After the expulsion of Jews from Silesia, they were only allowed to temporarily stay in Świebodzin. Sources from the second half of the 16th century confirm the presence of Polish Jews in the town – they supplied wool in exchange for the popular Świebodzin-produced cloth. Jews from Międzyrzecz, were very active in that period, traded in Świebodzin until the end of the 18th century.

In 1740, Świebodzin – along with the entire region of Silesia – came under the Prussian rule. This did not significantly affect the Jews present in the town. There were no permanent Jewish residents in Świebodzin until 1855, which marked the construction of the Frankfurt an der Oder–Poznań railway. In the 1870s, about 10 Jewish families lived in the town, working in trade and crafts.

In 1895, the local Jewish community comprised 75 people. Around that time, a house of prayer was established at the back of the private property of the Silberstein family at 8 Breitesraβe (today Kolejowa Street). In 1910, the community had 60 members, most prominent of whom were: counsellor Rudolf Silberstein, Doctor Wilhelm Michaeli (head of the hospital), and the Bauchwitz family.

After World War I, the number of Jews in the town almost doubled and came to constitute 1% of Świebodzin’s entire population. This was due to the arrival of Jews from the former eastern German provinces incorporated into Poland. Works on the construction of a synagogue commenced in 1922 and were completed in May 1924. It was located at the corner of Studentenstraβe and Doctorstraβe (today Studencka and Słowackiego Streets). It was a brick building with dimensions of 15.2 × 13.15 × 11.8 m (length / width / height). The main entrance was embellished with four columns with Egyptian capitals, and at the top there was a stained-glass window depicting the Star of David. The synagogue was in use until 1938. It was not destroyed during the Kristallnacht. However, on 15 November 1938, it became the property of fuel trader Galand, who converted it into a coal warehouse. The former synagogue building served this purpose until the second half of the 1950s. It was destroyed in a fire and the remnants were pulled down. In the 1970s, garages were built at the site.

The Description

The Jewish cemetery in Świebodzin was established in the second half of the 19th century, just outside of the erstwhile town boundaries, about 1.5 km south-west of the centre, in the direction of the village of Ołobok. Currently, it is situated at the intersection of Sobieskiego and Cegielniana streets. The cemetery covers an area of 0.71 hectares. It was closed in 1957, with plans made to liquidate it in October 1973. No tombstones or other elements of the cemetery have survived. At present, it is an empty square fenced with wire mesh. An information board has been placed at the site. No documentation of the cemetery has been produced.

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