Alternate names: Kwidzyn [Pol], Marienwerder [Ger]. 53°44' N, 18°55' E, 44 miles SSE of Gdańsk (Danzig). Jewish population: 295 (in 1880), 13 (in 1937). Kwidzyn powiat is a unit of territorial administration and local government in Pomeranian Voivodeship, northern Poland since January 1, 1999. Its administrative seat and largest town is Kwidzyn, 73 km (45 mi) S of the regional capital Gdańsk. The only other town in the powiat is Prabuty, 18 km (11 mi) E of Kwidzyn. 2006 total population is 80,704, of which the population of Kwidzyn is 37,814. [June 2009]
The first documentation of Jews in Kwidzyn is from 1798. In 1815, a Jewish cemetery existed; and in 1830 and 1930 two synagogues were built. In 1846, 220 Jews lived in Kwidzyn with that number rising to 295 in 1880. Paul Hirsch - Prime Minister of Prussia in the Weimar Republic was born here. In 1933, Kwidzyń's Jewish community numbered about 200 that fell to 13 by 1937. Nazi aggression during Kristallnacht burned the local synagogue. Several Jews were arrested. By May 1939, not one Jew remained. Widzyn Jewish Cemetery was founded in the 19th century on ul. Kościuszki. Nazi damage left no gravestones. A stone memorial plaque remembers the deceased. Forum about the town and cemeteries photos. Map. [May 2009]
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US Commission No. POCE000762
Alternate name: Marienwerder in German. Kwidzyn is located in Elblag at 53°44' 18°55', 69 km SSE of Gdansk. Cemetery location: ul. Kosciuszki. Present town population is 25,000-100,000 with no Jews.
Town: Urzad Miasta, ul. Warszawska 19, tel. 42-31. - Local: Urzad Wojewodzki w Elblagu, ul. Wojska Polskiego 1, tel. 27001.
- Interested: Panstwowa Sluzba Ochrony Zabytkow Elblag, ul. Wojska Polskiego 1, tel. 24553.
Earliest known Jewish community was 1849 (262 Jews). 1937 Jewish population was 13. Effecting the Jewish community was `Judenedikt' 1812. The Orthodox and Progressive/Reform Jewish cemetery was established in 19th century. The isolated urban flat land has no sign or marker. Reached by turning directly off a public road, access is open to all. A broken masonry wall with no gate surrounds. The size of the cemetery before WWII and now is 0.25 hectares. There are no gravestones, structures, or mass graves. Municipality owns site used as a park. Properties adjacent are residential. Rarely, local residents visit. The cemetery was vandalized during WWII, but not in the last ten years. There has been no maintenance. Authorities clean or clear occasionally. The cemetery was liquidated and now is a city park.
Wiktor Knercer, 10-685 Olsztyn, ul. Barcza 33/16, tel. 33-86-07 visited site June 1992 and completed survey Sept., 1992. Documentation: Map dated 1910. Deutsches Stadtebuch, Eoick Kenser, 1939.