Alternate names: Vyzhnytsya Вижниця [Ukr], Vizhnitsa Вижница [Rus], Vijniţa [Rom], Wiznitz [Ger], Vizhnitz
- Der Geshichte der Juden in der Bukowina, vol. II
(Tel Aviv, 1962) - JewishGen Romania SIG
- Słownik Geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego (1880-1902), XIV, p. 165: "Wyżnica".
- Shtetl Finder (1980), p. 114: "Vizhnitz".
- Pinkas HaKehilot, Romania, Vol. 2 (1980), p. 460: "Vijnita"
- Encyclopedia of Jewish Life (2001), pp. 1395-96: "Vijnita".
- web site of the writer, Ruth Ellen Gruber. . Jewish Cemeteries of the Bucovina by This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. (June 2009) ISBN 978-973-1805-5S0-4. Romanian, Ukrainian, English, French, and German. This book may soon be available via commercial booksellers, but can also be obtained directly from the author <This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.>. Though very fews Jews remain in the Bucovina, the cemeteries represent the culture and prominence of the Jewish populations of pre-WWII Romania. This volume provides information on and pictures of the Jewish cemeteries [Mar 2014]
- The original center of the Hasidic sect called (וויזשניץ Vizhnitz). The town's Jewish community was decimated in the Holocaust and most survivors did not return, but the Vizhnitz Hassidic community in Israel and elsewhere keeps the name. [Mar 2014]
- Czernowitz-Ehpes photos. Mar 2014]
- Jewish Bukovina [Mar 2014]
VIZHNITSA I: US Commission No. UA25040102
Alternate name: Viznits (Yiddish), Vijnita (German) and Wiznitz (Hungarian). Vizhnitsa is located in Chernovitskaya at 48º15 25º11, 56 km from Chernovtsy and 116 km from Ivano-Frankovsk. The cemetery is located in begining of Chernoguzy village. Present town population is 5,001-25,000 with fewer than 10 Jews.
- Town officials: Region Executive Committee, Chairman Butora Dmitry Alyekseevich [Phone: (03730) 21246]. Cherkach Natal'ya Il'yevna [Phone: (03722) 21935].
- Regional: Region Executive Committee in Chernovtsy, Chairman Leonchenko Vladimir Pavlovich [Phone: (03722) 22332]. Monuments Preservation-Olhovskaya Galina Dmitriyevna [Phone: (03722) 21792].
- Caretaker with key: Nesteryuk Grigoriy Grigoryevich, Chernoguzy, Glediv St.
- Jewish Foundation in Chernovtsy-Boyko Irina.
The earliest known Jewish community was 17th century. The Jewish population (census) 1940 was 5000. Effecting the Jewish Community were 1767 Magdeburg Right amd 1918 Vizhnitsa transfer to Rumania. Living in this Jewish community was Besht Menahem Mendel ben Haim Hager (Vizhnitsky Hasidim). The Jewish cemetery was established in 1863. Buried in the cemetery is Besht Menahem Mendel ben Haim Hager, died in 1884, with last known Vizhnitsky Hasidic burial 1994. No other towns or villages used this cemetery. The suburban and isolated rural (agricultural) flat land has no sign or marker. Reached by turning directly off a public road, access is open with permission. A continuous fence with locking gate surrounds the cemetery. 501 to 5000 stones all in original location with less than 25% toppled, date from 1863 to 20th century. The cemetery has special sections for men, women, unmarried women, rabbis, Cohanim, and children. Some tombstones have traces of painting on their surfaces, portraits on stones and/or metal fences around graves. The cemetery contains no known mass graves. Municipality owns Jewish cemetery property. Properties adjacent are agricultural and residential. The cemetery boundaries are unchanged since 1939. Occasionally, organized individual tours and local residents visit. The cemetery was vandalized during World War II. Local/municipal authorities, Jewish individuals within country and abroad, and Jewish groups within country and abroad cleaned stones, cleared vegetation, fixed wall and fixed gate in 1946 and 1988. Jewish survivors, contributions from visitors, and the government pay the regular caretaker. Within the limits of the cemetery is an ohel. Vegetation overgrowth is a seasonal problem, preventing access. Water drainage at the cemetery is a seasonal problem. Moderate threat: vegetation. Slight threat: uncontrolled access, weather erosion, pollution and vandalism.
Oks Vladimir Moiseevich of 270065, Ukraine, Odessa, Varnenskaya 17D, Apt. 52 [Phone: (0482) 665950] visited site and completed survey on 8/3/94. Interviewed on 8/3/94 were Nesteryuk G.G. and Cherkach N.I.
VIZHNITSA II: US Commission No. UA25040101
See VIZHNITSA I for town information. The Jewish cemetery was established in the 17th century with last known Hasidic burial mid-19th century. No other towns or villages used this cemetery. The isolated urban flat land has no sign or marker. Reached by turning directly off a public road, access is open to all. No wall, fence, or gate surrounds the cemetery. No stones are visible. Stones removed were incorporated into roads or structures. The cemetery contains no known mass graves. Municipality owns property now used for recreational use (park, playground, and sports). Properties adjacent are residential. The cemetery boundaries are smaller now than 1939 because of "other." Rarely, local residents visit. The cemetery was vandalized during World War II. There is no maintenance or structures. Very serious threat: uncontrolled access, pollution and existing nearby development. Moderate threat: weather erosion and proposed nearby development.
Oks Vladimir Moiseevich of 270065, Odessa, Varnenskaya St. 17D, Apt. 52 [Phone: (0482) 665950] visited site and completed survey on 8/25/94. Interviewed on 8/25/94 were Olhovskaya G.D. [Phone: (03722) 21792] and Cherkach Natalya Ilevna [Phone: (03722) 21935].
[UPDATE] Photos by Charles Burns [April 2016]