SACALASENI I: Maramures County

 

US Commission No. ROCE-0365 - Also see COLTAU.

Alternate Hungarian name: Szakallasfalva. Located in Maramures County at 47°35' 23°34', 9.3 km S of Baia Mare. Heading south on the road from Baia Mare, drive through the center of town past the Orthodox church on the left hand side of the road. There is a small dirt road on right hand side of the road about .5 beyond the Orthodox Church and near the end of the village. Mrs. Ioana Budai, the caretaker, lives at the beginning of this dirt road. The Jewish cemetery is about 150 meters down on the right-hand side.

• LOCAL: Comunitatea Evreilor (Baia Mare), Str. Somesului Nr. 5, 4800 Baia Mare, Jud. Maramures, Romania. Tel: (40-62) 211-231.
• REGIONAL: Comunitatea Evreilor (Bucuresti), Str. Sf. Vineri 9-11, Bucuresti, Tel: (40-1) 157-441.
• Caretaker who may have more information: Ioana Budai, Casa # 201, comuna Sacalaseni, Judetul Maramures. No phone.

The cemetery at Sacalaseni (Szakalasfalva) is protected by a gate that is kept locked at all times and is well protected by a concrete post and chain link fence that was constructed by the Jewish Community in 1990. Mrs. Budai, who is elderly, pays workers to periodically clear away brush and cut the grass. She receives no money for this activity but pays for it out of her own pocket. Despite the fact that Mrs. Budai lives fairly close to the site, no less than two years ago, unknown persons stole a large portion of the chain link fence. This portion of the fence was subsequently replaced. The cemetery location is rural (agricultural), on flat land, and isolated with no sign or marker and is open with permission. The 200-sq. meter cemetery has a fence and a locking gate and probably is the same size as before 1939. Nine limestone or sandstone flat shaped, smoothed and Hebrew-inscribed gravestones are in cemetery, regardless of condition or position with 8 standing, 1 half-stone standing. Vegetation and water drainage are not a problem. The owner is unknown. Adjacent properties are agricultural. The site is visited rarely by local residents. Theft of stones is the primary problem encountered between 1945 and the present. Care: Seasonal clearing of vegetation, repair of fence as necessary by local non-Jewish residents. Weather erosion and vegetation slight threats. Vandalism is a serious threat.
John DeMetrick and Christina Crowder, (formerly of Cluj, they have no further information), completed this survey on 22 April 2000 using a list of cemeteries known by the Jewish Community in Baia Mare. They visited the site on 14 April 2000 and interviewed Ioana Budai, Casa # 201, comuna Sacalaseni, Judetul Maramures. No phone.
SACALASENI II: US Commission No. ROCE-0365
See SACALASENI I for town information. Immediately upon entering the town, from the direction of Baia Mare, the cemetery can be seen in the distance approximately half a kilometer off the right hand side of the road. There is a small wagon road leading into the fields in the direction of the cemetery. It is not advisable to drive along the wagon road during or immediately following rainy weather! Despite the fact that the Jewish community in Baia Mare constructed a fence around the Sacalaseni II (Szakallasfalva) site in 1992 it is a seriously threatened site. Mrs. Ioana Budai is listed as the caretaker for both cemeteries in Sacalaseni, but when interviewed at the Sacalaseni I cemetery, she said that she was not authorized to care for the second cemetery. In any case, she is an elderly woman who lives on the opposite side of the village from this site. Although she is able to effectively care for the first site, it is doubtful that she could adequately supervise this one. Furthermore, the site is in need of intensive restoration, which Mrs. Budai would have great difficulty carrying out without substantial funds and assistance from the Jewish Community.
Thus, this cemetery has not had a caretaker for a considerable period of time; and the excessive growth of vegetation makes it virtually impossible to move around within the site. It is located on a flat land, surrounded by large tracts of open fields. Several families planting potatoes in an adjacent field pointed out that a large portion of the fence running along the back side of the cemetery was stolen just two weeks earlier (around the end of March 2000). Only the excessive growth of flora now hinders open access to the remaining stones. Half of the stones at the site have already toppled over and are covered by vegetation, and half of those remaining are already leaning to a considerable degree.

• LOCAL government, conservation, and religious authorities or offices responsible for site: Comunitatea Evreilor (Baia Mare), Str. Somesului Nr. 5, 4800 Baia Mare, Jud. Maramures, Romania. Tel: (40-62) 211-231.
• REGIONAL political, preservation, religious authorities or offices responsible for site: Comunitatea      Evreilor (Bucuresti), Str. Sf. Vineri 9-11, Bucuresti, Tel: (40-1) 157-441.

The cemetery is rural/agricultural, on flat land, and isolated with no sign or marker. Access to the 600-sq. m. cemetery is open to all because part of the fence is missing and anyway the gate is not locked. No caretaker. Thirteen limestone or sandstone, flat-shaped, smoothed and Hebrew-inscribed gravestones are in cemetery, regardless of condition or position with 6 up and leaning, 6 down, one half-stone standing up. Removed stones are incorporated in roads or structures. Vegetation is a constant problem preventing access, disturbing and damaging stones and graves. Water drainage is good. Present owner of cemetery is unknown. Adjacent properties are agricultural. Size is probably the same as before 1939. Rarely, local residents visit the site. Maintenance was installation of fence in 1992 by Jewish groups within the country, but aside from that, no other apparent maintenance. No care. Vegetation overgrowth, theft of stones and fencing, uncontrolled access, vandalism, and weather erosion are the primary problem encountered between 1945 and the present.
John DeMetrick and Christina Crowder, (formerly of Cluj, they have no further information), completed this survey on 22 April 2000 using a list of cemeteries known by the Jewish Community in Baia Mare. They visited the site on 14 April 2000 and interviewed local residents.