The Ostrava Torah p.4

Synagogue of Vítkovice (Ostrava)

OSTRAVA TIMELINE

• 1857 — The first synagogue was established
• 1863 — Hebrew school was established
• 1872 — The Jewish cemetery was consecrated
• 1912 — Jewish summer camp opened
• 1921 — Regional Headquarters of the World Zionist Organization was established
• 1929 — 2,000 Jewish athletes met in Ostrava to compete in the Maccabia games
• 1937 — Jewish population reaches 10,000
• 1939 — Nazi occupation on March 14; in October, Jews deported to Poland
• 1942 — Mass transports to Terezín; Liturgical items sent to Jewish Museum in Prague
• 1945 — Terezín liberated
• 1948 — Communists take over the Czechoslovakian Government
• 1952 — Slansky Trial charges Jews with crimes of “Zionism”
• 1964 — Torah scrolls moved to Westminster Synagogue in London
• 1982 — MST #581 on “permanent loan” to Temple Isaiah in Fulton, MD

JEWISH POPULATION OF OSTRAVA

• 1881: 700 Jews
• 1890: 1,356 Jews
• 1900: 3,272 Jews
• 1921: 4,969 Jews
• 1930: 7,189 Jews
• 1937: 10,000 Jews (5.4% of the total population)
• 2019: less than 100 Jews

References:

1. http://memorialscrollstrust.org/
2. http://www.yivoencyclopedia.org/article.aspx/Ostrava
3. https://templeshalomwinnipeg.ca/our-torahs/
4. http://www.worldjewishcongress.org/en/about/communities/CZ
5. https://www.radio.cz/en/section/special/a-jewish-scroll-brings-communities-together
6. http://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/czech-republic-population/
7. Theresienstadt Martyrs Remembrance Association
8. Lawson, David; Salomonovičová, Libuše; Šústková, Hana. Ostrava and Its Jews: ‘Now No-one Sings You Lullabies.’ London: Vallentine Mitchell, 2018.
9. https://www.southampton.ac.uk/parkes/news/seminars/2017/05/02-david-lawson.page
10. https://www.ostrava.cz/en/o-meste/historie-mesta
11. https://dbs.bh.org.il/place/ostrava-moravska
12. Altshuler, David (Ed.). The Precious Legacy: Judaic Treasures from the CzechoslovakState Collection. New York: Summit,1983.

Additional Reading:

1. https://jewish-heritage-europe.eu/2017/01/18/ostrava-cz-rescued-torah-leads-to-virtual-community-follow-up-to-rabbi-goldsteins-have-your-say-essay/ 
2. https://www.jpost.com/International/London-shul-receives-Torah-saved-from-Nazis
3. https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/ostrava
4. https://www.jewishmuseum.cz/en/program-and-education/temporary-exhibits/traveling-exhibitions/257/the-second-life-of-czech-torah-scrolls/
5. https://www.courant.com/community/simsbury/hc-news-simsbury-fvjc-holocaust-torah-restoration-20180130-story.html
6. https://blog.ehri-project.eu/2017/01/01/photographing-refugee-deportation/
7. http://kehila-ostrava.cz/
8. https://web.archive.org/web/20050415205837/http://motlc.wiesenthal.com/text/x17/xr1720.html
9. https://eurojewcong.org/communities/czech-republic/

All photos Philip Weber Photography or Public Domain