The cemetery is located in Dranceni, judet Vaslui, 4649 2806, 190.8 miles NNE of Bucharest and 65 km from Iasi. Alternate name: Dranceni (Romanian). Present town population is 5,000-25,000 with no Jews.
[UPDATE] Photos by Charles Burns [November 2017]
- Mayor Fulga Gheorghe, com. Dranceni, judet Vaslui.
- The Jewish Community of Iasi, Str. Elena Doamna 15, Iasi-6600, judet Iasi. Phone: 113711; 114414.
- The Federation of the Jewish Communities of Romania, Sf. Vineri Str., no. 9-11, sect. 3, Bucharest, Romania
- A.D. Xenopol" Institute of History, Lascar Catargi Str., no. 15, 6600- Iasi (judet Iasi), Romania. Tel. 032/212614; e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Director: Alexandru Zub.
- Key holder and caretaker: Chiriac Gheorghe, com. Dranceni, judet Vaslui
The Jewish population by 1900 census was zero and in 1930 was 89. Mihail Kogalniceanu founded the town in 1862. The cemetery was established in approximately 1900. Last known burial was 1950 in the unlandmarked Orthodox cemetery is 5 km from the congregation that used it. The isolated rural/agricultural hill has no sign or marker. Reached by a public road, access is open to all. A fence with a gate that locks surrounds the site.
Approximate pre- and post-WWII size is 500 x 500 m. 20-100 stones are visible. 1-20 stones are not in original location. More than 75% of the stones are toppled or broken. Location of stones removed from the cemetery is unknown. Vegetation overgrowth in the cemetery is a seasonal problem preventing access. Water drainage is good all year.
No special sections. The oldest known gravestone dates from the 20th century. Tombstones date from the 20th century. The marble, granite, limestone, and sandstone gravestones inscriptions are in Hebrew and Romanian. Some have traces of painting on their surfaces, iron decorations or letting, bronze decorations or lettering, and other metallic elements. Some have portraits on stones. The national Jewish community owns the property used for an orchard. Adjacent properties are agricultural. Rarely, local residents stop. The never vandalized cemetery has no maintenance. Current care is regular unpaid caretaker. No structures. Weather erosion is a moderate threat.
Lucian Nastasă, Clinicilor Str., no. 19, Cluj, Romania, tel. 064/190107. Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. completed the survey on September 19, 2000 using the following documentation:
- E. Schwarzfeld, Din istoria evreilor: împopularea, reîmpopularea si întemeierea tîrgurilor si tîrgusoarelor în Moldova, Bucuresti, 1894.
- Recensamintul general al populatiei Romaniei. 1930, vol.II, Bucuresti, "Monitorul Oficial", 1938
- N.Sutu, Notiti statistice asupra Moldaviei, Iasi, 1852.
- George I.Lahovari, Marele dictionar geografic al României, 5 vol., Bucuresti, Edit.Socec, 1899.
- Recensamintul general al populatiei Romaniei. 1930, vol.II, Bucuresti, "Monitorul Oficial", 1938
- I.M.Dinescu, Fiii neamului de la 1859 la 1915. Statistica sociala pe întelesul tuturora, Iasi, Institutul de Arte Grafice N.V.Stefaniu, 1920.
- Leonida Colescu, Analiza rezultatelor recensamîntului general al populatiei României de la 1899, cu o prefata de Sabin Manuila, Bucuresti, Institutul de statistica, 1944.
- Pinkas Hakehillot, Encyclopedia of Jewish Communities Romania, I-II, Ierusalem, 1980.
- D. Ivanescu, Populatia evreiasca din orasele si tîrgurile Moldovei între 1774-1832, în "Studia et acta historiae iudaeorum romaniae", II, Bucuresti, Edit.Hasefer, 1997, p. 59-65
Lucian Nastasă interviewed Chiriac Gheorghe, com. Dranceni, judet Vaslui on September 17, 2000. [January 2003]