KOZIENICE: Mazowieckie

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(Yiddish: Kozhenitz) Jewish settlement in Kozienice was first documented in 1607. The privilege from Sigismund III in Warsaw issued in June 1616 allowed them to have 12 homes, trade, a taproom and keeping a [rzeźnictwa]. In March 1633, Wladyslaw IV also allowed them to have an existing synagogue and cemetery at the same time as the Jews that were in Zwoleniu. Kozienice Jewish population increased gradually from 1627 when the town had eight Jewish homes to 1787, when the 1,240 Jews represented over half the population. The 1921 census recorded 1,376 Jews. For many years, Kozienice was a center of Chasidism with tzaddikim like ben Israel who launched Sabtai Habstein (1733-1814) called the Magid of Kozienice, a student Shmuel Szmelkego Nikolsburg recognized for his gift for infertility treatment. In September 1939, some Jews escaped from the city. Nazis closed down in the ghetto that also contained Jews from Magnuszew, Ryczywołu, Głowaczowa, Sieciechów and other cities. On September 27, 1942 all inhabitants of the ghetto were transported to Treblinka. The Jewish Historical Institute has individual records of Kozienice. In spring 1940, Ringelblum wrote that the Kozienice magid's chamber, together with his bed and Koziene Chassidic relics, burned.

CEMETERY: The establishment date of the cemetery on Radomskiej Street is unknown, but existed before 1633. Almost completely destroyed by the Nazis, among the grasses are matzevot fragments of two gravestones. After the war, a monument was erected at the cemetery, and about 2000, thanks to the efforts of Rabbi Mendel Reichberg and the Heritage Protection Foundation, the Jewish cemetery area was cleaned and the ohel of tzaddick Israel was rebuilt. The person holding the key can be reached at 0 502 918 929. Map. photos. [May 2009]

US Commission No. POCE000060   
Alternate Yiddish names: Koznity, Kozhnitz and Kozhenitz. Kozienice is in Radomskie region at 57°35N 27°35E, 94 km from Warsaw and 24 km from Radom. Cemetery: on Radomska St. Present population is 5,000-25,000 with no Jews.

• Town: Burmistrz Miasta, 26-900 Kozienice, ul. Parkowicz tel. 74-27-06.
  
• Regional: Wojewodzki (Provincial) Konserwator Zabytkow, 26-600 Radom, ul. Moniuszki 5a, tel. 2-13-16.

The earliest known Jewish community and the cemetery establishment was 1627. 1921 Jewish population was 3,811, 55.4%. Priviledges were granted to the Jews in 1616 and 1633. Living here were Izrael of Kozienice, Eleazar of Kozienice, and Mosze of Kozienice. Izrael of Kozienice is buried in the cemetery. The last known Hasidic or Conservative Jewish burial in the cemetery was 1942. The Wojewodzki Konserwator Zabytkow in Radom protects the cemetery. The isolated urban crown of a hill, by water, has no sign, but has Jewish symbols on the gate or wall. Reached by turning directly off a public road, access is entirely closed. A continuous masonry wall with locking gate surround. Burmistrz Miasta has the key. The size of the cemetery is about 4.0 ha. 20 to 100 stones not in original locations and 100-500 in original locations are 50-75% toppled or broken. Removed stones are incorporated into Wojcikow St. The oldest known gravestone dates from 1821. The sandstone rough stones or boulders or finely smoothed and inscribed stones have Hebrew inscriptions. Some have traces of painting on their surfaces. There are special memorial monuments to Holocaust victims and unmarked mass graves. The Municipality owns property used for Jewish cemetery only. Properties adjacent are recreational and industrial. Frequently, organized Jewish groups, organized individual tours and private Jewish visitors stop. The cemetery was vandalized during World War II, but not in the last ten years. Jewish individuals in the country cleaned headstones, cleared vegetation, and fixed wall and gate in 1980. Jewish Congregation of Warsaw pays caretaker now for occasional clearing or cleaning. Within the limits of the cemetery is an ohel. Weather erosion, pollution and vandalism are moderate threats, and security and vegetation are slight threats.
Adam Penkalla, deceased,, who used his own documentation, completed survey. There is other documentation, but it is too old. He visited the site on August 3, 1991. No interviews were conducted.