International Jewish Cemetery Project
International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies

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Alternate names: Zelów [Pol], Zelav [Yid], זלוב [Hebr]. 51°28' N, 19°14' E, 20 miles WNW of Piotrków Trybunalski. 1900 Jewish population: 922. Yizkor: Sefer zikaron le-kehilat Zelow, (Tel Aviv, 1976). Gmina Zelów is an urban-rural administrative district in Bełchatów powiat, Łódź Voivodeship in central Poland with its seat in the town of Zelów, 16 km (10 mi) NW of Bełchatów and 40 km (25 mi) SSW of the regional capital Łódź. The gmina 2006 total population was15,321 (8,173 in the town). [July 2009]

US Commission No. POCE000672

Zelow is located in Piotrkow. The town is located at 51º28 19º14, 39 km from Piotrkow; 53 km from Lodz. The cemetery is located at Lesna Str., near No. 36. Present town population is 5,000-25,000 with no Jews.

  • Town: Urzad Miasta i Gminy, ul. Zeromskiego 28; tel. 44.
  • Regional: region Konserwator Zabytkow Piotrkow, ul. Armii Czerwonej 29; tel. 5646.

1921 Jewish population was 1816, 30%. The last known Jewish burial was in during the WWII when some Orthodox Jews were killed by the Germans were buried in the unlandmarked cemetery. The isolated suburban flat land has no sign or marker. Reached by turning directly off a public road, access is open to all with no wall, fence, or gate. The approximate size of cemetery is now 0.5 ha hectares. There are no stones. The cemetery contains unmarked mass graves but no structures. Municipality owns property used for industrial or commercial use and sandpit. Properties adjacent are commercial or industrial and agricultural. The cemetery boundaries are smaller now than 1939 because of sandpit. Rarely, local residents visit. The cemetery was vandalized during World War II and never in 1981-91 with no maintenance. This cemetery is completely destroyed.

Jan Pawel Woronczak, Sandomierska Str. 21 m. 1, 02-567 Warszawa; tel. 49-54-62 completed survey on 10 Nov 1991. The site was not visited. No interviews.