Family of Salomon Porges (-> France)  
About Laboratoires Porgès, a company created
in France by Fernand Porgès in 1893
Ascendance of Salomon Porges :

Full Porges family tree since Natan Porges (prague 1470) link

Porges in Kolin (read more about Kolin)

1 Salomon Porges (b. 1752, d. Kolin Bohemia CZ 17/03/1830) married Judith Porges (b. 1750, d. house n°27 Kolin CZ 02/10/1836)

1 Israel Porges (b. house n° 27, Kolin CZ 15/06/1789, d. 27/01/1789 (7 months))
1 Ester Porges (b. house n° 27, Kolin CZ 01/03/1794, d. 19/11/1795 (23 months))
1 Libusa Porges (b. house n° 27, Kolin CZ 13/11/1789 (??), d. 02/03/1791 (1 year))
1 Anna Porges (b. house n° 27, Kolin CZ 12/04/1792, d. ?)
1 Maria Porges (b. house n° 27, Kolin CZ 02/03/1796, d.?)
1 Paula Porges (b. house n° 27, Kolin CZ 12/1800, d. 28/07/1805 (4 years))
1 Katharina Porges (b. estimated 1762-1822)
1 Elisabeth Porges (b. estimated 1762-1822)

1 Tobias Joachim Porges (b. house n° 27 Kolin CZ 09/1798, d. house n° 41 Kolin CZ 26/07/1883) married Helene Hartmann (b. 1805, d. house n° 41 Kolin CZ 25/11/1889)

It has pleased the Almighty to call from this life our dearly beloved Mother, respectively Mother-in-law, Grandmother and Great-grandmother, Mrs. Helene Porges née Hartman. She passed away on 25 November 1889, after a brief illness, in the 84th year of her life, devoted to the welfare of her family. The earthly remains of the dearly departed will be laid to eternal rest on Wednesday, 27 November 1889, at 2 o’clock in the afternoon, from the house of mourning No. 41, at the local Israelite cemetery. KOLIN, 25 November 1889.

Katty Porges née Opper,
Anna Porges née Fischl,
Anna Porges née Steiner,
Betty Porges née Kantor,
Caroline Porges née Taussig,
Daughters-in-law. 		Eleazar Porges,
Salomon Porges,
Julius Porges,
Leopold Porges,
Ignatz Porges,
Sons.

All grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

1 Salomon Porges (b. Kolin CZ 31/01/1831, d. Vienna 1898) "Börsensensal",
        married Catherine "Katty" Opper (b. Blovice,Plzen, CZ 10/03/1836, d. 01/4/1911 ; Wien)
        Buried Vienna, Zentralfriedhof Tor 1 Gruppe Austria 20 Reihe 12 Grab Nr. 40

1 Fernand Porgès (b. 20/10/1863 Mediash (Transylvania), d. 05/04/1944 Sarlat, France)
1 Jules Porgès (b. 12/07/1869 Mediash (Hungary), d. 1940 Paris)
1 Alex Porgès (b. 26/07/1867 Marosvásárhely, (Târgu Mureș), Hungary (now Romania), d. Vienna 18/01/1940)
        Ex-husband of Gisela Gisa Berger.
        Address : 1080, Langegasse 72. Occupation : Medical doctor.
        Buried Vienna, Zentralfriedhof Tor 1 Gruppe Austria 20 Reihe 12 Grab Nr. 40
1 Berthe (Bertha Anna) Porgès (b. 8/5/1865, Mediaș, d. >26/06/1943, Vienna)
        Settled in Vienna by the 1870s ; converted to Catholicism in Vienna (1897) ;
        still listed in the Vienna census in 1943, disappeared thereafter.
1 Mathilde (Sara) Porgès (b. 26 Juin 1874, Pfeffergasse No 3, Wien, d. ca. >1943)
        Converted to Catholicism in Vienna (1890), married 29/10/1906 & several times
        (last husband reportedly a journalist in Germany) ; last recorded in 1943, disappeared thereafter.

1 Eleazar Porges (b. Kolin CZ 24/04/1829, d. ?) married Rosia Fleischmann (b. 1837)
1 Maria Porges (b. 08/08/1832, d. ?)
1 Philipp Porges (b. Kolin CZ 27/10/1833, d.Kolin CZ 10/05/1834 (6 months))
1 Samuel Porges (b. Kolin CZ 07/02/1835, d. ?)
1 Juda Porges (b. Kolin CZ 13/02/1837, d. ?)
1 Joseph Porges (b. Kolin CZ 25/10/1838, d. ?)
1 Barbara Porges (b. Kolin CZ 07/01/1843, d. ?)
1 Mathilda Porges (b. Kolin CZ 28/05/1848, d. ?)
1 Julius Porges (b. estimated 1810-1866, d. ?)
1 ? Porges (b. estimated 1810-1866, d. ?)

1 Ignaz Porges (b. Kolin CZ 20/08/1844, d. Arad CZ 31/07/1912, buried in Prag plot 16-11-34) married Karoline Taussig (b. Prag 1846, d. ?)

Our beloved husband, respectively father, brother, brother-in-law and grandfather, Mr. Ignaz Porges, General Representative for Bohemia of the Arad Szechenyi Steam Mill in Arad, passed away peacefully on Wednesday afternoon at half past two (2:30 p.m.), after a brief and severe illness. The earthly remains of the dearly departed will be laid to eternal rest on Friday, 2 August, at 3 o’clock in the afternoon, from the mortuary in Straschnitz (Strašnice).

Matilde Dresdner, Paula Porges, Olga Kobler, Ricke Karpeles, as children. Karoline Porges née Taussig, as wife. Anna Dresdner, in the name of all grandchildren. Maurice Karpeles, Providence R.I., as son-in-law. Leopold Porges, Kolin, as brother.

1 Mathilde Porges Dressner (b. Liberec CZ 19/05/1872, d. ?)
1 Pauline Porges (b. 1873, d. ?)
1 Olga Kobler (b. 1874, d. ?)
1 Marie Karpeles (b. 1877, d. ?)

1 Leopold Porges (b. Kolin CZ 18/04/1841, d. Kolin CZ 03/07/1929) married Babette Betti Kantor (b. 1844, d. Kolin 18/12/1923)

Our great-grandfather, grandfather, father, Mr. Leopold Porges, formerly merchant in Kolin, died on 3 July, after a brief illness, in his 88th year. The funeral will take place tomorrow, 5 July, at quarter to three (2:45 p.m.) in the afternoon, from the Israelite cemetery in Kolin. The Roubitschek and Hönig families, Chotzen (Choceň).

We share the saddening news of the passing of our dear, unforgettable wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, sister-in-law and aunt, Mrs. Betti Porges née Kantor, who passed away peacefully on 18 December 1923, in her 79th year. We shall lay the dear departed to rest on Friday, the 21st of this month, at 11 o’clock, at the cemetery in Kolin. Kolin, Choceň, Vienna, 19 December 1923. Leopold Porges, husband. Moriz and Paula Robitschek, children. Ludwig Kantor, brother. All grandchildren and great-grandchildren, brothers- and sisters-in-law, nephews and nieces.
1 Robert Karl Porges (b. 21/09/1862, d. Vienna 15/05/1928)
  married Hermine Wiedmann (b. Vienna 04/03/1871)

Dr Robert Porges was received M.D. in 1886. He became friend with Queen Mother of Emperor Franz Joseph. He converted to Catholicism.

Paula and Dr. Hans Porges, in their own name, in the name of their mother Hermine Porges née Wiedmann, and in the name of all other relatives, deeply shaken, share the news of the passing of their dearly beloved, unforgettable father, Dr. med. Robert C. Porges, who passed away suddenly on Tuesday, 15 May 1928, at half past one (1:30 p.m.) in the afternoon, after a long and severe illness, in his 66th year. The lifeless remains of the dear departed will be solemnly blessed on Friday, the 18th of this month, at 2 o’clock in the afternoon, in the mortuary chapel of the Döbling cemetery, and there laid to eternal rest. Vienna, 17 May 1928.

1 Paula Porges (b. Vienna 1893, d. New York 1987)

1 Rudolf Porges (b. 1891, d. Vienna 08/02/1914 (23 years))

Dr. Robert and Hermine Porges, in their own name, in the name of their children Paula and Hans, and in the name of all other relatives, deeply shaken, share the news of the passing of their dearly beloved, unforgettable son, Rudolf Porges, official of the Wittkowitz Iron Works Company, who, on Sunday, 8 February 1914, at 3 o’clock in the afternoon, after a brief and severe illness, in his 23rd year, was called away to a better beyond. The lifeless remains of the dear departed will be transferred on Tuesday, the 10th of this month, precisely at 2 o’clock in the afternoon, from the mortuary chapel at VIII, Alserstrasse No. 17, to the parish church of the Most Holy Trinity (VIII, Alserstrasse), there to be solemnly blessed, and then laid to eternal rest in the family grave at the Döbling cemetery. The Holy Requiem Mass will be read on Wednesday, the 11th of this month, at 10 o’clock in the morning in the aforementioned parish church. Vienna, 9 February 1914. Silent condolences are requested.

1 (John) Hans C. Porges (b. Vienna 06/01/1908, d. New York 1967)
married Suzanne Florence Oberländer (b. Vienna 1908, d. New York 13/09/2001)
        She was an artist. (See Vienna phone books)
        He received his medical doctorate at the University of Vienna in 1922,
        emigrated from Vienna (Alsenstrasse 21) to NY in 1938,
        

1 Georges Wolfgang Porges (b. Vienna 1936)
         married Nicole Margaine, lives in Dallas, no children

1 Robert F. Porges (b. Vienna 1930, d. New York 01/11/2012)  emigrated to NY in 1938
        Professor of Gynecology at the New Yok University school of medicine
        married Felicia Axelrod (Professor of Pediatrics at NYU School of Medicine)
        See his detailed family page

1 John Alexander Porges (b. New York 1968) Law School NY
1 Vicky Marlo Porges (b. New York 1969)
        Pediatric resident at New York University/Bellevue
        Medical Center, married Joseph Eisner in 1998.
        Daughter : Erin Leah Eisner (b. NYC 10/19/2001)

1 Pauline "Paula" Porges (b. house n° 41 16/06/1873, d. murdered in Auschwitz ca 1943)
1 Gustav Porges (b. Kolin CZ 09/06/1870, d. ?)

Salomon Porges (b. Kolin CZ 31/01/1831, d. Vienna 1898) "Börsensensal", married Catherine "Katty" Opper (b. Blovice,Plzen, CZ 10/03/1836, d. 01/4/1911; Wien)
Buried Vienna, Zentralfriedhof Tor 1 Gruppe Austria 20 Reihe 12 Grab Nr. 40

They lived in Vienna and had 5 children among which Fernand who emigrated from Vienna to Paris in the late 1880's where he founded a medical device factory.
His brother Jules emigrated later.
Almost all the Porgès living in France today are their descendants.

Salomon Porges & wife Catherine Opper

Catherine Opper
(photograph by Strelisky in Budapest)
 

The Strelisky dynasty : Lipót, his brother Náthán and his son Sándor can pride itself on its unique history. They were among the first in Pest to start practicing photography, since the Lipót the goldsmith became engaged in photography, and the popular and sought- after studio was in the family’s possession for nearly a hundred years. Throughout they remained within the field of photography, providing a reliably high standard, their work was reliably and consistently demanding and of high quality. The Streliskys did not wish to convert from photographers into photo- artists, but every member of the dynasty was in possession of technical knowledge, the best methods, and they were brilliant masters of the photo making techniques. The Strelisky studio remained throughout with portrait photography: its pictures provide a wide panorama of Hungarian world of arts, the contemporary theatrical life, the aristocracy, bourgeoisie, thereby immortalizing their names in the history of Hungarian photography.

(ETELKA L. BAJI: Streliskij. Strelisky. Hundred Years of a Photographer Dynasty.
Magyar Fotogr. Muz., 2001. ISBN 9638383267.)

In France, Porgès always spells with an accent

Ferdinand (Fernand) Porgès (b. 20/10/1863 Mediash (Transylvania, then Hungary now Romania), d. 05/04/1944 Sarlat, buried in Paris)
married Cécile Theumann (b. 23/02/1877 Vienna, d. 01/02/1947 France).   
Theumann Family Genealogy (Source : Peter Rohel, Canada, 2010)

Jules Theumann and Betty Grünspan : The parents of Cecile Theumann



Fernand Porges, his wife Cecile Theumann, & his sisters Mathilde and Berthe

Fernand Porgès and Cécile Theumann, the day of their engagement, May 15,1898


            Lucien, Hélène and René Porgès (children of the above), Paris ca 1910

Brothers René & Lucien Porgès, Paris ca 1910+

  Lucien Porgès (b. 1899 Paris, d. 1993 Paris) married Jeanine Angel (b. 1911, d. Paris 2002)
         They are buried at the Père Lachaise cemetery (96th division, line 19)

  Dominique Porgès (b. 1935 Paris, d. Paris 2016) Ophthalmologist

 Bénédicte Mugnier (b. 1970 Paris) M.D.

  Etienne Porgès (b. 1939 Granville), chemical engineer,
             married Michèle Pissardy

  Cassandre Porgès (b. 1977 Paris), lawyer in Paris and Tanguy Nicolet

Hector Nicolet (b. 13/05/2011 Neuilly s/Seine)
Isolde Nicolet (b. 11/02/2014 Neuilly s/Seine)

  Tristan Porgès (b. 1979 Paris)

  Marie-France Porgès (b. 1943 Domme). Dermatologist

  Frédéric Viet (b. 1969 Paris) Polytechnique (Paris), Ponts et Chaussées.
           married (July 2000) Valérie Sassetti.
           Children : Jules (b. Paris 2000), Antonin (b. 2003)

  Sébastien Viet (b. 1972 Paris) M.B.A. (European Business school)
            married (sept. 2001) Delphine Girbeau .
            Children : Capucine (b. 19/11/2002 Paris), Apolline (b. 2004)

  René Porgès (b. 1902 Paris, d. 1986 Paris)
            married Suzanne "Suzy" Aaron (b. 23/08/1914 Paris, d. 06/07/2003 Paris)
            Click here for Suzy Aaron Porgès ascendant family tree (15 generations) and photos

  Sylvie Porgès (b. 4/5/1941 Sarlat) married Robert Clauvel (b. 2/11/1935 Paris, d. 23/8/2016 Paris)

Héloïse Clauvel (b. 16/5/1971 Paris) (Droit français, ISIT, CAPA)
        married Jérome Tricot (b. 19/6/1970 Paris)
        Daughter Joséphine (b. 19/9/2000 Paris)

Lucile Clauvel (ESSEC) (b. 10/4/1973 Paris)
        married Marcel Masson (b. 1971 Modène Italie)

Tristan (b. Paris 2000 Paris), Blanche (b. 2002 Paris) & Mathilde (b. 2006 Milan)

  Barbara Clauvel (b. 1979 Paris, d. 6/10/2021 Paris) Architect DPLG (2002)
         married (2013) Ygal Lévy (b. 8/1/1977 Barcelone )  Polytechnique Paris

         ccccccc Noah Lévy (b. 02/08/2014 Paris)
         ccccccc Sacha Lévy (b. 26/05/2016 Paris)

Antoine Porgès (b. 1944 France), civil engineer, career in the medical device industry.
        married Nicole Benassayag (b. 1948 Oran)

Camille Porgès (b. 1977 Paris), lawyer in Paris
            École Sup. Commerce Paris, Law University Paris
             married
           1 - 2007 Thomas Lanzenberg
                 Maxime Lanzenberg (b. 04/10/2008, Neuilly, France)
           2 - 2015 Pierre Paquin
                 Alexandre Paquin (b. 07/04/2016, Paris, France)

Denis Porgès (b. 1946 Paris), Polytechnique (Paris), MBA (M.I.T.),
       married Véronique Ardant (b. 1950)

Laetitia Porgès (b. 1977 Paris) married 26/07/2003 Sylvain Fagot
          aaa Nicolas Fagot (b. Paris 23/04/2005),
          dddd Antoine Fagot (b. Orléans 06/11/2007)         

Marie Porgès (b. 1980 Paris) married 28/07/2006 Emmanuel Nantas
          cccc Garance Nantas (b. 2008 Paris),
          cccc Lucien Nantas (b. Paris 2012)

  Hélène Porgès (b. 02/12/1903 Paris, d. 23/02/1994 Paris) married Jacques Rasumny

  Janine Rasumny (b. 1926 Paris, d. Paris 06/05/2005)
          The Rasumny family is buried at Paris Père Lachaise cemetery (96th division)

  Jules Porgès (b. 12/07/ 1869 Mediash (Hungary), d. 1940 Paris), emigrated to Paris in July 1895,
          gained the French nationality in 1905, married 01/11/1901 in Hanover to Gertrud Seraphine Meyerstein
          (b. 25/08/1880 Hanover (Germany), Paris 1969).
They are buried at Paris Père Lachaise cemetery (96th division, line 19)

Raoul Porgès (b. 02/03/1903 Paris, d. 1993 Paris), married, no children

Richard Porgès (b. 1907 Paris, d. 1960 Paris), married, no children

Jacqueline Porgès (b. 1911, Paris, d. 1955 Paris), no children
        She is buried at Paris Père Lachaise cemetery (96th division, line 19)

Alex Porgès (b. 26/07/1867 Marosvásárhely, (Târgu Mureș), Hungary (now Romania), d. Vienna 18/01/1940)
         Ex-husband of Gisela Gisa Berger.
         Address : 1080, Langegasse 72. Occupation : Medical doctor.
         Buried Vienna, Zentralfriedhof Tor 1 Gruppe Austria 20 Reihe 12 Grab Nr. 40

Mathilde (Sara) Porgès (b. 26 Juin 1874, Pfeffergasse No 3, Wien, d. ca. >1943)
         Converted to Catholicism in Vienna (1890), married 29/10/1906 & several times
         (last husband reportedly a journalist in Germany) ;
         last recorded in 1943, disappeared thereafter.

Berthe (Bertha Anna) Porgès (b. 8/5/1865, Mediaș, d. >26/06/1943, Vienna)
         Settled in Vienna by the 1870s ; converted to Catholicism in Vienna (1897) ;
         still listed in the Vienna census in 1943, disappeared thereafter.

          Source : Antoine Porgès, (Paris, 2026)

Fernand Porgès

Fernand Porgès 1898

Fernand Porgès in 1898 (Paris)

In 1886, Fernand Porgès emigrated from Austria, where he completed his scholarship, to Paris.
He started working as a clerk for a Mr Low.
From October 1887 to May 1888, he worked at the shipping department of Le Bon Marché, a large parisian department store.
From May 1988 until 1893, he worked as a salesman for Mr H. Vergne, a manufacturer of medical catheters in the South West of France.
On December 10, 1893, he created his own company Fernand Porges & Cie in partership with Mr Low, to manufacture medical catheters with a factory in Sarlat (France) employing 40 workers.
In 1899, he acquired the shares of his partner Low and became the sole owner of the company.
In 1902, he partnered with his brother Jeremie (Jules).
(see below : Porges Laboratories ).
He married Cecile Theumann in Paris.
She was the daughter of Jules Theumann, a Viennese emigrant who owned and ran successfully the largest Viennese Deli in Paris.

Porgès Laboratories

Porges Laboratories were created in Sarlat (Dordogne, France) by Fernand Porgès on December 10, 1893.

The company manufactured medical catheters for urology and surgery.

The process consisted in weaving silk to make tubings that were dipped into gum, then marked, punched and hand polished.

The company grew rapidly, mainly with export sales to eastern Europe.
Jules Porgès, Fernand's younger brother, a sports journalist in Vienna, emigrated to France and joined the company.
He later on obtained a 50% partnership, and acquired French citizenship in 1905.
René and Lucien, the sons of Fernand, and Richard and Raoul, the sons of Jules, succeeded their fathers and managed the business very successfully.
The company had offices in Paris (Bd Magenta) and two factories, in Sarlat and Les Lilas (Paris suburbs).
During World War II, the company was seized by the German authorities. It was then fictitiously taken over by two ("righteous") friendly families who ran the business and gave it back to the Porgès family at the end of the war.

After the war, the Porgès brothers established their head-quarters in Paris (25 Quai Anatole France) and restarted the business almost from scratch.
They introduced polymers (PVC), a then revolutionary innovation in the manufacturing of catheters, in replacement of silk/gum or natural rubber.
The company became rapidly a world leader in its specialty.
In the 1950's, the processing of latex was introduced for the manufacturing of balloon catheters, which became the company's main production.


In the late 1960's, Etienne (son of Lucien), Antoine (a son of René) joined the business.

In 1974, a U.S. subsidiary was created in New York (54 W 54th Street) under the name of "Porges Catheter Corporation".

In 1979, the company was sold to Synthelabo-Sanofi, the pharmaceutical susidiary of L'Oreal.

At the time, it employed 600 people and shared the world market of medical catheters with C.R. Bard (U.S.A.) and Rusch (Germany).

To date, Laboratoires Porgès still exist under the same name, with manufacturing facilities in Sarlat and headquarters in the Paris area.

In 2001, Synthelabo Sanofi sold Laboratoires Porgès to Mentor Corporation (USA).

In 2006, Mentor sold Laboratoires Porgès to Coloplast (Denmark).

To read more about Porgès Laboratories, click here.

KOLIN

Porges in Kolin, before Salomon Porges (b.1752)

In 1653, Jews constituted 29 percent (roughly 390 persons) of the total population ;
138 Jewish families lived there in 1718 ; 153 in 1747 ; 251 in 1793 ; 313 in 1850 ; 1,347 persons in 1857; 1,148 in 1880 ; 806 in 1900 ; and 430 in 1930.
Kolín was one of the largest and most important Jewish communities in Bohemia and was home to many prominent Talmudic scholars.
The following rabbis of Kolin deserve notice : Abraham Borges, 1653 ; his son Schaje (Isaiah), 1660

Abraham (ben Hirsch?) PORGES (b. Prague 1599 , d. Prague 14/12/1673)
was a Rabbi in Kolin, Dayan (judge in a Beit Din Rabbinical Court) of the Jewish religious community in Prague.
When an epidemic of dysentery appeared in Kolin in 1660, Rabbi Borges and his son Schaje (Isaiah) were accused, June 25, of having killed a pig which had escaped from the house of the widow Sperlink into the Jews' street, and of having thrown the same into the communal well, thereby poisoning the water.
Both fled from the city.

His brother was Moses ben Israel Naphtaly Hirsch (Rabbi) PORGES (b. Prague abt 1600, d. Jerusalem 1670), Rabbi of the Pinkas Synagogue in Prague
He was a relative of Isaiah ha-Levi Horowitz, whom he followed to Erez Israel, settling in Jerusalem, where he became a scribe.
When, after the Chmielnicki massacres of 1648-49, the contributions from Poland ceased, and the Ashkenazi community in Jerusalem was overwhelmed with debt, Porges was sent as their emissary to Germany.
During this mission he published, in Prague, Frankfurt and Amsterdam (1650), a small illustrated work "Darkhei Ziyyon" in judeo-german designed to arouse sympathy and obtain support for the Jewish community in Erez Israel.

"However, it can be proved that the legation was not led by the Chief Rabbi of Prague, Simon Spira (1599-1679).
A possible emissary from among the important rabbis was Abraham ben Hirsch Porges (1619-1673), who was also Chief Rabbi of Kolin and Labem, Landserabbiner of Moravia and dayyan in Prague...."
(Judaica Bohemiae Vo.l 43 p. 212)

No relationship was established between Rabbi Abraham Porges and the Salomon Porges family above, despite they all settled in Kolin.

http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/9445-kolin

Town in Bohemia.
Its Jewish community is one of the oldest in the country.

A number of Jews were living here in the fourteenth century, and they had their own synagogue.

A stone inscription from a former synagogue, preserved in the present synagogue, bears the date 1642.

When King Ferdinand I. expelled the Jews from Bohemia in 1541, the Jews of Kolin went with their movable goods to Poland.

At Braunau the emigrants encountered thieves, who robbed them of 20,000 Bohemian schock.

In 1551 the Bohemian Jews were permitted to return; but the Jews of Kolin could find no rest in their city.

For unknown reasons King Ferdinand granted them safe-conduct in 1557, enabling them to remain for one year in the country to collect their debts, after which period they were to leave again.

Their affairs delayed them, however, and they did not leave the city until 1561.

After Ferdinand's death, in 1564, his successor, Maximilian II., permitted the Jews to return to Kolin; but the wealthiest among them did not avail themselves of the permission.

In 1618 the Jewish community of Kolin was, next to that of Prague, the largest in Bohemia.

It had to pay heavy taxes into the royal treasury; in 1618 the sum amounted to 18,000 thalers, or 47 thalers per head.

In 1603 the municipal council forbade the Jews to appear on Sundays and other Christian holidays in those parts of the city inhabited by Christians; it prohibited them from keeping dogs; and forbade also Jewish butchers to sell meat to Christians.

In 1611 a special prison was built in the Jews' street for the Jews, at their request and at their expense; it has only recently been demolished, after having served as a dwelling for poor families for more than one hundred years.

No Jew was permitted to own any real estate except his house, for more than one horse.

Jews were forbidden also to engage in those trades or lines of business in which their Christian fellow citizens were engaged; they were obliged, therefore, to establish connections with foreign houses.

The municipal council, which was intent upon isolating the Jews from the Christian population, forbade the latter to enter the service of the Jews; even washerwomen were not allowed to do laundry-work for them.

As the Jews were accused of having brought the plague into the city on returning from their business trips, they were not permitted to remain outside of their own street for any length of time, nor to draw water with their vessels from the Christians' wells.

During this appearance of the plague (1613-14) the municipal council had both entrances to the Jews' street walled up.

On Sept. 8, 1621, the Jewish communal director David was elected to the municipal council.

Various petitions which the council of Kolin sent to Prince Lichtenstein, with a view to interfering with the trades of the Jews, were not granted.

In Dec., 1621, the knight Jan Vazlav Grizl of Grizlov was made captain of the imperial estate of Kolin and Bieberitz.
He permitted the Jews to engage in those trades and lines of business which had hitherto been open only to Christians; and on several occasions he showed them favor.

When an epidemic of dysentery appeared in Kolin in 1660, Rabbi Borges and his son Schaje (Isaiah) were accused, June 25, of having killed a pig which had escaped from the house of the widow Sperlink into the Jews' street, and of having thrown the same into the communal well, thereby poisoning the water. Both fled from the city. Jurisdiction and Organization.

A resolution of the Bohemian royal chamber, of Feb. 3, 1655, was of great benefit to the Jews, removing them from the jurisdiction of the municipal council, and directing them to organize themselves as a community with their own court, which was to be under the direct supervision of the imperial judge of Kolin acting in the name of the royal chamber. Only in criminal cases were the Jews to be tried by the judge of Kolin. The affairs of the community were conducted by a primator, two councilors, and a certain number of elders, assisted by a secretary, a treasurer, and two servants. This arrangement was in force down to 1788.

Empress Maria Theresa decreed, Dec. 18, 1744, that all the Jews should leave Bohemia by the end of the following month. In 1745 there were at Kolin forty-two houses belonging entirely to Jews and valued at 19,210 gulden.

On June 12, 1745, a contract was made between the Jewish and the Christian community, that when the Jews left the country their debtors should remain in possession of such houses; but if the Jews should obtain permission to return within two years, the houses should be restored to them at a price to be fixed by valuation. The empress'decree was, however, rescinded.

In 1750 three Jews of Kolin received from the municipal council the concession for the sale of tobacco in Kolin.

During the dearth in the winter of 1846-47 the Jews of Kolin distinguished themselves by twice contributing large sums for the relief of 100 Christian families.

Down to 1849, when full civic equality was given to the Jews, they were not permitted to buy houses or land belonging to Christians, but from the time of Emperor Joseph II. they were permitted to rent stores from Christians.

The community for a long time had a primary school near the synagogue, in which Hebrew also was taught.

In 1788 forty-one children attended the school, and in 1789 fifty.

At present (1904) the Talmud Torah Society of the Jewish congregation also supports a school for the study of Hebrew and the Bible.

The affairs of the congregation are administered by a board consisting of a president and seven trustees together with twenty-four members chosen from the congregation at large.

The following rabbis of Kolin deserve notice: Abraham Borges, 1653; his son Schaje (Isaiah), 1660;

Simon Oppenheim, author of "Nezer ha-Kodesh," middle of the eighteenth century; Jacob Illovi of Ungarisch-Brod, 1775-78; Eleazar Kallir, author of "Or Hadash" and "Hawwot Yair," 1780-1800; Wolf Löw Boskowitz, 1806-12; Wolf Löw, 1812-26; Joachim Deutschmann, 1828-36; Daniel Frank, 1839-60; Dr. Josef Gugenheimer, 1861-96; his son, Dr. Raphael Gugenheimer, the present incumbent.

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http://www.iajgsjewishcemeteryproject.org/czech-republic/kolin.html
Location of New Cemetery: 1 km N in Veltrubska Street.

Present population is 25,000-100,000 probably no Jewish population.

• Regional: Jewish Congregation: Mrs. Jana Wolfova, Zidovska Nabozenska Obec Praha, Maislova 18, 110 01 Praha 1; tel. 02/231-69-25.

• Caretaker with key: Mr. Sukop, in stone-masonry (Kamenictvi) near the Kolin Municipal Cemetery. Earliest known Jewish community dates from mid-15th century. 1900 Jewish popuation was 806.

1930 Jewish population was 430.

Jews were expelled 1541-64.

Peak Jewish population was in mid-19th century with 1700.

Jews moved to Prague and Vienna from mid-19th century through early 20th century.

Noteworthy resident famous rabbis: Eleazar Kalir (about 1739-1802); Benhamin Volf ha-Levi Boskowitz (probably 1740-1818; Chief Rabbi of Bohemia nad Moravia, Richard Ferer (1875-1970); and American Orthodox Rabbi Bernard Illowy (1812-1871).

The still active Conservative Jewish cemetery originated in 1887 with last burial in 1979.

Libodrice, (Ger: Libodritz) 9 km away; Planany, (Ger: Planian) 13 km away; and Zasmuky, (Ger: Sasmuk) 14 km away, used this probably is unlandmarked cemetery.

The flat suburban site, separate but near other cemeteries, without sign has Jewish symbols on gate or wall.

Reached by turning directly off a public road, access is open with permission via a continuous masonry wall and locking gate.

The Regionalni Muzeum holds Old Cemetery key.

This Jewish cemetery originated probably in mid-15th century.

Buried in the cemetery are Rabbi Bezalel ben Jehuda Liva-Low (1599, son of famous Rabbi Jehuda ben Bezalel Liva-Loew of Prague), Rabbi Kalir, and other rabbis with last known Conservative burial was 1887. The landmarked isolated urban hillside has Czech sign and Jewish symbols on gate or wall.

Reached by turning directly off a public road, access is open with permission via a continuous masonry wall and locking gate.

BOOK AND INFORMATION:

Hamackova, Vlastimila and Sedinova, Jirina. The Old Jewish Cemetery at Kolin. Judaica Bohemiae, Volume 20, No.2, Prague 1984, pg. 112-124 translated from French by Edmund U. Cohler, excerpted here with permission of Edmund Cohler; ecohler@cspi.com.

"The old cemetery is among the oldest and most important in Bohemia, with the settlement of Jews in Kolin going back to 1410.

The cemetery was founded in the middle of the 15th century and was in use until 1887, when a new cemetery was founded at Kolin-Zalabi.

The old Jewish Cemetery of Kolin is on the W of the historic city square of Kolin.

It is an irregular polygon boardered by the streets Na Petrine, Slunecni, Prazska, Kmochova and Nad Zastavkou.

A path, going from E to W and tranversing the entire cemetery, joins the gate on Kmochova Street to that of Slunecni Street.

The cemetery is locked with a key which according to the instructions written on the gates, is at the disposal of visitors in the Regional Museum in the City Square.

This museum also organizes the maintenance of the cemetery by volunteers.

The tombs are grouped in irregular rows in a north-S direction.

Inscriptions in general are towards the E.

In the eastern part are those generally dating from the 15th to the 19th century, not in chronological order.

In the Western part are tombs primarily from the second half of the 19th century.

" The article continues describing the types of tombs found during which centuries as well as mentioning a few prominent stones.

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http://www.yivoencyclopedia.org/article.aspx/

The earliest record of Jewish settlement in Kolín dates from the beginning of the fourteenth century ; a religious community and synagogue were probably active in the early fifteenth century.

During the years 1541–1549 and 1561–1564, Jews were expelled from the town, but by 1574 some 33 Jewish men (and possibly families) lived there again.

A communal record book, dating from 1598, has been preserved. The Jewish population of Kolín increased mainly in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries ; in addition to commerce and textiles, local Jews also worked as garnet cutters and drillers.

In 1653, Jews constituted 29 percent (roughly 390 persons) of the total population ; 138 Jewish families lived there in 1718 ; 153 families (670 persons) in 1747 ; 251 families (1,169 persons) in 1793 ; 313 families in 1850 ; 1,347 persons (17.4%) in 1857; 1,148 persons (10.1%) in 1880 ; 806 persons (5.3%) in 1900 ; and 430 persons (2.3%) in 1930. Kolín was one of the largest and most important Jewish communities in Bohemia and was home to many prominent Talmudic scholars.

El‘azar Kallir (1728–1801) was head of the town’s famous yeshiva.

In addition to maintaining a burial society (with statutes from 1610 and a book of minutes from 1795), there were more than 20 other societies and associations, including charity, educational, women’s, and Zionist associations.
In addition, there was a Jewish sports club. In 1942, the Nazis deported 2,202 persons from the Kolín region to the Terezín ghetto.

Of these, only 104 (4.7%) survived the war.

Following World War II, the religious community was reestablished (a rabbi lived in Kolín until 1953), but it had only 15 members in 1966 and was dissolved after 1970. About half of the buildings in Kolín’s medieval Jewish quarter have been preserved, including a synagogue dating from 1642–1696 on the site of an earlier house of prayer.

A cemetery with tombstones dating from the first half of the fifteenth century remains as well ; within it are graves of such famous rabbis as Betsal’el ben Yehudah (d. 1599; son of Maharal of Prague).

A newer cemetery, established in 1887, contains a memorial to the victims of the Holocaust.

Kolín was also the birthplace of rabbi Shemu’el ben Natan ha-Levi Kolin (1724–1806), the American Orthodox rabbi Bernard Illowy (1812–1871), the Austrian scientist, philosopher, and inventor Josef Popper Lynkeus (1838–1921), leading European coal magnate Ignaz Petschek (1857–1934), American law professor Georg Petschek (1872–1947), and Czech literary critic and poet Otokar Fischer (1883–1938).

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