New Jewish Cemetery (Cottbus)

The new Jewish cemetery was established in 1917/18 as the present part of the main municipal cemetery. The first person buried in the cemetery was Berta Hammerschmidt, who died in early November 1916. After the old Jewish cemetery was fully occupied in 1916 and a new one was still in the planning stage, the Chief Rabbi of Cottbus, Dr. Posner, had contacted Mayor Dreifert after her death on behalf of Judicial Councilor Abraham Hammerschmidt. The latter replied to the rabbi in a letter dated November 5, 1916: ""On behalf of the municipality of Cottbus, I confirm once again in writing that this municipality, as the owner of the property, does not raise any objections against the immediate occupation of the area for the purpose of the burial of Mrs. Justizrat Hammerschmidt, but expressly declares its agreement with this...". On the basis of this notification, Justice Councillor Abraham Hammerschmidt was able to have his wife buried in one of her favorite places in the forest, south of the then municipal southern cemetery, to have the approximately 100 square meter forest plot fenced off and to have a monument erected there in shell limestone. Around the grave of Berta Hammerschmidt arose in the following years 1917 and 1918 the new Jewish cemetery, which still exists today.   
   
Due to extensions of the main cemetery, the Jewish part was already enclosed from all sides in the 1930s. The cemetery is about 50 ares in size. There are about 60 gravestones, the oldest from 1916 (Bertha Hammerschmidt). Around 1929 a cemetery hall was built. Today it is used as a storage hall. Also after 1945 the cemetery was occupied again and again. Since the re-establishment of a Jewish community in Cottbus, the cemetery is again officially occupied as a cemetery of this community.