US Commission No. ROCE-0258 -
The cemetery is located at Bugar, Sinmarghita, 4659, judet Cluj, 4709 2359, 213.5 miles NNW of Bucharest and 12 km from Dej at 4709 2352, 216.2 miles NNW of Bucharest. Alternate names: Szentmargita (Hungarian); Margarethen (German), Sanmarghita. Present town population is under 1,000.
with no Jews.
- Mayor Guta Ovidiu, Manastirea village, no. 163
- The Jewish Community of Cluj, Tipografiei Str. 25, 3400 Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Tel. 0040-64-196600
- The Federation of the Jewish Communities of Romania, Sfintu Vineri Str., no 9-11, Sector 3, Bucharest, Romania.
- "Dr. Moshe Carmilly" Institute for Hebrew and Jewish History, Universitatii Street, no. 7-9, room 61, 3400 Cluj Napoca, Romania, director: Ladislau Gyemant, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
- Key holder and caretaker: Matei Gavril
The 1857 Jewish population by census was 6 and in 1930 was 19. In May 1944, the Jews were gathered in the ghetto of Dej and on May 28, June 6 and 8,1944 were deported to Auschwitz. The unlandmarked Orthodox cemetery was established in 19th century. Last known burial was 20th century.
The isolated rural/agricultural hillside has no sign or marker. Reached via private property, access is unknown. A fence with a non-locking gate surrounds the site. Approximate pre- and post-WWII size is 200 m2. Six stones are visible, all in original location. Less than 25% of the stones are toppled or broken. Location of stones removed from the cemetery is unknown. Vegetation overgrowth in the cemetery is not a problem. Water drainage is good all year. No special sections.
The oldest known gravestone dates from 19th century. Tombstones date from the 19th and 20th century sandstone, marble, and other common gravestones have Hebrew inscriptions. The national Jewish community owns the property used for Jewish cemetery only. Adjacent properties are agricultural. Rarely, private Jewish or non-Jewish visitors stop. The never vandalized cemetery maintenance has been fixing wall by Jewish groups abroad in 1985. Current care is regular unpaid caretaker. No structures.
Assistant Professor Alexandru Pecican, Almasului Street, Bl. R1, apt. 14, 3400 Cluj-Napoca
completed the survey on May 11, 2000 using the following documentation:
- Otto Mittelstrass, Historisch-Landeskindlicher Atlas von Siebenburgen. Ortsnamenbuch, Heidelberg, 1992
- Ernst Wagner, Historisch-statistisches Ortsnamenbuch fur Siebenburgen, Koln-Vienna, 1977.
- The General Census of the Population of Romania - December 29, 1930, I-III, Bucharest, 1938
- Carmilly-Weinberger, Moshe. History of the Jews of Transylvania (1623-1944), Bucharest, 1994 (in Romanian)
He interviewed Matei Gavril, Sinmarghita on May 11, 2000. [January 2003]