The Baron de Hirsch-Back River Cemeteries Inc. is responsible for the care and upkeep of three of Quebec's oldest Jewish Cemeteries, the Baron de Hirsch Cemetery, the Back River Memorial Gardens Cemetery and the Agudath Achim cemetery in Sherbrooke Quebec. The BDH Community Foundation and other large and small affiliates, synagogues and burial societies own land in the Montreal cemeteries.

The grounds of the Baron de Hirsch Cemetery  (on de la Savane in Montreal), founded in 1905, are the final resting place of many people who contributed to Jewish life in Montreal and elsewhere and are well worth exploring. Here you will find memorials to victims of the Holocaust, touching, poetic and interesting epitaphs, and the graves of a Titanic victim, famous rabbis, well-known authors and other prominent Canadians.

The Back River Memorial Gardens Cemetery (corner Berri and Sauve), dating back to the late 1800's, has been beautifully restored with the generous support of Montreal's Jewish community and the Québec government. In 2012, the Back River Cemetery joined with the Baron de Hirsch Cemetery; the merger ensures that the Cemetery will be well-maintained in future years so families and others will always be able to visit a setting that exudes peace, serenity and respect.

The Agudath Achim Sherbooke Jewish Cemetery is the final resting place of approximately 129 Jewish individuals including families who arrived as early as the 1890s, many from Ostropol and Novograd-Volhynia in what was then the Russian Empire (today Ukraine). 

The community-built businesses, raised families, and contributed to Sherbrooke’s cultural and commercial landscape. At its peak in the early 20th century, the Jewish community of Sherbrooke numbered in the hundreds, sustaining congregations, social organizations, and vibrant communal life.

Though the community has since dispersed over the years, the cemetery remains a lasting symbol of that history—an anchor of memory in the Eastern Townships.

A New Chapter of Stewardship
Baron de Hirsch-Back River Cemeteries Inc., Quebec’s oldest and largest Jewish cemetery organization with more than 135 years of service, is pleased to announce that it has now assumed administrative oversight of the Agudath Achim Sherbrooke Jewish Cemetery. With two historic cemeteries already under its care in Montreal at the de la Savane and Back-River locations, Baron de Hirsch brings established expertise, dedicated infrastructure, and a deep commitment to preserving Jewish burial grounds in accordance with Halachic principles. 

This transition ensures that all three cemeteries, now united under one organizational banner, benefit from the same standards of dignity, professionalism, and long-term maintenance.