Alternate names: Kunmadaras [Hun], Madaras, Nagykunmadaras. Kunmadaras is a village in Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok County in the Northern Great Plain region of central Hungary at 47°26' N, 20°48' E, 10 miles NW of Karcag, 40 miles W of Debrecen. Jewish population: 215 (in 1880), 302 (in 1930). The 2009 population was 5,507 with no Jews.
- Encyclopedia of Jewish Life (2001), p. 690: "Kunmadras".
- JewishGen Hungary SIG
Mayor's office is caretaker. Still used by the local Jewish community, the last known burial was in 1989. The cemetery is near Road 34. [March 2009]
Photograph in cemetery of Holocaust Memorial. [March 2011]
photos of cemetery and gravestones [May 2011]
US Commission No. 000053
Kunmadaras is located in Szolnok, (47º26 20º48) 16km from Karcag. Cemetery is near the highway in Kunhegyesi ut. Present town population is 5000-25,000 with fewer than 10 Jews. (Land record 177 hrsz.)
- Local: Polgarmesteri Hivatal of Kunmadaras Kossuth ter 1 Ph: 21.
- Regional: Mazsihisz of Sip U.12, H-1075, Budapest Phone: (011-361) 122-6475/78.
- Interested: Kohn Sandor of Kumadaras Kunhegyesi ut 7. Interested: Quittner Janos of 1031 Budapest Palicsi utca 69.
The pre-WWII Jewish population (census) was 302. There was a pogrom on 21 May 1946. The Jewish cemetery was established in 1890 with last known Conservative Jewish burial 1989. The cemetery suburban flat site, near other cemeteries, has no sign or marker. Reached by turning directly off a public road, access is open via a broken fence and non-locking gate. The cemetery is 0.50 hectares.
100-500 gravestones, with less than 25% broken, date from 19th-20th centuries. The cemetery is not divided into special sections. The marble, granite and limestone finely smoothed and inscribed stones, flat stones with carved relief decoration or double tombstones, have Hebrew and Hungarian inscriptions. Some graves have metal fences around them. The cemetery contains special memorial monuments to Holocaust victims. Within the limits of the cemetery is a pre-burial house. The Jewish community owns the still-active cemetery. Adjacent properties are agricultural and cemetery. Boundaries are unchanged since 1939. The Jewish community re-erected stones, cleared vegetation, and fixed the walls and gate in 1986. There has been no vandalism since restoration with occasional clearing or cleaning. Vegetation overgrowth is a problem. There is no present threat to the cemetery.
Peter Wirth completed the survey on 12/6/92. No documentation was used. The site was visited for this survey. Quittner Janos was interviewed on 08/06/1992 at Budapest, Paucsi utca 69.