this small,
forested area on the outskirts of Riga, Latvia's capitol. In
total, 80,000 Latvian Jews, or 80% of the pre-war Jewish
population, was murdered from 1941-1944. A monument was dedicated
in 2001. Source: Dateline, World Jewry, January 2002. [January
2002]
DAUGAVPILS: (DVINSK)
The Jewish Cultural Society of Daugaupils (Chair, Sophia
Meyerova) advises that records of the cemetery covering seventy
years exist. The cemetery is also the burial place of Dvinsk's
most famous mitnagid and Chassidic rabbis of the period
1910-1930. Source: Mike Getz 5450 Whitley Park Terrace, Apt 901,
Bethesda, MD 20814
Old cemetery in Old Vorstadt: There is only one-half of one
broken tombstone from the 1830s.
Next oldest cemetery: Totally destroyed by the Soviets in the
1970s. A few old tombstones, including some famous rabbis, were
transferred into the Daugavpils Jewish cemetery. Original
cemetery is no longer in existence.
New cemetery has some older stones that were moved there. A
couple hundred stones in average to good condition. Source: Bruce
Kahn bkahn@kodak.com
GOSTINI: (formerly GLAZAMNKA)
Located in a forest about 2 kilometers from Gostini on the Madona
road, about 160 tombstones are left. Parts of destroyed
tombstones remain. Aleksandrs Feigmanis, Kahovkas 2-12 LV-1021,
Riga, Latvia aleksgen@mailcity.com
UPDATE:
I have reconstructed the lost Jewish cemetery in the forest near
Gostini (Dankere) with an international Youthcamp in 2005 and
2006. We have taken picture of all stones and now the
Steinheim-Institut in Duisburg is trying to translate the names
and the dates. We have found about 280 stones (most in very good
condition). I will try to make an index of the names (but very
much stone have just the first names). That will be possible I
hope in winter.We will try to have another cemetery (or two
cemeteries) in 2007 and so we are interested in sponsors.
Klaus-Peter Rex, Kastanienallee 57, D-42489 Wuelfrath, rex-wuelfrath@online.de
[August 2006]
JACOBSTADT: see JEKABPILS
JAKOBSHTADTI: see JEKABPILS
JAUNJELGAVA: (Friedrichstadt)
The very large and old cemetery still exists. Many nice
tombstones have artistic engravings of lions, and birds, etc. Mr.
Feigmanis has pictures of all remaining stones. Aleksandrs
Feigmanis, Kahovkas 2-12 LV-1021, Riga, Latvia aleksgen@mailcity.com
JEKABPILS:
I have 400 photos of tombstones with the inscriptions
translated. There are of course broken stones. Some the writing
is indistinct. Please do not write to ask me for names, at this
stage, as there is no alphabetical list and a lot are just the
name of the person as son or daughter of someone without
surnames. This list will replace the partial list at present
attached to the Jekabpils page. Arlene Beare President Latvia SIG
[August 2000]
Alternate names: Jakobshtadt, Jacobstadt, Yakovshtat,
Yekabpils at 56º29'/25º51'
http://www.shtetlinks.jewishgen.org/jekabpils/jekabpils.htm
[October 2000]
On Duiha River, the cemetery still is used by present small
Jewish population (about twenty Jewish families). Cemetery is not
maintained but is not completely overgrown. Source: Bud Jaffe,
141 Bridlewoodlane, Longwood, FL 32720 (or 32729?) phone:
407-862-4211
Kreitzburger Jacobstadter Benevolent Association (New York,
N.Y.) Records, 1921-1977. Description: .6 linear ft. Notes:
Landsmanshaft founded in 1918 by Jewish immigrants from Krustpils
(Jekabpils), Latvia. It was dissolved in 1977. … YIVO
collections are in Yiddish, Russian, Polish, English, Hebrew, and
other European and non-European languages. Location: YIVO Institute for Jewish
Research, New York, NY. Control No.: NXYH89-A825 [December
2000]
JELGAVA (MITAU): {10869}
The old cemetery of Mitau, founded in the 16th century, was
almost totally destroyed in Nazi and Soviet times. Located on the
corner of Zalites street and Bauskas Street, about thirty tomb
boxes without tombstones remain. Four legible tombstones are
those of Jahe Herzberg (Stern), Hode Aronstein, Kron Shimelowitz,
and Betty Schmahman (Jakobson) 1794-1837. 2 illegible stones.
Aleksandrs Feigmanis, Kahovkas 2-12 LV-1021, Riga, Latvia aleksgen@mailcity.com
In November 1992, I visited Kraslava, Latvia where one to
three Jewish families remain. The number depends on whom you ask.
Arkady Raichlin drove me around and got the key to the cemetery
from the Latvian woman who tends to it. It is in nearly pristine
condition. Raichlin says there is almost no vandalism. Stones
date from the 1600s. There are several hundred markers that I
could see. In the "new" or postwar part of the cemetery are three
markers with 52 names of Jewish soldiers from Kraslava who died
in the Red Army. I have around a dozen slides of the cemetery
from my brief visit there. Source: Montcono1@aol.com
KULDIGA: (Goldingen)
The old cemetery on the western side of the town (Vecie kapi)
between Liepajas iela and Parka iela, has sections belonging to
different faiths. The grounds are well maintained as a park, but
relatively few marked graves remain. The Jewish section is at the
back, on Parka iela, and has a couple of dozen marked graves,
mainly from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The most
recent graves date from the 1930s. The present park was set out
in the late 1960s or early 1970s. According to the town architect
(June 1995), the cemeteries became overgrown and in a state of
disrepair. Local authorities considered several schemes to
restore them. Unfortunately, they settled on the controversial
one of preserving only intact graves and removing the fallen
stones, which were subsequently sent to Skrunda (about 30 km
away) and destroyed. Thus, most of the cemetery was destroyed.
About 40 tombstones still remain, some with inscriptions dating
from the 1820s. Source: Abraham Lenhoff; e-mail: lenhoff@che.udel.edu.
The old cemetery: Found in the beginning of the 19th century
no longer exists. In June 1994, we were taken to the main
(probably only) cemetery in the town, where an older lady was
caretaker. Told that we wanted to see the Jewish section, she was
quite gracious. We walked quite a distance until we came to an
area that had been cleared and paved as a plaza, with a large
stone engraved with a Jewish Star. This was erected after the
Russian occupation ended and financed by contributions from Jews
in Europe, Israel, and America. Behind this was a large area
heavily overgrown with weeds, with most of the Tombstones either
fallen over or at angles. We could see that the inscriptions were
in Hebrew. She then led us to a newer section adjoining this
area, where there were new stones erected, with attractive
landscaping. The newest stones had no Hebrew inscriptions. There
was nobody left knowledgeable in Hebrew. I have some pictures.
Source: Harvey S. Sussman phone: 561-499-7766; Fax 561-498-8444;
e-mail: hssussman@aol.com
In relatively good condition, about 500 tombstones remain.
Contact cemetery caretaker: Mr. Agris Furmanis, Dzerves Street,
Liepaja, Latvija. His phone number is 35-268. Write to him in
Latvian, Russian, or German. Between 25 and 36 books remain that
record all the burials from 1909 until current time. Aleksandrs
states he could copy the books for a minimum of $150 to $200. The
cemetery is combined with a Christian cemetery and reasonably
well maintained, although hardly any Jews are left in the city.
There are several hundred stones. The cemetery was unharmed by
the war. Burial records exist in the cemetery office. Jewish
burials end in 1941. Sources: Rick Bercuvitz bercuvit@management.mcgill.ca
and Judith27@aol.com
We asked to be taken to the grave of an uncle who was buried
there in 1935. Mr. Furmanis was able to find the grave location
through his records and sent an assistant to take us to the
place. He charged $10 for this service. His records do not show
burials by dates, just names, section, row and place numbers of
the graves. Each grave is supposed to have a number engraved
somewhere on the gravestone. Our grave did. He also gave us a
list of all the Hirschhorns buried there. The correct telephone
number is 34 35268, His business card shows the following minus
the language marks which are not on my keyboard: "Sandris
Furmanis / Livas kapsetas parzinis / Beru organizesana / Neseju
pakalpojumi / Kapu labiekartosana / Kapakmenu izgatavosana un
uzstadisana." A woman visiting the cemetery gave us the name of
Elana Ivanova as chairwoman of the Leipaja Jewish community, who
has an office in the Hotel Amrita. (the Jewish community or some
other purpose?) We did not contact her as although we had stayed
at the hotel. Information on the hotel stationery is as follows:
Hotel Amrita, R/Nr: LV52103015131; Rigas iela 7 LV340l Liepaja,
Latvija, (+371) 34-80888 (+371) 34-80444 PAREX BANKA / Ls #:
7002062147. Updated in 1999 by Sandra and Donald Hirschhorn; Fax:
561-883-3253, sandyhshor@aol.com
UPDATE: "The Liepaja Jewish cemetery was neglected but not
greatly vandalized during the German and Soviet occupations
(1941–45 and 1945–1991). Several burial record books
survived and ended up in custody of the 1991 cemetery warden, Mr.
Agris Furmanis. The Liepaja Cemetery Administration reclaimed the
most recent books, covering the period 1909–1941, and made
copies available to the Jewish Community of Liepaja. ... Ilana
Ivanova, former head of the Community, ... Only Book 1, listing
3564 names and death dates (including 5 between 1905 and 1908),
has been transcribed thus far..." Source: http://www.ej-anders.com/users/xenon2/cem/CemIndex.htm
[May 2002]
One of the oldest and most picturesque cemeteries of Latvia,
tombstones date from in the 17th or 18th century. Aleksandrs
Feigmanis, Kahovkas 2-12 LV-1021, Riga, Latvia aleksgen@mailcity.com
PREILI:
The 15-20 gravestones were only broken fragments buried in an
overgrowth of trees and vegetation or covered with moss. Very few
were either intact and/or legible. Only one stone stands upright
and is legible. A memorial marker to the Jews who perished in the
Holocaust also exists. I photographed each and every stone in
September 1997. Source: Gary Fitleberg, P.O. Box 8373, Calabasas,
CA 91302
A big cemetery located on a high hill located in the suburbs
of the city, the cemetery is in good condition. The oldest
tombstone dates from the middle of the 19th century. About 300
stones still remain. Some can no longer be read while others have
been damaged or stolen. (In transcribing the list, Arline Sachs
assumed that the father's name was the last name, when no other
one was given, therefore some of the last names may be wrong.)
Source: forwarded by William S. Brown. Names collected by
Aleksandrs Feigmanis aleksgen@mailcity.com
B'nai Rezitza Association (New York, N.Y.) Records,
1956-1974. Description: .7 linear ft. Notes: Landsmanshaft
founded in 1893 and incorporated in 1927 by Jewish immigrants
from Rezekne, Latvia (formerly Russian, Rezhitsa, until 1917).
Location: YIVO
collections are in Yiddish, Russian, Polish, English, Hebrew, and
other European and non-European languages. Location: YIVO
Institute for Jewish Research, New York, NY. Control No.:
NXYH89-A779 [December 2000]
RIGA:
The old Jewish cemetery is totally destroyed. The location is
now a park. The new cemetery founded in 1920 has thousands of
tombstones. The guardian of Riga cemeteries has the list of all
funerals since 1951. Aleksandrs Feigmanis, Kahovkas 2-12 LV-1021,
Riga, Latvia aleksgen@mailcity.comhttp://www.shtetlinks.jewishgen.org/riga/rigapage.htm
[October 2000]
Sabile cemetery has about 20 graves. There may be more but
while it did not appear to be vandalized, it was overgrown. The
cemetery, totally hidden from view, is a long walk from a dirt
road with no markings. Earlier in the day, we went to Tukums
(Tukkum). The local museum director put us in touch with a Mr.
Vitolds Masnovskis, who is apparently a government official
extremely familiar with the area. He supposedly is writing a book
on the history of the Tukums district. Along with our guide and
driver, he spent most of the rest of the day with us in Tukums,
Sabile and Kuldiga. He knew about the Sabile cemetery and
directed us there. I am sure he is very much available to assist
anyone coming to the area in any way possible. He does not speak
English. We gave him $20 for a half-day but he had offered to
come along with us without requesting payment. His business card
states the following followed by his home address: KULTURAS
MINISTRIJA /KULTURAS PIEMINEKLU AIZSARDZIBAS INSPEKCLIJA /
VITOLDS MASNOVSKIS (his name) / galv. valsts inspektors Tukuma
rajona / talr. TUKUMS (8-2) 31- 23436, 29351 / Strelnieku 37-36 /
Tukums 3106. Source: Sandra and Donald Hirschhorn; Fax:
561-883-3253 E-Mail: sandyhshor@aol.com (1999)
SALDUS: Courland Province
Saldus is located 120 km from Riga. The cemetery is just
outside the town. The alternate/former name is Frauenburg.
Present total town population: 12,500. Present town's Jewish
population: 14. No care or maintenance. The earliest known Jewish
community in town is 1850's. Jewish population as of the last
census before World War II: 325 in 1936. The cemetery is located
about 2 km from that congregation that used it. The cemetery
location is rural (wood/forest), isolated, and unmarked. The
cemetery is reached by turning directly off a public road. Access
to the cemetery is open to all with no fence, wall or gate.
Approximately 60 gravestones are in cemetery in original
location. The vegetation overgrowth in the cemetery is a constant
problem that is damaging stones. The 1939 cemetery boundaries are
unknown. No structures. What is left of the cemetery is totally
neglected. Apparently, a road was built through half (?) the
cemetery by the communists after W.W.II, which caused quite a
stir in the town. No security. Weather erosion is a great threat
to the remaining tombstones. Vegetation is a moderate threat. The
cemetery is in a small patch of wood next to the road. We drove
right past it at first. No obvious vandalism. Name, address and
of person completing this survey: Howard Simson, Karlavägen
50, Stockholm, Sweden. Telephone: +46 8 662 5850. The survey was
completed on 20 Nov 1998. He visited the site on 31 Oct
1998.
SASMACHEN: see Valdemarpils
SASMAKA: see Valdemarpils
SHASMAKEN: see Valdemarpils
SHUBITZ: see SUBATE
SKAISTKALNE: {10206}
Relatively large, about 50x50 meters, with some very nice
tombstones, the cemetery is located near the Christian cemetery
with bout forty tombstones still remaining. Source: Judith27@aol.com
SUBATE:
About 200 years old, the site has not been desecrated so much
as neglected. The local (non-Jewish) community, led by a Catholic
priest, is taking an interest in its maintenance. Dvinsk's Jewish
population is involved. Source: Mike Getz 5450 Whitley Park
Terrace, Apt 901, Bethesda, MD 20814
Alternate names: Subata, Subbat, Shubitz, Subitz. http://www.jewishgen.org/latvia/subate.html
[October 2000]
Located just on another side of the road, opposite the
Christian cemetery, the cemetery's tombstones remain but vandals
excavated some graves. It looks like a forest. I found the Jewish
cemetery in Talsi, Latvia where my wife and I photographed all
the gravestones that were still legible I promised copies of the
photos to the Jewish Museum in Riga. Source: Mark Sebba
Alternate names: Talsen, Talsn, Tilsen. http://members.home.com/bgephart/talsi.html
[October 2000]
TALSN: see TALSI
TILSEN: see TALSI
TUKKUM:
In good condition, only half of the cemetery and about 200
tombstones still remain. On 1/10/98, Gary Fittleberg wrote that
the cemetery is scheduled to be replaced with a paved road. On
July 25, Gary wrote that he received a letter dated April 2,
1998, from the Chancery of the President of Latvia saying that
the cemetery would not be destroyed and furthermore restoration
work would take place to bring it to a decent condition. Source:
Gary Fittleberg, P.O. Box 8373, Calabasas, CA 91302; (818)
718-6855 No road was put through the cemetery. According to Mr.
Masnovskis (see Sabile above), the cemetery was partially cleaned
once for an official Israeli visitor. Tukums was supposed to
become a sister city to a place in Israel but that has not
happened. He showed us the mausoleum of the last rabbi of the
area in the cemetery. Source: Sandra and Donald Hirschhorn; Fax:
561-883-3253 sandyhshor@aol.com (1999)
The Jewish cemetery is just E of the town center, between
Dzirnavu iela and Ezera iela, on a wooded hillside overlooking
Lake Sasmaka. Unfortunately, little visible remains: two small
gravestones and one tomb box. Apparently, the cemetery survived
in fairly good condition until the late 1960s when it was
destroyed with the tacit approval and perhaps participation of
the local Soviet authorities. Private residents, for use in
construction projects, took some gravestones. I was shown three
large stones in very good condition lying in the mud behind a
private home. However, it seems that most of the stones were
crushed for use in surfacing roads. Source: Abraham Lenhoff;
lenhoff@che.udel.edu
Alternate names: Sasmacken, Sasmaken, Sassmacken, Shasmaken,
Sassmaka. http://members.home.com/bgephart/valdemar.html
[October 2000]
VARAKLANY:
The cemetery is in good condition with more than 250
monuments still remaining. The oldest tombstone dates from the
1820s. Mr. Feigmanis has pictures of all the stones in this
cemetery. Aleksandrs Feigmanis, Kahovkas 2-12 LV-1021, Riga,
Latvia aleksgen@mailcity.com
Alternate names: Varaklanu, Varaklyany, Varklian, Varkliani.
http://www.jewishgen.org/latvia/varaklani.html
[October 2000]
VENTSPILS: see Windau
VILANI:
A small cemetery still exists. Aleksandrs Feigmanis, Kahovkas
2-12 LV-1021, Riga, Latvia aleksgen@mailcity.com
VISKI:
The cemetery is located in very nice place, on a half-island
of a lake. Aleksandrs Feigmanis, Kahovkas 2-12 LV-1021, Riga,
Latvia aleksgen@mailcity.com
Cemetery is at the boarder of Estonia and Latvia. Aleksandrs
Feigmanis, Kahovkas 2-12 LV-1021, Riga, Latvia aleksgen@mailcity.com
WINDAU:
Located on Saules St., many interesting tombstones remain. In
some parts, tombstones are destroyed so that the cemetery looks
almost like a forest. About forty tombstones still exist.
Aleksandrs Feigmanis, Kahovkas 2-12 LV-1021, Riga, Latvia aleksgen@mailcity.com
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