At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, the community developed dynamically, two synagogues, a mikvah, a cemetery, and a religious school were built. Initially, Krynica Jews were subordinated to the Nowy Sącz kahal; although they had already formed an organized religious community, they did not become formally independent until 1928. Abraham Dawid Teitelbaum, a representative of the famous Teitelbaum family, associated with the Hasidic Halberstam dynasty, became the rabbi in the Krynica community. The dominant political party was the Zionists.

In the interwar period, Jews were mainly engaged in trade and crafts, they also ran service activities related to the rental of villas and boarding houses. Of the 164 guesthouses in Krynica, as many as 112 were owned by Jews. At that time, the town operated, among others, Bet Yaakov school for girls, Bikur Cholim charity organisation, and the Makabi Jewish sports club.

After the outbreak of World War II and the beginning of the German occupation, Krynica was designated as a resort for Germans, which is why both Jews and Poles were expelled from the resort. Jews from Krynica were resettled to ghettos in Grybów, Bobowa and Nowy Sącz. After the liquidation of the latter in 1942, they were transported to extermination camps, mainly to the German Nazi extermination camp in Bełżec, where most of them died. During the occupation, the German occupation authorities demolished 36 Jewish homes and carried out mass executions of the Jewish population.

The Description

The Jewish cemetery in Krynica was established in the mid-19th century. It is located on a overgrown hill at Polna street. During the German occupation in World War II, mass executions of Jews took place in the necropolis. The graves of the murdered are unmarked. After the war, the cemetery fell into ruin and the area was used as a garbage dump.

Currently, the area is well-kept and surrounded by a stone wall. Cleaning and renovation works were financed by Leon Gatterer and the Krynica Town Hall. Approx. 120 tombstones made of sandstone, marble, granite and concrete have been preserved, with inscriptions in Hebrew and Polish.

Author of the note: Magda Lucima

Właściciel praw autorskich do opisu: Muzeum Historii Żydów Polskich POLIN.