The former synagogue building in Opoczno by the Wąglanka river, built after the 1787 fire, now privately owned for commercial use and closed to visitors.
On Janasa Street in Opoczno, above the Wąglanka River, stands the building of the former Jewish synagogue. Today it is privately owned and serves an economic function, so it can only be viewed from outside, when taking a walk towards the Kazimierz Castle.
Jewish settlement in Opoczno dates back probably to the fourteenth century. The first known mention of the Jewish population in the city comes from 1501, and in 1646 the local starosta [administrator] issued permission for Jews to settle. The original prayer house burned down in a city fire in 1787, and the building that stands today was erected in its place.
The synagogue was built on a rectangular plan, with a plastered external elevation divided by pilasters. Originally it contained a hall for men with an entrance hall and room, and a separate hall for women, in accordance with the traditional division of the interior of a prayer house.
The synagogue served religious functions until autumn 1939, when the occupier banned Jews from religious practices, and the interior was plundered and vandalized. After the war, the building was taken over by the County Association of Municipal Cooperatives and used as a warehouse for grain and building materials. In 1958 the building was converted into the "Tęcza" cinema, which operated until the nineteen-nineties, and during the reconstruction the four-column bimah was destroyed.
The building later became municipal property, and subsequently fell into private hands. Today it serves economic purposes and is not open for visits. The history of the community that once worshipped here is recalled by the nearby memorial to the Opoczno Jews.
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