Historic Timeline

Early Jewish Settlement

C. 1275: Oswiecim is granted municipal rights
Early 16th Century: The first Jewish settlement is established in Oswiecim
1563: The King of Poland, Zygmunt August, grants the residents of Oswiecim the right to forbid Jews from settling in the town
1580: An accusation of desecration of the Catholic host is made against the Jews of Oswiecim
1588: Jan Piotraszewski, a resident of Oswiecim, donates his house and nearby properties to the Jews of Oswiecim for the construction of a synagogue and a cemetery
March 10, 1636: Wladyslaw IV Waza, King of Poland, grants the Oswiecim Jewish Community the privilege to settle, own houses and properties, and to use the synagogue and cemetery.
1765:The Jewish population of Oswiecim reaches 133 people

1804: Jacob Haberfeld establishes a liquor factory
Late 19th Century: Shlomo Halberstam (1847-1906), future founder of Bobover dynasty, becomes the Chief Rabbi of Oswiecim
1890: Oswiecim's total population is 5054, including 2535 Jews (50.1%)
1893: The Chevra Lomdei Mishnayot Association is established
1900: According to official records of the Oswiecim Jewish Community, the town houses ten synagogues and houses of worship
1904: The Oswiecim City Council consists of 24 members, 13 of them Jewish
1906: Jozef Schönker (1872-1945) sets up "Agrochemia," an artificial fertilizer factory

1921: Oswiecim's total population is 12,187, including 4,950 Jews (40.6%)
C. 1928: The Chevra Lomdei Mishnayot Synagogue in Koscielny Square (currently Priest Jan Skarbek square) begins operations
1932: The Oswiecim City Council consists of 32 members, 18 of them Jewish
1934: Dr. Emil Reich is elected Deputy Mayor of Oswiecim

1939:According to unofficial data, Oswiecim’s population is around 14,000, which includes 8,200 Jews (58.5%)
1939: World War II begins. In early September, Oswiecim is invaded by the Nazis on
November 29/30, 1939: The Great Synagogue on Berek Joselewicz Street is burned down by the Nazis
March/April 1941: Oswiecim's Jews are deported to ghettos in Chrzanow, Bedzin, and Sosnowiec
January 27, 1945: KL Auschwitz-Birkenau and the town of Oswiecim are liberated by the Red Army. Seventy-seven Jewish survivors, former inhabitants of Oswiecim, return to the town by June 1945
September 1945: The Oswiecim Jewish Community consists of 186 people

November 1946: The Oswiecim Jewish Community consists of 40 people
1945-1955: The Majority of Oswiecim's Jews immigrate to Israel and the U.S.A.
1977: The Chevra Lomdei Mishnayot building is nationalized by the Polish State Treasury
1997: The Chevra Lomdei Mishnayot Synagogue is returned to the Bielsko-Biala Jewish Community
1998:The Bielsko-Biala Jewish Community donates Chevra Lomdei Mishnayot Synagogue to the Auschwitz Jewish Center Foundation
May 26, 2000: Shimson Klueger, the last practicing Jew of Oswiecim, dies, September 12, 2000, Auschwitz Jewish Center and Chevra Lomdei, Mishnayot Synagogue opens to the public
2006: The Auschwitz Jewish Center becomes affiliated with the Museum of Jewish Heritage, A Living Memorial to the Holocaust in New York