GemeindeView:  Liberec (Reichenberg)

CURRENT CZECH NAME:  Liberec

OTHER NAMES/SPELLINGS:  Reichenberg

LOCATION:  
A major industrial and administrative center of North Bohemia, Liberec lies between the Jizerske Mountains and the Jested ridge, with the Jested peak rising just to the south of the city. 

HISTORY: 

The first appearance of the city in writing comes from the year 1352, in church records revealing that the little village on the Nisa River already had a parish church and that it was a trade center occupying a valuable spot on overland trade routes. At the time the town was in the hands of the Bilberstein family residing in Frydlant Castle to the north. The city is just a few kilometers from the border with Germany, and for a long time was a primarily ethnic German city.

Jews were not legally permitted to reside in the town until the late 1840's.  The Synagogue pictured below, designed by Karl Konig, was dedicated in 1889.  At the time of the Sudeten crisis (1938), there were about 1,400 Jews in Liberec.  After the annexation by Germany, virtually all the Jews left.  The Synagogue was demolished in November, 1938.  The postcard below was posted in the early 1900's while the town was under Austrian control.

Postcard courtesy of Edward Victor, http://www.edwardvictor.com/Liberec.htm

Public Record Office of District of Liberec
Vilová 339/24
460 10 Liberec 10
Czech Republic
tel./fax : 00420 48 5150382-3
e-mail: soka@oku-lbc.cz
http://www.oku-lbc.cz/soka/uven.html

SYNAGOGUES: 

CEMETERY:  The Jewish cemetery was established in 1865 and is still in use.  See description from IAJGS Cemetery Project.  This cemetery is not described in:  Petr Ehl, Arno Parik, Jiri Fiedler, Old Bohemian and Moravian Jewish Cemeteries.