New Synagogue in Tarnów

The New Synagogue in Tarnów no longer exists. It stood at the corner of ul. Nowa and ul. Waryńskiego, and no other synagogue in the town was larger. Today what remains is a commemoration on the site and a fragment of a column in the cemetery.

Construction

Work began around 1865, but because of financial difficulties and disputes in the Jewish community it was halted for several decades. The building was completed to a design by Władysław Ekielski. The ceremonial opening took place on 18 August 1908, on the birthday of Emperor Franz Joseph I, hence the name Franz Joseph I Synagogue, also called the Jubilee Synagogue.

Destruction

The synagogue was set on fire on 9 November 1939. The fire lasted three days, but the building did not collapse. A few days later the Germans blew it up.

Traces today

Nothing of the building survived. In September 1993 a plaque commemorating the New Synagogue was placed at the corner of ul. Nowa and ul. Waryńskiego. A fragment of a column from the synagogue was incorporated into a monument in the Jewish cemetery on ul. Szpitalna. About 300 m away stands the Cathedral Basilica of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Practical information

• Site: the crossing of ul. Nowa and ul. Waryńskiego in Tarnów, commemorative plaque.
• Fragment of a column: Jewish cemetery on ul. Szpitalna.