New Evangelical Cemetery in Bielsko-Biała

The New Evangelical Cemetery in Bielsko-Biała was established in 1911 on Listopadowa Street, on the northern edge of the town centre. It is listed in the heritage register and is still in use.

Founding of the cemetery

The land was bought by the Evangelical congregation as early as 1895. The necropolis replaced the old cemetery on Bielski Zion, in use since 1833. The designer was the Viennese architect Hans Mayr. The space was divided into three sectors: a south-eastern one with a layout of parallel avenues, a north-eastern one composed around a semicircular centre with avenues radiating outwards, and a north-western, reserve one, separated from the rest by a wide avenue.

In the south-western part stands a complex modelled on the Italian campo santo: a rectangular courtyard surrounded by ancillary buildings, an arcaded wall and a cemetery church, in late Baroque forms reworked in the Art Nouveau manner.

Who is buried here

Many residents of the town from the first half of the 20th century are buried here: the mayor Karol Steffan senior, the founder of the Bielsko museum Edward Schnack, the opera singer Felicja Kaszowska-Krotowska, all the Bielsko pastors after 1911 and numerous manufacturers' families, such as the Bartelmuss, Geppert and Molenda families. The grave of Walter Piesch has the form of a mausoleum in the shape of a tempietto. The cemetery also contains a memorial to soldiers killed in the First World War.

Practical information

• Address: ul. Listopadowa, Bielsko-Biała.
• This is a working cemetery, so quiet and respect for the buried and for those visiting graves are required.
• Close to the town centre are, among others, the Polish Theatre and the Cathedral of St Nicholas (about 1 km).