Alternate names: Viişoara, Păţal, Păţal-Mare. 47°23' N 22°27' E. 268.7 miles NW of Bucureşti. is a commune in Bihor County, NW Romania with a population of 1,326 people that includes Izvoarele, Pădureni, Reghea and Viişoara villages. [June 2011]
US Commission No. ROCE-0128 -
The cemetery is located in Viisoara, 3788, judet Bihor, Romania at 4723 2227, 268.7 miles NW of Bucharest and 11 km from Marghita. Present town population is 1,000-5,000 with no Jews.
- Mayor Szabo Ludovic, Town Hall of Viisoara, tel. 0040-59-466709
- The Jewish Community of Oradea, Mihai Viteazu Street no. 4, 3700 Oradea, Romania, tel. 0040-59-134843 (132587)
- The Federation of The Jewish Communities of Romania, Sfintu Vineri Street no. 9-11, sect. 3, Bucharest, Romania
- Interested: "Dr. Moshe Carmilly" Institute for Hebrew and Jewish History, Universitatii Street no. 7-9, room 61, 3400 Cluj-Napoca, Romania, Director: Ladislau Gyemant, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
- Caretaker with key: none
The 1850 Jewish population by census was 22, 74 by 1880 census and seventy in 1900. In May 1944, the Jews were gathered in the Oradea ghetto and on May 23, 25, 28-30, and June 1-5, 27 were deported to Auschwitz. The unlandmarked Orthodox cemetery was established in second half of 19th century Last known burial was first half of 20th century.
The rural/agricultural hillside, part of a municipal cemetery, has no sign or marker. Reached by a public road, access is open to all. A fence with a non-locking gate surrounds the site. Approximate pre- and post-WWII size is 14 x 8m + 14 x 10 m. 1-20 stones are visible, all gravestones in original location. Location of stones removed from the cemetery is unknown. Vegetation overgrowth in the cemetery is not a problem. Water drainage is good all year.
No special sections. The oldest known gravestone dates from second half of 19th century. The 19th and 20th century sandstone and concrete flat shaped, smoothed and inscribed, and carved relief-decorated, and double tombstones have Hebrew inscriptions. The local Jewish community owns the property used for Jewish cemetery only. Adjacent properties are agricultural and local cemetery. Rarely, private Jewish or non-Jewish visitors stop.
The never vandalized cemetery maintenance has been cleaning stones and clearing vegetation. Current care is occasional clearing or cleaning by individuals. No structures. No threats.
Ursutiu Claudia, Pietroasa Street no. 21, 3400 Cluj-Napoca, tel: 0040-64-151073 visited the site and completed the survey on 30 June 2000 using the following documentation:
- Recensamantul din 1880. Transilvania(1880 Transylvania Jewish Population Census.) coord.: Traian Rotariu, Cluj 1997.
- Recensamantul din 1900. (1900 Transylvania Jewish Population Census) coord.: Traian Rotariu, Cluj, 1999
- Recensamintul general al popula]iei din 29 decembrie 1930, ( The General Census of the population from december 29, 1930), vol. II, Bucuresti 1938
- Carmilly-Weinberger, Moshe. History of the Jews of Transylvania (1623-1944), Bucuresti, 1994, in Romanian
- Recensamantul general al populatiei Romaniei din 29 decembrie 1930, vol.
II (The General Census of the Population of Romania from 29 December 1930,
vol. II), Bucuresti, 1938 - Recensamintul general al populatiei din Romania din 7 ianuarie 1992 (The General Census of the Population of Romania from January 7, 1992), vol. I, Bucuresti, 1994
- Coriolan Suciu, Dictionar istoric al localitatilor din Transilvania (The Historical Dictionary of Localities in Transylvania), vol. I-II, Bucuresti, 1967
- Otto Mitelstrass, Historisch-Landeskundlicher Atlas von Siebenburgen, Ortsnamenbuch, Heidelberg, 1992
- Microsoft Auto Route Express 1999
Claudia and Adrian Ursutiu interviewed Sipos Ionel, vice-mayor of Viisoara, 29. 06. 2000, Viisoara [January 2003]