Botosani Cities and Towns

Botosani Great Synagogue Built 1834

Botosani city and Dorohoi had the two largest Jewish communities. There were also significant Jewish communities in Bucecea, Darabani,  Frumusica, Raudauti-Prut, Saveni, and Stefanesti. Botosani had one of the earliest Jewish settlements with tombstones dating to 1540. Dorohoi has tombstones dating to 1656.  Dorohoi was once the capital city of Dorohoi County  but was merged into  Botosani County when the Soviet Union took Northern Bucovina after WW2. The northern part of Dorohoi County including a former good sized Jewish community in Herta (Ghertsa) is now part of the Ukraine.

Towards the end of the 19^th century, the number of Jews in Botosani and Dorohoi grew as Jews from the small surrounding farms and villages were moved to the large cities due to orders of the Interior Ministry.  Times remained turbulent until the end of WW1 when improved attitudes gave many Jews equal rights. For a few more decades the cities and towns survived inspite of intermitant persecution. Finally with the breakout of the Romanian-Russian war and the  Shoah almost all remaining Jews throughout Botosani County were deported from the towns and villages to the two big cities. Most of these left  after the establishment of Israel in 1948. 

Downtown Botosani

(click image to enlarge)

Botosani Synagogue in 2006

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