Valašské Meziříčí (German: Wallachisch Meseritsch) is a town in the Zlín Region with 27,960 inhabitants. A few Jewish families living in Roznov p.R. belonged to congregation and synagogue in Valasske Mezirici. The Jewish section on the military and prison cemetery from the World War I exists although the Jewish cemetery was destroyed in 1972.
http://www.zchor.org/valasske.htm has history and photographs of redone cemetery. [March 2003]
US Commission No. CZCE000198
Alternate names: Valašské Meziříčí [Cz], Wallachisch-Meseritsch [Ger], Walachison Mesiritsch. Town is located in Morava-Vsetin at 49°28' N, 17°58' E , 29 miles SSW of Moravská Ostrava, 63 miles ENE of Brno (Brünn). Cemetery: 1.5 km N. Present town population is 25,000-100,000 with fewer than 10 Jews.
- Town: Mayor Pro.fyzik Linhart Coufal, Mestsky Urad, 757 38 Valasske Mezirici; tel. 0651/21341.
- Local: Arch. Ondrej Bohuslav, Mestsky Urad-Referat Kultury, 757 38 Valasske Mezirici; tel. 0651/22181.
- Regional: Engineer Pavlina Pospisilova, Okresni Urad-Referat Kultury, 755 00 Vsetin, tel 0657/4001.
- Interested: Okresni Vlastivedne Muzeumpobocka, Tomas Moravec, Masarykova 3, 757 38 Valasske Mezirici; tel. 0651/21764.
Earliest known Jewish community was 1850. 1930 Jewish population was 135. Jewish community originated in 1867. Dr. Adolf Leimdorfer, 19th century rabbi, and historian Chaim Yahil, 1905-74, lived here. The unlandmarked Jewish cemetery originated in 1870 with last known Conservative Jewish burial before 1942. No other towns or villages used this suburban hillside, part of a municipal cemetery, without sign or marker. Reached by crossing town cemetery, access is open to all via no wall, fence, or gate. The approximate size of cemetery before WWII was 0.2154 ha and is now about 0.04 ha.
1-20 stones date from beginning of 20th century. The granite finely smoothed and inscribed stones or obelisks have German inscriptions. Some have bronze decorations or lettering. The cemetery contains no special memorial monuments or known mass graves but has a pre-burial house with distinctive features. The municipality owns the property used for Jewish cemetery and waste dumping. Properties adjacent are cemetery. The boundaries are smaller than 1939 because of town cemetery. Rarely, private visitors stop. Vandalism occurred during World War II and 1945-1981. Local/municipal authorities did restoration in 1980s. Now, authorities occasionally clean or clear. Moderate threat: uncontrolled access and vandalism. Slight threat: weather erosion, pollution, vegetation, existing and proposed nearby development.
Engineer arch. Jaroslav Klenovsky, Zebetinska 13, 623 00 Brno; tel. 0 completed survey on 1 March 1992. Documentation: Jan Herman: Jewish Cemeteries of Bohemia and Moravia (1980) and Hugo Gold: Die Juden und die Judengemeinden..Morava 1928). Other exisiting documentation was not used. The site was not visited Klenovsky. No interviews.