MSZANA DOLNA: Małopolskie

Alternate names: Mszana Dolna [Pol], Amshana, משאנה דולנה [Yid], Meshana Dolna. 49°41' N, 20°05' E, 29 miles SSE of Kraków, 29 miles W of Nowy Sącz. Jewish population: 410 (in 1921). Yizkor: Zichron Dovid (Jerusalem, 1978, 1985, 1986). This town in Mszana Dolna gmina, Limanowa powiat, Lesser Poland Voivodeship with 7,431 inhabitants in 2004. Gmina Mszana Dolna contains the villages and settlements of Glisne, Kasina Wielka, Kasinka Mała, Łętowe, Łostówka, Lubomierz, Mszana Górna and Raba Niżna. Historically it was part of Galicia. Normal 0 This little town of about 6,800 inhabitants in the valley where the Poreba brook joins the Mszanka river that, in turn, flows into the Raba has an altitude of 400 meters a.s.l. The town is an important road junction. Although Mszana Dolna received municipal rights only in 1952, it functioned as a town much earlier because in the 17th century the town organized five annual fairs and weekly markets. A memorial in the town commemorates 881 Jews murdered by the Nazis in 1942. photos of cemetery. video. [June 2009]

US Commission No. POCE000748

Mszana Dolna is located in Nowy Sacz at 49º41 20º04, 53 km from Nowy Sacz and 55 km from Krakow. Cemetery location: Zakopianska St. Present town population is 5,000-25,000 without Jews.

• Town: Urzad Miasta i Gminy, ul. Pilsudskiego 2, 34-630 Mszana Dolna, Burmistrz, tel. 223.
  
• Regional: Wojewodzki Konserwator Zabytkow, mgr. inz. Zygmunt Lewczuk, ul. Kilinokiego 68, 33-300 Nowy Sacz, tel. 238-38 wew 234.
  
• Caretaker with key: J. Kotarba, Mszana Dolna 1a (lives near cemetery).
  

1921 Jewish population was 410. The landmarked Orthodox cemetery on an isolated rural (agricultural) hillside has a sign or plaque in the local language. Reached by crossing other public property, access open to all with a fence and locking gate. The size of the cemetery before WWII and now is 0.24 hectares. 20-100 tombstones, all in original locations with less than 25% toppled or broken, date from 19th-20th century. The marble and sandstone flat stones with carved relief decoration have Hebrew inscriptions. No mass graves. The unknown owner uses site as Jewish cemetery only. Properties adjacent are agricultural and residential. The cemetery boundaries are smaller than in 1939 due to new roads or highways. Occasionally, organized individual tours and private visitors stop. The cemetery was vandalized during WWII. The Leo Getterer Foundation, 600 Frankfurt a/Main, Guidlett str. 25, tel. 069/729462 cleared vegetation and fixed wall and gate in 1991. There is a regular caretaker. There are no structures. Erosion and vegetation are moderate threats.

Piotr Antoniak, ul. Dobra 5 m 36, 05-800 Pruszkow completed survey 8 Sept 1992. He visited the site 22 Aug 1992. Person interviewed: J. Kotarba, Mszana Dolna 1a.

UPDATE: Mszana Dolna is located in Krakow administrative district, not Nowy Sacz: There is a mass grave in Mszana Dolna as Jews from this small town and villages around were concentrated in Mszana (ghetto without fence) and later executed. There is a monument there for 881 people but local inhabitants say that there were many more of them. This place is called "Na Stawach." It was out of the town at that time but now has some houses around. The place is very well looked after. A distance to the cemetery is about 1.5 km. This area was exceptional in that in this part of the country Germans did not send Jews to the camps. Reportedly, many managed to escape and lived hidden in villages. However, I met one man only in Kasinka (about 10 km from Mszana) who had a Yad Vashem distinction. I also met one lady in Mszana, Mrs. Gadek, whose father was executed there. She was saved by friends of her father (her mother died before the war) in Krakow and adopted by the family. I do not know if she is alive now, I talked with her some four years ago. Source: Stefan Swiszczowski: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. [11 November 2000]