Olomouc is a city in Moravia. Jews were first mentioned in the town in 1140. The synagogue pictured below, designed by Jacob Gartner, was dedicated in 1897. In 1903, there were about 2,200 Jews in Olomouc (3.3% of the total population). With the German occupation, the synagogue was burned down on March 15,1939. Jews from surrounding areas were concentrated in the city, and ultimately about 3,500 Jews were deported to extermination camps through Theresienstadt in the summer of 1942. Only 128 of these deportees survived the war.
Copyright © 1998-99 Edward Victor