I am writing a series of posts where I provide information about the towns where my ancestors lived. Geography is an essential part of genealogy and family history. We need to know where to look for records, and what we learn about the towns fills in information about how our ancestors may have lived.
Váralmás / Almașu (Transylvania)
Latitude: 46.950
Longitude: 23.133
In 1907 my maternal grandfather, Martin Deutsch, was born in Váralmás (or Nagy-Almás), Hungary - which is now Almașu, Romania. The photographs on this page were taken in 2012.
The Jewish population, as recorded by census, was 11 in 1880, 51 in 1900, 35 in 1910, and 30 in 1930. As long as the census recorded all ages, my grandfather's family of 8 may have accounted for the entire drop between 1910 and 1930, if there were only a handful of births. While the Jewish population was small, nearby towns had larger populations.
9 miles away in Huedin (where the train picked up my great grandfather and his family when they left) the Jewish population was 1,073 in 1900.
Historic sights include a castle, and a citadel.
In May of 1944, the remaining Jewish population was moved 49 miles away to the Cehei ghetto, then to Șimleu Silvaniei. They were deported to Auschwitz between May 31 and June 8.
Sources and further information:
- Almasu, Salaj County - IAJGS Cemetery Project (which actually contains a link to one of my earlier posts.)
- Varalmas Castle
- Castelul Csaky, Almasu
- Almasu Citadel
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