Bericht aus dem Sanatorium Dr. Poras • Report from the Sanatorium Dr. Poras

 

Dr. Joseph Poras: Much mention is made of the beauty and healing powers of the air and water in and about the shtetl of Solca in the Bukovina. One of the most famous health sanatoriums was that of Dr. Hermann Poras built in Solca in 1876. Dr. Hermann Poras was born in Czernowitz (Chernivtsi, Ukraine) in 1835, and attended the University of Vienna Medical School receiving his degree December 1859. He became K. K. Imperial district physician of Sanitary Council No. 2. For the years 1870 - 1971 he was appointed from Czernowitz as the member of the State Parliment and then took up residence in Rădauți (Romania). He married Henrietta Weiss of Lvov and had five children. They lived in Rădauți, and summered in Solca, where he was owner, director of the Sanatorium. In 1872 he was appointed as a progressive member to  the Jewish Community Council of Rădauți and participated in the bitter battle with the Orthodox over control of the Great Synagogue (Gold's History of the Jews in the Bukowina). His son, Josef, took over management of the Sanatorium in 1899. Above is the face page of a book which was written by him detailing the treatments in his father's Sanatorium. The book goes into great detail about the different types of water and inhalation therapies used and a statistical analysis of their frequency and efficacy. Patients came from as far as Switzerland and Germany to seek treatment for rheumatism, gynecological, respiratory, digestive and locomotive ailments. The Sanatorium was advertised heavily in Jewish newspapers throughout the Austro-Hungarian Empire. "Guide Book though the Bukowina 1907" has a fine example of the text that was used at the time. In 1904, Dr. Josef Poras moved his family from Vienna to Czernowitz, which was a three hour trip to the Sanatorium. They resided there until WWI, and then moved back to Vienna, at which time he opened a private medical practice at Waehringerstrasse 18 and specialized in ear, nose and throat.

Solca Sanatorium, May 2006: Great grandson Dr. Joseph Poras pictured in front of building.

On April 28th, 2014 the legendary Dr. Poras Sanatorium in Solca was destroyed by fire. Dr. Joseph Poras wrote: "Thank you to those who wrote me expressing their sadness at the loss of the historical sanatorium in Solca. During its day, at the turn of the century, Dr. Poras Sanatorium was the magnet for upper class Jews to spend the summer months healing and schmoosing. Jews from all over the Hapsburg empire came to enjoy the healing powers of the water and air in this beautiful area of now Romania. Many a shidduch was made as family members paraded their teenagers on the long afternoon walks through the woods. The evenings were filled with food music, poetry and song when the guests relaxed after a day of spa treatments. As Edgar so aptly put it 'More and more, vestiges of the (Jewish) past are disappearing. What a pity!' • Sincerely, Dr. Joseph Poras, great grandson of Dr. Hermann Poras b. Czernowitz 1835"

Courtesy: Dr. Joseph Poras