Federation of Jewish Communities of Ukraine:
Lugansk.
Chairman of the community: Vladimir Vselyubskiy
Tel: +38 (0642) 50-13-36
Address: 50 Let Obrazovaniya SSSR Str., 24, Lugansk
Community history
In 1864 in Lugansk there were 156 Jews, in 1897 - already in 1505 the Jews. The local Jewish community was led by Rabbi Abraham Friedman. Before the revolution for 4554 Jews there was a community mixed school, three synagogues, two private schools for men, women's Saturday School, children's art community and a Jewish cemetery. A library was opened in Hebrew (Rabbi Loewner), magazines "Young Israel", "Ha-prachim", "Flower of Judah." Many Jews of the community were entrepreneurs who had their own business. So there was "Small trade loan savings association," all three pharmacies, three barbershops, three bakeries, a cinema, a shop, two laundry rooms and 90 shops.
The population census in 1939 recorded 10,622 Jews. In 1935 all three synagogues were closed. German occupiers registered 1038 Jews in the city. In the early years of the World War II Nazis destroyed more than three thousand Jews in Lugansk.
In 1945 an application for the construction of the synagogue had been postponed.
A new page in life of the Jewish community of Lugansk opened in 1998 with the arrival to the city of Lubavitcher Rebbe schlich - Chief Rabbi of Lugansk region Shalom Gopin and Rebbetzin Chana. The local community is registered as a "Union of Jewish Religious Communities (OIRO) of Lugansk region.