Belarus
is located east
of Poland and is slightly smaller than the State of Kansas. It borders
Latvia,
Lithuania, Poland and Russia and has a total
population of 10.4 million of which it is also home to
some 20,000 to 70,000 Jews.
Over
50% of the population of the major cities Minsk,
Grodno, Mogilev and Vitebsk were Jewish cities.
Ninety
eight percent of the native Byelorussians
lived in the countryside. Today, Jews constitute
one percent of the national populations according
to information from the Minsk In Your Pocket Guide, Summer, 1997, page 30;
Winter, 1997-98, page 31.
White Russian (Byelorussia)is
the nationality of the people living in this marshy
land area, that was formerly
part of Mother
Russia.White Russian Monarchists,
fightingBolsheviks during the Russian Civil War (1917 to
1920) were referred to as
"White Guard" and those they fought were referred
to as the Red Guard. They were more commonly
referred to as the
Reds
and the
Whites.
Today, Belarus is not much different than yesterday's
Belarus. You will still see the horse drawn plows
and
vehicles on the rough highways next to old models of
the Lada automobile. Getting gasoline, which is
rationed,
can take up a great deal of time, when you
find someone selling gasoline along the side of the
road. It is quite a poor country controlled by the
military, but in some areas, the people are better off
than other Russian satellite states.
You will find that the people are scraping the bottom in
order to survive including selling off personal
items
and even used shoes and clothing items. Outdoor
markets are quite common.
Belarus
lost over 30% of its population and over 75% of its
towns and villages during WW II. The notorious 12th
Lithuanian Police Auxiliary Battalion, chillingly
named the Schutzmannschaft was formed in Kaunasin 1941, and
was composed entirely of Lithuanian
volunteers. According to documents in the Belarusian Archives, this unit
was dispatched to
Belarus on October 5, 1941 with the ostensible
mission of breaking the back of local
resistance and
partisan groups.
The 12th Police Auxiliary operated principally in Minsk
City and Minsk District, but sometimes moved
further a
field. The unit was responsible for
massacres in Slutsk, Smilovichi, Borisov, Rudensk,
Koidanov and many other Shtetls. Its
principle functions were mass executions, hangings and
genocide, often on the streets and in city squares.
At least 42,000 people; Jews, partisans, and alleged
Communist Party members were murdered by the unit.
It was in Byelorussia that the Nazis wholesale murder of Jews
was first tested. At the same time, many ghettoes
became centers of resistance. Underground
organizations were active in the ghettoes of Baranovichi, Bobruisk, Brest, Grodno, Slonim, Minsk,
Vileyka and others.
An in-depth
study of the history of Belarus from ancient
times to the present (in English)
Most books, CDs, etc. can be ordered through my link to Amazon.com by clicking here >
"A Few
Words About Towns of Those Days", From Viachka
Tselesh's book
"A Jew in
Byelorussia, Lida and Karaganda"
(Un Juif de
Bielorussie de Lida A Karaganda) (In French)
Ghetto-Maquis-Goulag Authored by Kuszelewicz, Joseph
Harmattan - 19/09/2002 ISBN 2-7475-1308-4
"Ashes" Authored by
Arnold Zale, a Melbourne, Australian writer who
has traveled to Belarus and recorded his feelings
in a moving and literary manner. Available from
most major chain bookstores.
"A Survivor's Story"
An interview with a WWII survivor from
Luninets:
as provided by The Columbus Dispatch newspaper in the
January 23, 1997 edition.
"Atlas of the Jewish People" Contains many diagrams that
illustrate Jewish migrations starting from biblical times to
the present.
"Bashert: A
Granddaughter's Holocaust Quest" Authored by Andrea
Simon and published by University Press of Mississippi. The
book contains the most
extensive information to date on the
Brona Gora and Volchin massacres. ISBN 1-57806-481-3
"TheBelarus Secret" Authored by John Loftus, a former
federal prosecutor in the Nazi war crimes unit of the
Justice Department. Published by Alfred A. Knopf,
Inc., New York Library
"BriefeMeiner
Erinnerung: Mein Uberleben in Judischen Ghetto von Minsk
1941-1942"Roughly translated to
"MyLetterLivingThrough the Jewish Ghetto in Minsk". This book, written in German by Ana Krasnaperko, is available from
the publisher Haus Villigst, 5840 Schwerte, Germany
Telephone: 02304/755230.
The Holocaust
Museum has a copy and discusses the story of the many German Jews from Bremen and Hanover deported to
Minsk
and includes photos and text, but does not list names.
And, along with her mother, who was
a doctor, escaped into
the woods and lived with the partisans.
"From
Belarus To Cape Breton And Beyond" Authored by Larry Gaum
lgaum@total.net
Some of the
scenes of the atrocities that Larry learned of when he
visited Lakhva in 1994 from a former resident and
survivor are included in this book.
"History Atlas of Belarus" In Russian. Leonid Smilovitsky
smilov@netvision.net.il
states that he has "a free copy of it direct from
Belarus'.
The Atlas was published in Minsk in 2001 and contains
28 pages. He also offers, in Russian, a
monograph of Dr. Anishchenko
"Pale of Settlements in Belarus" (18th
century)
"Holocaust in Byelorussia, 1941-1944"
The first systematic study of the
history of the Holocaust in Byelorussia written in Russian Authored by
Dr. Leonid Smilovitsky with a
preface by Daniel Romanovsky and published in Tel-Aviv,
2000. See the
Online Newsletter of the Belarus SIG
for the article. http://www.jewishgen.org/Belarus/newsletter/bnl_index.htm
"Jewels and Ashes"
Authored by Arnold Zable, a
Melbourne, Australian
writer who has traveled to Belarus and recorded
his feelings
in a moving and literary manner.
Available from most major chain bookstores. Try my link to
Amazon.com at
'Books'
page
"Jewish Life in a Shtetl in Europe"
Authored by
Cheyna Rogovin Chertow (born 1912), who shares her memories
of Belakoritz and Wolzyn in 1912
to 1931 is available
at JewishGen archives of 3/1/1999 on page 7. http://www.jewishgen.org/Belarus
"Jewish Religious Life in
Belarus, 1944-1953" Translated into English
by Dr. Leonid Smilovitsky of the Diaspora Research Institute
of Tel Aviv University. See
the Online Newsletter of the
Belarus SIG for the article. http://www.jewishgen.org/Belarus/newsletter/bnl_index.htm
"Jewish Roots in Poland: Pages from the Past & Archival Inventories"
Authored
by M Weiner. Published by Roots to Roots Foundation, Inc.
136 Sandpiper Key, Secaucus, NJ 07094-2210
Telephone
201 866 4075
"Jews
in Belarus: From Our Common History, 1905-1953" Authored by Dr. Leonid
Smilovitsky, Diaspora research Institute of the Tel-Aviv
University and published by
ARTI-FEX in Minsk, 1999
in Russian. See the Online Newsletter of the
Belarus SIG for the article. http://www.jewishgen.org/Belarus/newsletter/bnl_index.htm
"Jews
in Belorussian Public Prosecutor's Offices, 1944-1956/East
European Jewish Affairs" Vol. 33, No 2, Winter
2003, pp. 97-112 Authored by Dr. Leonid Smilovitsky The
Goldstein-Goren Diaspora
Research Center, Tel Aviv
University, E-mail: smilov@zahav.net.il For
details of past and future contents of East European
Jewish Affairs, please, contact: www.tandf.co.uk./journals
"Jews of
Moscow, Kiev and Minsk: Identity, Anti-Semitism, Emigration"
Authored by Rozalina Ryvkina
"Settlers in Yekaterinoslav Guberniya" Which is not located in Belarus,
but offers some interesting information on why Jews left the
economically poor cities in the north, like Belarus,
and established new settlements in Novo Russia http://www.jewishgen/belarus
"Towns of Belarus on
Old-Time Postcards" Authored by Viachka Tselesh and
published in Minsk in 2001 as the 2nd edition.
The book, 9" x 11", has 255
pages in hardcover, texts are in
Belarusian and English. The majority of postcard
photographers, printers and sellers were Jews. The
book is an important source of information about the life of
our ancestors in the Russian Empire
"Un Juif de
Bielorussie de Lida A Karaganda" (In French)
(A Jew in Byelorussia, Lida and Karaganda) Ghetto-Maquis-Goulag Authored by Joseph
Kuszelewicz, Harmattan - 19/09/2002 ISBN 2-7475-1308-4
Born in Lida,
his family survived with the partisans in the nearby
forests. After a five year post-war
imprisonment in the
Gulag, he joined his family in Paris.
"Jewish luck,"
spoken of with bitter irony by Jews and with resentment by
their neighbors, led Joseph Kuszelewicz from the Lida
ghetto in Hitler controlled Byelorussia, to
Stalin's gulag in Karaganda, Kazakhstan. The story
begins in the one hell of the "Final Solution to the Jewish
Question," and ends in the alternate hell for Soviet
citizens deported as zeks to the gulag.
Between these
two moments in time and history, young Joseph Kuszelewicz
was a partisan fighter with the
Bielski resistance
movement in Byelorussia. The Bielski partisans were
escapees from Nazi ghettos and slave
labor camps. With some
help from the Red Army, they and other resistance groups
made a substantial
contribution to the defeat of the Nazis
and their local collaborators.
After the Lida
region was liberated, Joseph was conscripted into the
Red Army. He was severely wounded in
East Prussia
during the final months of the war. Released from the army,
he was arrested and deported to Kazakhstan. The
author's story is supported by an appendix that includes
documents and transcripts from the Lida war crimes
trials of 1966. From a posting by Bernard Kouchel
General Belarus Genealogy Information
I would
suggest to the researcher of the following sites, to
also check the other two Baltic Country sites, including Estonia and Lithuania,
as well as
Poland and Russia as there may very well be some cross
references as the country borders changed many times between
wars.
An excellent site
to find information about most European countries is at http://searcheurope.com
and type in the
name of the country you wish to research in the search
field. This site is a great source to find information
for almost every European country. Another valuable site to
help find a person, maps, etc.
http://www.webhelp.com/home
and type
in the name of any country you wish to research. This
service is free.
Global
Gazetteer It is a directory of 2,880,532 of
the world's cities and towns, sorted by country and
linked to a map for each town. A tab separated list is
available for each country. www.calle.com/world/
"It's not that
Poland "owned" Novogrudok orMinsk, it's just
that both were in White Russia, which in the
13th or early 14th century became part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which confederated
with the Kingdom of Poland in 1569. The
Polish language and culture gradually
prevailed in the grand duchy but politically Poland-Lithuania remained a dual state."
From a posting to BelarusSIG by Norman H.
Carp-Gordon
Centuries-old documents are damaged by sunlight that enters
through broken windows
Access to
archives since the mid-1990s has greatly enriched the
Holocaust historiography in Byelorussia.
Documents on the history of the Holocaust, lists of ghetto
victims, descriptions of partisan actions in which Jews took
part, lists of monuments on common graves, etc., began to
appear in the 'Pamyat' (Memory) series of documented
chronicles of Byelorussian towns and districts which
have been published since 1987.
Director is Orest Laroslavoych Matsiuk; Deputy
Director (Directress) is Diana Peltc who, it has been
noted, forwards personal researcher requests to a "freelancer" who then increases the price, but the cost
is still relatively reasonable archives@cl.lv.ukrtel.net
Hours are Monday through Friday 9 to 3
pm. Then select Genealogy
and then Archives. http://lemkos/
Archives
To request records you must first contact the
Belkom Archive Kollektornaya St. #10, Minsk.
It is advisable to also send a copy of your
request to the consulate in your country. Individual
archives are not allowed to provide information on the
contents of their holdings, but the Belkom Archive is
allowed to provide the information on subordinate archives.
They charge $50 for initiating a search.
For
access to the holdings of the national Archives, the
researcher should apply directly by official letter of
application to the director of the individual archives
requested. The majority of documents preserved at the
Archives are open for researchers. Foreign researchers
planning visits should check in advance regarding operating
hours and temporary changes. Most Archives are open
Tuesday through Friday from 9:00 to 5:00,
but check first.
Fees for a
genealogical research includes a pre-payment of $80.00 and a
final sum based on a charge of $4.00 per hour of research.
Enclose a check, drawn on your bank, for the pre-payment of
the $80.00, made payable to the name of the appropriate
archive.
Also see below
under the title of Military, addresses of Archives where
records may be found. Records for areas in Belarus
have been turning up in Poland, Latvia, Lithuania,
Russia, the United States and in Israel.
Some of these are primary records and others are secondary
records. You may also fined that some Jewish records
are mixed with 'Church Records' and 'Mixed Records'.
You
also may write to: Director of Archival Research, Historical Archives of Belarus, Kozlova Street 26,
Minsk, Belarus in English.
Replies may be received in Russian.
They are asking
an $80.00 deposit upfront. Records prior to 1917 'should' be
in the National Historical Archives of Belarus. The Minsk branch
should have the records from areas that
were once part of Vitebsk, Mogilev and Minsk Guberniyas.
The Grodno branch should have the records for what
was formerly the Grodno Guberniya. Please keep
in mind that many vital records did not survive and you may
have to use secondary records, Revision Lists, Resident
Lists, Court Records, etc. if they are available.
The Belarus
SIG has extracted and translated into English, the
entire remaining census forms for the Grodno Guberniya.
While most of the records were destroyed, the remaining
remnants provide valuable genealogical data for those who
can find their families on the census records. This
census includes the place of birth, place of registration,
along with the address and shtetl where people were living
at the time of the census. In many instances these
three locations are different for the same person in the
census database. The information provides an insight
on origination of families and helps to lead to other
shtetls for you to research.
The BelarusSIG
web site has inventories of records known to exist in
the two branches of the NHAB, as well as the postal
addresses for the two different branches of the NHAB.
National
Historic Archive of Belarus (Grodno) 2,
Tizengauza Sq. Grodno, 230023 Republic of Belarus Director: Karina P. Batrakova Tel./Fax: (375-152)
44-94-66 http://www.archives.gov.by/eng/index
The
Archives was founded on May 28, 1927. During
1930-1944, it was located in Mogilev. In June
1995, the documents of the former Central Archives of the
Communist Party were added to the State Archives' complex.
The Belarusian State Archives was reorganized into
the National Archives of the republic of Belarus. More
information ins available at http://www.president.gov.by/gosarchives/EArh/E_naz.htm
Previous Names of
the archive:
Belarusian
Soviet Socialist Republic's Central Archives of October
Revolution (1927-1938)
Belarusian
Soviet Socialist Republic's Central State Archives of
October Revolutions and Socialist Development (1938-1993)
State Archives
of Grodno Region 84, Dzerzhinskogo
St. Grodno, 230005 Republic of Belarus
Telephone / Fax: (375 0152) 72 24 43,
47 04 92 Director: Larisa I. Yunina (This archive
contains records from 1917 to the present.) http://archives.gov.by/eng/index.php?id=184649
"I
have had recent experience with the Grodno
Archive. I would urge researchers to seek their
assistance. They have resources that are
valuable and they are making efforts to be
responsive. Their fees are not unreasonable. You
can write them in English. Their response will
be in Russian. Carefully follow their
directions.
It is recommended
that both addresses be also written in Ukrainian.
A sample of how to address the Archive can be found at this
site where you will also find 'Vital and Marriage
Records' fromGreek Catholic and Orthodox
Parishes in Former Austrian Galicia, Former Malo Rus,
Ukraine, Poland and Belarus.' http://lemko.org/genealogy/galiciapl.html
The later site was initiated in 1994 by a group of Belarusian scientists working around the world and
contains a collection of information about Belarus http://www.belarusguide.com/cities/index.html
Belarus
Cemetery Law
A law was enacted
that is applied to cemeteries of all faiths, including
Jewish cemeteries. Any cemetery unused for 25 years can
be reclaimed for other purposes. Owning to the murder
of entire Jewish communities by Germans and their Lithuanian, Latvian and
Ukrainian partners in the
1941-44 period, the bulk of Jewish cemeteries fall under
this law during the years 1966-69.
This
list is for those interested in Belarus using Internet
discussion list 'netiquette' and any further
restrictions imposed by the charter. Complete 'welcome'
description http://www.belarus-misc.org/welcome.html
Authored
by David M. Fox, they are quite informative regarding surviving
records that may be available including information about 'Changing
Borders'; Centralization of Records; Conditions in the
Archives and much more http://www.jewishgen.org/Belarus/belarus_records_various_archives.htm
Much information
about the country, with hundreds of links to sites on Belarus in
English and links to maps of cities of
the Republic http://www.slavophilia.net/belarus/refer.htm
The 'Reviska
Skazka' (Revision Lists) were conducted in
territories ruled by the Russian Czar in the 18th and
19th centuries. The Lists only enumerated those
individuals subject to taxation and was also used for
identifying men to draft into the army. Further
information and a table showing the years by Shtetl/District can be found at http://www.jewishgen.org/Belarus/intro_rev_list.htm
Here is
a great site where David M. Fox webmaster has tried to
collect all the data accumulated about various archival
information and inventories of records and has made them
available at http://www.jewishgen.org/belarus/
"Fonds that
are not included in the inventories at this site, are
secondary records (other than vital records or revision
lists) where the archives or private researchers found
valuable data. Frequently, vital records or revision
lists are not available for some shtetls and the only way to
gather information is from secondary records."
TheBelarusSIG
web site, besides offering "All Belarus Database",
offers: Shtetls of Belarus; Belarus Surname Index;
Archival records; Belarus Given Names Database; Resources, Addresses;
Archives; Russian Military Archives; Basics and FAQs; Belarus Today;
Bibliography; Cemeteries; Conferences; Holocaust;
Laws; Maps; RAGAS Articles; Researchers and Translators and much more at http://www.jewishgen.org/belarus/
Translations include: 1903 Russian Business Directory; Minsk Yizkor Book Name Index; Minsk Guberniya
Revision Lists; Mogilev Vital records; 1834Borisov Revision List; Senno 1861-64 Birth
Records translated version available at www.jewishgen.org/belarus
1.)
First item for today is the last in your post:
Sign every post with your full name. First
name, last name, every time. Put in your
location, too, including state or country.
Someone may know about a good resource in your
area. You may want to add the surnames
you're searching -- you may include up to six
lines of surnames & towns after your signature.
Yes, six lines is a purely arbitrary limit.
There had to be a limit somewhere, otherwise
everyone has to scroll and scroll. So it's
six lines. Rotate your list sometimes so that
everything gets a viewing.
2.) Make
the most of your subject line to catch the most
eyes... and therefore get the most help.
Use your subject line to cover the basics of
your message. Some examples:
Is there a synagogue in Sokolka, Poland? RABINOWITZ, Grodno to Buenos Aires, 1910s
Sephardic naming traditions
Do *not* use
subject lines like these:
Help please
Family question
They are sure-fire
interest-killers, guaranteed to slip away into
oblivion, drawing the eyes of only the most
dedicated message readers. And the people
with the information you need may not be as
dedicated as you like -- but you still need
them.
3.) Write your message
clearly and include as much information as is
relevant, without rambling. You want to
include whatever people need to be able to help
you, but you don't want your message to be too
long, or people may skip it or not read it
deeply enough.
4.) We want this
list to be clear and easy to read, so as to
encourage as much reading (and therefore as many
helpful responses) as possible. To that
end, please type surnames in all capitals --
PLOTZ, SKYDELL, NIEDERHOFF. Type the rest
of your message using proper capitalization --
that is, capitalize the beginning of each
sentence and the beginning of given names and
place names. It just makes things easier
on the eyes.
If you have a signature
file, please take a moment to edit it.
Capitalize the surnames so they stand out.
Make all other words "normal" so that they don't
interfere with the surnames -- this includes
words like "Researching" and all place names
like Jerusalem, Ukraine, England.
AOL 6.0, 7.0, and 8.0
If you are using AOL 6.0, 7.0 or 8.0,
then you need to log on to AOL and select either
Netscape or Internet Explorer as your browser -
Do not use AOL's web browser. Launch the
browser, and type
http://www.aol.com
In the URL
field (the white strip at the top of the page).
Sign on with your Screen Name and Password.
Click on "AOL Mail". You will then be able
to submit messages using AOL's "AOL Mail on the
Web" service.
The website "Unofficial AOL
Email FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)" at AOL
suggests some ways to use version 6.0 or 7.0 of
AOL's software for sending plain text messages.
Submitted by Paula Zieselman
Belarus
Given Names Database
A searchable
database of Jewish given names used in Belarus during
1795 - 1925 and links in each record to the new local
vernacular names adopted in this same time period in
nine Foreign countries (Argentina, Australia, Brazil,
Canada, Mexico, Palestine, South Africa, UK, US) http://www.jewishgen.org/belarus/srchbela.htm
There
are approximately 1,206,000 Byelorussian in Russia as of
1993. There is a large community in the Komi
Republic (27,000 currently live in Komi, the
republic's fourth largest ethnic community after Russians,
Komi and Ukrainians, and approximately 12,000
Byelorussians in the Sakha Republic (Yakutia). http://www.belaurs-misc.org/bel-diasp.htm
Include the full
name (including patronymic) exact date and place of
birth, date of registration of the birth; birth certificate
number; parents' names; parents' parents' names (including
parents' mothers' maiden names); parents' birth dates (father's
full birth date and mother's birth year); father's
occupation; and any changes in the registry of birth.
Birth Records
From the "Detailed Inventory of 13 Microfilms of
Belarus Records at the Family History Center"
See also the All Belarus Database www.jewishgen.org/databases/belarus/
Includes
the Jewish Records Indexing - Poland; All-Lithuania
Database; All-Belarus Database; All-Latvia Database and
JewishGen Family Finder http://www.avotaynu.com/csi/csi-home.html
Meest-Boston
delivers US dollars, sea and air parcels, food parcels,
equipment and electronics, letters
and small packages to Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Moldova, Poland and other
countries. More services are available www.meestboston.com
The Voter Lists for all of the districts of
Minsk
Guberniya includes the Uyezds of:Minsk, Pinsk, Mazyr, Igumen, Novogrudok, Borisov and Slutsk http://www.jewishgen.org/Belarus/
Dedicated to the
preservation and perpetuation of East European Jewish
culture, Jewish monuments,
buildings and cemeteries.
To raise funds, the project offers genealogical services for
a cost of
$80.00 for a preliminary report and a family tree
now costs in the order of $500. The initial search
checks
relevant archives and record offices for documents relative
to your family. You will then
receive a report of the
results. This group has negotiated with the Belarusian
Committee for the
Preservation of the Nation's Heritage, an agreement for the
protection
of Belarus' Jewish Cemeteries.
Contact: Franklin Swartz, Executive Director, East European
Jewish Heritage Project, 13b Dauman Street Minsk
220002, Republic of Belarus. Phone/Fax: +375 17 234
5612/234 33 60 or
European
Jewish History, Religion and Culture / Eyropeyishe Yidishe
Geshikhte, Religion un Kultur is
a mailing list for the
discussion of
Jewish religion, culture and history in Europe.
Discussions range
from European Jews in ancient times to
events in the 21st century. Special attention is devoted to
topics dealing with Jewish Culture, Customs and Beliefs,
Folklore and Folk Religion, Jewish-Christian
Relations in
Europe http://groups.yahoo.com/group/eejh/
Keroor, a
Jewish organization in Russian, has assembled a list of
2,193 Jewish victims of Stalin's purges. Vitaly Charny has
picked out the names of 563 victims who seem to have been
born in Belarus. The original, complete, Russian
list http://politicalfilms.com/guest/stalin.html
Jews and
Judaism in Belarus
"At the
turn of the century, over 50 percent of the population of Minsk (Mensk) Hrodna, Mogilev and
Viciebsk were
Jewish (98% of native Byelorussians lived in the
countryside). Today, Jews constitute one percent of
the national population." Information
obtained from the Minsk in Your Pocket guide, Summer, 1997,
page 30 and the 1997-98 guide, page 31. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Jews_and_Judaism_in_Belarus
Also
check out for
information about Belarus www.belarus.net
Latvia
There
are approximately 120 thousand Byelorussians in Latvia
in 1993 and approximately 97,000 in 2000. There are
approximately 10 officially registered Belarusian
organizations in Latvia. More
information
available at http://www.belarus-misc.org/bel-diasp.htm
Offers
approximately 10,000 records which probably contain names
that may have lived in Belarus
which had been Lithuania http://www.jewishgen.org/litvak/all.htm
"Apparently,
the country had an intensely feudal character for hundreds
of years, the effects of which
have not completely worn off.
Polish landed gentry (often absentee landlords) from the
joint Poland/
Lithuania Commonwealth, which ruled the area
for hundreds of years (1550-1795ish), actually
*owned* whole
towns, cities, and manorial estates; had private armies; and
often offered protective
charters for Jews
whom they contracted with to run distilleries, inns, collect
taxes from
the Belarusian
peasants, provide services like shoemaking,
etc., and basically act as middlemen between the Poles
and
the natives.
The
landed gentry were called "magnates" and were often
princes and counts and other kinds of lesser
nobility. After
the Czar took over this region (1795-ish), many Jews
performed the same services for
the Russian nobility who had
simply exchanged places with their Polish peers.
Interestingly, there was
an unusual urban-rural split in Belarus: towns and cities were populated almost
entirely by the landed
gentry and Jews
(the only groups allowed to travel in the region), while the
countryside was populated
almost exclusively by the native
Belarussians who spoke their own language (Belarusian,
rather than
Polish or Russian) and had a different religion
(Greek Orthodox, rather than Roman Catholic, Russian
Orthodox, or Jewish), and were mostly
involved in agricultural activities."
"According
to a Google search, the term "Korchma" is currently a
kind
of restaurant. Perhaps your relative ran an inn or a
distillery for the prince for whom he may have worked. I
hope this helps. If I'm wrong about any of the info above, I
hope that someone will correct me." From a
posting by Laura Moss Gottlieb http://jewishbelarus.org/index.php?pid=75&lang=en
Military
History of BelarusThe Siege of the
Fortress
of Brest, 1941
"Brestskaya
Krepasc' (Fortress of Brest) is famous by the
deed of its heroic heroes. It was defending their post for
more than month completely cut off, surrounded by Germans in
1941, far from the front that was moving fast to Moscow.
They all perished but did not surrender. In commemoration of
this deed a tremendous memorial was arisen in Brest."
http://www.belarusguide.com/cities/castles/battles.html
Military
Records The RBVIA serves as the centralized
archive for military records of the Russian Empire,
consolidating
the holdings from various pre-revolutionary Russian military archives and other repositories
throughout
the former Soviet Union. RGVIA
retains documentation produced from the activities of
highest, central,
and local military administration and
military agencies of the Russian Empirefrom
the
end of the
seventeenth century until March of 1918. http://www.genealogylinks.net/europe/belarus/
This magazine also offers FREE ads for family
searches. For research purposes, it would only
take less
than an hour to learn how to read Cyrillic
Alphabet allowing you to pick out surnames and
locations. E-mail to
mishpoha@aport.ru Fax/Phone 011 375 212 366872 (Note, there
is a seven hour time difference (East Coast).
Arkady Shulman, Editor
Mishpoha Belarus 210001 Vitebsk, Box 22 http://www.sitereport.org/p/mishpoha.org
In addition to
the Revision Lists filmed by the LDS, there are other lists
available in the Vilnius Archive
that cover areas now in Belarus. According to the FHL Acquisition
Department, these Revision Lists will
not be filmed until
after 2005.
A list of
Revision Lists for shtetls in Zarasai Uyezd, Minsk
Guberniya and Lida, Vilna Guberniya is
also
available on the LITVAKSIG' S website. Also,
Revision Lists and/or family and resident lists, as well as
part of the 1897 Census for Grodno Guberniya re in
the Grodno branch of the National Historic Archives
of
Belarus. These also have not been filmed. http://www.jewishgen.org/belarus/intro_1897_russian_census.htm
The
National Historic Archive in Minsk Has
Revision Lists, family lists, and resident lists for Mogilev and possibly
Vitebsk Guberniya which have
also not been filmed yet. http://www.jewishgen.org/Belarus/intro_rev_list.htm
TheBelarus Special Interest Group now has a search
engine that accesses the 246 static web pages at its site.
They contain almost 130,000
names. The engine permits
searching by surname, given name, town, Uyezd, and
Guberniya. Each element
can be searched by Starts With,
Exactly,D/M Soundex, Contains, or Ends
With. Click on "Search for your ancestors." http://www.jewishgen.org/belarus
This easy-to-use
web site contains the names of the shtetls (towns) of
Belarus. For each Shtetl, the
Uyezd (district)
and Guberniya (province) is listed in the
early 1900s. http://www.jewishgen.org/belarus/research_tool.htm
Just in case you
didn't think of it, contact a nearby university or college's
foreign language department.
They may offer to write
letters and translate letters into English. A nominal
fee is usually charged.
Union of
Religious Congregations in the Republic of Belarus
Towns that are part of the
Lida
District Research Group Project have DRG next to their names.)
Aleksandrovsk(see
also Novo Aleksander)
Photos of the city without touchups. This was
one of the Jewish agricultural colonies
scattered
throughout the districts of Mariupol, Berdyansk, Aleksandrovsk and
elsewhere. http://www.razruha.ru/eng/cat1439.htm?page=3
The
Shtetl is located near the city of Grodno
(about 15 miles south) and in 1887 it had a
population of
2,194 Jews, which was 82 percent
of the total population. In 1931, the total
population was engaged in
brewing and
distilling.
A Yizkor Book has been written and a
copy is in the library at Yad Vashem.
The
call number is T996. E-maillibrary@yad-vashem.org.ilIt may be of value to
write to the library
and request the name and
address of the committee that wrote the book. http://www.answers.com/topic/amdur
Belsk
(Bielsk,
Bielski) and Belsk Uyezd (district)
Available in the Grodno (Belarus) archive.
These include Revision Lists, family lists
and the 1897
Russian Census. These
films have not yet been filmed by the FHL, they
are planning to do so. http://archives.gov.by/eng/index.php?id=411041
Located in the Pruzhany District of Grodno
Guberniyaand shares a website of
reference material with
the shtetl Pruzhany.
Bereza Area Research Group includes all
towns within a 25 mile radius of Bereza
and is just off the main road from Brest to
Minsk. http://www.beljews.info/Bereza-Kartuz.htm
PURS includes research from the five major
towns of the Pruzhany District in Grodno
Guberniya, Russia
now Belarus including Pruzhany, Kartuz Bereza (Bereza) Selets, Malch
and Shershev http://www.purs.org
A $25
a year paid subscription to PURS, allows
complete access to the site and enables PURSto obtain
more data from various archives inBelarus. Questions should be
directed to Herb Maletz at purs@purs.org
Township of Bereza-Kartuzskaia:
List of residents 1929 List of taxpayers
1931-1932 Lists of conscripts 1931, 1938-39 Parish register transcripts about birth,
marriage and death 1933-1937 Electoral Lists
1934-1935, 1939 Record cards and lists of the
township's residents have real property 1935,36 List of voters to the town
Rada (council)
1939 http://archives.gov.by/eng/index.php?id=673339
Yizkor Book "Pinkas
Pruzhany ve-ha-Seviva; edut ve-Ziharon
le-Kehillot she-Hushmedu ba-Shoa" (Memorial
Book of Pruzhany and its Vicinity) (Bereze,
Malch, Pruzhany, Shershev, Seltz and Lineve)
Chronicle of six
communities that perished in the Holocaust
"Kartuz-Berezah;
Sefer Zikaron ve-edut le-Kehila she-Hushmedah
Kartuz-Breze", (Our Town, Memorial
Book) http://www.jewishgen.org/yizkor/translations.html
Bialystok
Archive Coordinators are Mark Halpern
Willie46@aol.com
and Sonia Hoffman
SoniaHoff1@aol.com
There is a massive amount
of German Grodno Amtskommisar for Civil
Administration records of the
Bialystok Region
that is being currently held in the USHMM
(Holocaust Memorial Museum) but has not
been
released for research purposes at this time.
Most of these records are in German, some
in Polish
and some in Russian. http://www.zchor.org/bialystok/bialystok.htm
"The Jews
of Bialystok During World War II and the
Holocaust" "This history
of Jewish Bialystok during World War II provides
an in-depth analysis of one of the largest
Jewish communities to pass from Soviet to German
occupation, and it enhances our understanding of
the response of Polish Jewry to the Holocaust. http://www.powells.com/biblio?isbn=9781584657293
List of Names of 1200 Bialystok Children Tilford Bartman bartmant@earthlink.net has created a
web site that contains a list of names of
children sent from the Bialystok Ghetto
at it's final liquidation in August, 1943 to Theresienstadt, and
then to Auschwitz
in October, 1943. All of the children, and
their adult caretakers (including Otla David
-
sister of Franz Kafka), who accompanied
them from Theresienstadt to Auschwitz
were gassed and
burned on Erev Yom Kippur,
1943. http://www.zchor.org/bialystok/hana.htm
The list has the name of
the child, the date of birth, place of birth and
parents names. At this site you
can also find
links to: Ronka Klibanski's article about the
Bialystok children, 'Murder on Yom
Kippur''Art
as Evidence' also by Hanna Greenfield;
'The Bialystok Children'
by Charlotte Opfermann; 'Testimony of
Phinia
Korovski'; 'Testimony of Tobiasz Cyrton'
and 'Testimony of Hadassah
Levkowitz' http://www.zabludow.com/Bialystokchildren1.html
One
of the principal Russian Polish Jewish centers (in
Russian: Belostok), incorporated into Russia
between 1807 and 1921 and
administrated by the U.S.S.R. between 1939 and
1941, reverting to Poland
in 1945. bialystok.htm
TheDisna Uyezd Research Group The translation of the 1850 Revision List for
the benefit of DURG members. Contact Batya
Matzkin
Olsen batya@netsynthesis.com for
information.
Translations are now available for
Bildyugi,
Diszna, Glubokoye, Postavy, Plisa and
Sharkovshina.
Bildyugi (Bilziugi) and
Diszna are already in the ALD, Glebokie (Glubokoye) and
Postavy are planned to be added http://www.partisans.org.il/Site/site.advsearch.en.aspx
Braslav is a small town in the
Vitebsk
district
of north-eastern Belarus, some 250 kilometers from
Minsk,
the capital of Belarus.
Under Russian rule, up until World War I, Braslav had been part of the
Novo
Aleksandrovsk (Zarasai)
Uyezd
(district) in the
KovnoGuberniya.
Later, under Polish rule, Braslav became the
district capital within in the Voivodeship
(province) of Vilnasome kilometers south-west of Braslav. With all these border changes it
will be of no surprise to learn that the town
received many names - Braslav - in
Russian; Braslaw in Polish, Braslau - inBelarusian, Breslauja
in Lithuanian, Braslau in Latvian and
Breslev in Yiddish. http://www.seligman.org.il/braslav_history.html
This database is only an index of names; it directs researchers back to the
Yizkor Book itself, where more complete information may be available. This
database currently contains over 186,000 entries from the necrologies of 210
different Yizkor Books.
In Yiddish it was known as
Brisk by the people from Brest-
Brisker. It is located in the lower
southwestern Belarus border. Brisk or Brest-Litovsk, Russia (now called
Brest, Belarus) is located in the former Grodno Guberniya, directly on the border
with Poland. It was part of Russia
until 1921. Then it became part of Poland
until the German invasion in 1939. http://www.brestonline.com/en/info/chemproj.html
This major city was
formerly in the province of Lithuania,
later Poland and now in Belarus. Bernard
Rosinsky rosinskyb@usa.net There is an on-line
webzine (Brest On-Line) that I found
interesting
http://www.brestonline.com/
Brest-Belarus Group Aworld-wide
group of researchers tracing our family roots
from Jewish Brisk, now the city of Brest, Belarus, and the surrounding region.
http://www.brest-belarus.org/
Census Records
of 1897 These records can be found in
fond 100, opis 1, delo 66 through 109 of the
Grodno branch of the NHAB. This
inventory was done by Dimytri Panov and
indicates the existence of the 1897 Russian
census for portions of what was Grodno
Guberniya in 1897 http://www.jewishgen.org/belarus/intro_1897_russian_census.htm
"Phoenix Project"
A searchable database,
titled and created by Professor John
Garrard, Professor of Russian Literature at the
University of Arizona
The
first phase of this project is a list of more
than 12,000 persons 14 years and older who were
required by the Nazis to obtain photo
identification cards in order to live in the Brest ghetto. Dr. Garrard plans to
recover Holocaust victims' names and as much
information as possible about them and their
families.
The
database includes direct hyperlinks to the
original source documents as retrieved from the
archives, which are stored in scanned image
files. The Brest passport photos
are not digitized and are available at Yad
Vashem and the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.
http://www.brestonline.com/
If you're ancestral search
takes you to the City of Brest-Litovsk or
Brisk, Russian Poland now Brest,
Belarus, then you may be interested in
knowing that there are many other Brest
(Brisk) descendents who are doing the same
thing. A recent search of the United States
Ellis Island records found over 4,700
individuals who were listed as arriving at Ellis
Island from Brest between the years of
1899-1924. There are probably thousands of other
Briskers who arrived in other years, or arrived
at different ports. Further there are many
individuals who departed Brest and went
to Israel, Australia, United Kingdom, Canada,
France, Argentina, Brazil or other countries
of the world. Ninety (90) of us,
all with family ties to the Brest Jewish
Community have put together a very active
discussion group. We would like to invite all of
you, with similar City of Brest interests
to participate. By joining with other Brest
researchers, you may locate that long-lost
family member, or descendents of your
grandparents or great-grandparents. You can join
this Brest discussion group by clicking
on the "Join This Group!" blue button at:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/brest_belarus/
If you are an Existing
Yahoo! Users just enter your Yahoo ID and
password. If you are NOT an-Existing
Yahoo! Users just click on the blue link to the
left where it says-Sign up now to enjoy Yahoo!
Groups. Membership in the group is FREE, but
registration is required if you want to post
messages, or add pictures, articles, links, etc.
Contact Larry Schenker (JewishGen #82676)
at: lpsca@earthlink.netA temporary website
can be visited at: http://brest.00go.com/index.html
Towns included in the
web site include:Berezovka,1.4 Miles NNE; Rechitsa - 2.1
Miles W: Trishin 2.1 Miles E:Volynka, 2.4 Miles E: Terespol, Poland 5.8 Miles WSW
Located in Goretskiy district.
Jimmy Levine, a Belarus SIG member, received a
report in Russian from the national Historic
Archives of Belarus (Minsk Branch) in
1998 which was translated into English.
This is what the report stated as translated:
"There are following documents related to
genealogy of persons with the last name Lejtes
who lived in town Copys' of Goretskiy district and town of
Smol'yany
of Orshunskiy district of Mogilev province
and also others nearest settlements in archives
Fonds 'Mogilev Government House'; 'Orshansy
Municipal Board'; Jewish Societies of MogilevProvince; Mogilev Province
Office of Military Service'. "
Because of possibility transformation for the
1st name Lejtes the search was made on persons
who had similar last names and in the
settlements of Mogilev province which
were located near the appointed in the request."
Jimmy also provided valuable family data that
came from: census (revision Lists) from 1834,
1851, 1858; family lists (1874); birth
registration books (1893-1898); wedding
registration books (1894-1917); and draft list
(1914)
Revision List Disna Uyezd Research
Group offers the translation of the 1850
Revision List for the town of Druya to DURG
members. Contact is Batya Matzkin
Olsen batya@netsynthesis.comThere
is a translation of the 1850 Revision List
for the benefit of DURG members.
Translations are now available for Bildyugi, Diszna, Glubokoye, Postavy, Plisa and
Sharkovshina. Bildyugi (Bilziugi)
and Diszna are already in the ALD, Glebokie
(Glubokoye) and Postavy will be
added in the near future.
Divin
This
shtetl was part of the Kobryn district of
Grodno Guberniya from the time when the
Great Principality of Lithuania annexed
Russia and until the October Revolution of
1917. In the Fonds of the Central State
Historical Archives of the Republic of
Byelorussia (Grodno branch) such as"
'Grodno Chamber of Controls', Cobrin Notary N.
I. Falin', 'Office of Grodno Civil Governor',
'Grodno Chamber of Criminal and Civil Court',
'Cobrin District Police Administration', 'Grodno
Administration of Town Affairs' have documents
concerning the families of Garfinkel and
Tannenbaum who were living in Divin (now
part of Cobrin District, Brest province,
Republic of Byelorussia), according to
Sandra Garfinkel Shapiro in an email to David M.
Fox - Belarus SIG.
The
lists found include 6 pages of detailed family
data from list of deserters (1817)family
lists (1854- 1899); legal cases (1855-1913);
census lists (1885); list of candidates
and election data for the Jewish community (1877-1888);
list of private buildings with owners name,
property address, kind of building, building
material, roof material (1910); and
register of fines for not reporting for army
service (1911)
Dokshitsy is located in Belarus, about 68
miles northeast of Minsk, the capital.
Located 77 miles (120 km) north of Minsk).
Books
"On Foreign Soil" An autobiography by author Falk Zolf, offers
additional information including many deeply
shocking accounts of the Holocaust including the
story of the town of Dokshitsyat
http://www.onforeignsoil.com/links.htm
Cemetery Nearby villages with Jewish
inhabitants included Voznvoshchina, Uskrom'ye,
Karolina and
Krulevschizna. Parafianov. They allused the Dokshitsy cemetery http://www.agcholocaustlibrary.org/ghettos.html
From a story in the Friday,
15 February 2008 issue of Jewish Report
Newspaper in South Africa "AARON
GINSBURG, an American genealogist, says he was
“dumbfounded” that the non-Jewish locals were
initiating the restoration and “had to quickly
overcome any preconceptions about their attitude
to the town’s Jewish past”... Among those
attending the rededication will be Capetonians Dinah and Joe Polliack, who
traces his family’s presence in the village back
300 years. They first visited Dokshitsy,
which is 109 km north of Minsk, three
years ago." http://www.sajewishreport.co.za/pdf/2008/feb/15-February-2008.pdf
Located in Vileyka Uyezd, Vilna Guberniya,
it is a small town that passed from Poland
to Russia in 1793; within Poland
from 1921 to 1945 and now in Belarus. In
1847 the town had 1,194 Jewish inhabitants.
In 1897 it was 2,559. In 1921, it had a
Jewish population of 1,747 out of a total
population of 2,671. There were nearly
5,000 residents in 1941 and the Jewish residents
were killed by the Nazis in September 1942. http://shtetlinks.jewishgen.org/Belarus.html
Holocaust Photos, a map, a list of Holocaust victims,
comments by natives, descendants and other, and
links are some of the features that are on the
Dolginovo site a http://eilatgordinlevitan.com/dolhinov/dolhinov.html
Research Birth, Marriage and Death Records are in the
Belarus Archives, but the 19th census records
(called Revision Lists) are in the Vilna
Archives in Lithuania.
The 1834 and 1850 Dolhinov Revision Lists in
Vilna are excellent, giving lists of family
members, their ages, lists of people who had
died before that register was created, etc.
Located 69 km West of Pinsk (located 61.7 miles east of
Brest) had a prewar
Jewish population of 1,521. There is a Yizkor
Book (the book, originally in Yiddish was
about 500 pages and was basically prepared by Drogichiners in Chicago in the 50's) http://shtetlinks.jewishgen.org/Belarus.html
Located in the NW corner of Belarus
about
82miles N of Minsk, 80 miles ENE of
Vilnius, 18 miles WSW of Hlybokaye (Glebokie)
and 16 miles ESE of Pastavy (Postawy). It
was once part of the Vilna Guberniya of the
Russian Empire. http://www.eilatgordinlevitan.com/dunilovichi/dunilovichi.html
TheDisna Uyezd Research Group Has translated information for this
Shtetlach. Further information can be obtained
from Batya Olsen
batya@netsynthesis.com
Inmates offered armed resistance in the ghetto
before being murdered by the Nazis.
The Disna Uyezd Research Group
The translation of the 1850 Revision List
is for the benefit of DURG members.
Contact Batya Matzkin Olsen
batya@netsynthesis.com for
information.
"In December 2007, my wife and I visited Grozovo, a small rural
village,
where many buildings remain intact after WWII. Prior the WWII, we were told Grozovo was almost 100% Jewish and today there are no Jews. How small
is Grozovo? There is no running water and only out houses. We met with
Mayor
Valentin Abramovich, who was in charge of a collective farm for 35 years
prior to becoming mayor. He has since retired. While his office building was
modern and included computers, we washed our hands outside in the yard with
water poured from a pitcher. The mayor treated us like dignitaries and at
lunch time we toasted each other with a few glasses of vodka. The Mayor
showed us pre-WWII Jewish homes, including a house on Kopylskaya Street
where Lechiel Charach lived in the 1890's."
"After lunch, we drove to the old Jewish cemetery which was in ruins. Also,
we visited a gravel pit where the 1942 executions of Jews took place. A
memorial was erected to memorialize these Jewish families. Among the names
on the list were four Charach/Kharakh family members. On the basis of these
names and a list of names from Yad Vashem of persecuted Jews of Grozovo,
I
documented a family tree of the deceased and surviving Charach/Kharakh
family members of 1942 executions. Surviving members are living in Israel
and Minsk, Belarus. The JHRG contacted a family member in Minsk and I was
able to add more members to the family. However, no documents exist to trace
these family members to my Karan family, nor to the JHRG Charach/Kharakh
family."
"In April of 2011, the JHRG photographed and plotted the grave stones of the
Grozovo cemetery for me. During the past four years, since visiting
the
cemetery, it was cleared of brush. The old grave stones were exposed and
cleaned with the help of retired Mayor Valentin Abramovich. In May of 2011,
I received a CD with pictures of over 300 grave stones that need
translations." From a posting by Allan S. Karan
akaran1@hotmail.com
Located about 90 miles south of
Skidel
and was a market town in the Pruzhany
District, Grodno Guberniya before its
destruction in 1942 and was also on the main
road from Warsaw to Minsk to Moscow.
The railroad also stopped there. http://www.beljews.info/Bereza-Kartuz.htm
See
also PURS (Pruzhany Uyezd Research Society)
under Pruzhanybelow
Contact for the Jewish
Landmanschaften from Poland in Israel is Chaim
Ben-Israel
"Kletsk
was part of a virtually endless network of towns
stretching across the region linked by heavily-traveled roads. It was
expected that travelers would generally stay in their general area for fear
of traversing unfamiliar roads in areas strange to them. Historically, Kletsk
is referenced as having several "dependent"
villages, typically with populations of 500 or under:Kajszyce,
Laukwcem, Micklewicze Wielkie, Polonkowicze, Zubki." http://www.shtetlinks.jewishgen.org/Kletsk/
Holocaust In the ghetto an uprising
occurred prior to the mass execution of Jews on
July 21, 1943. There is an Association of
individuals from Kletsk and it was not
limited to woodsmen (perhaps carpenters).
Approximately a third of the Jewish craftsmen in
Kletsk were tailors, and the town had a
reputation for fine quality men's wear.
Research There is a building that used to
be owned by the Kletskers at the corner of Canal
Street and East Broadway in New York that still
bears the name of the Kletzker Brotherly Aid
Association. Bob WeissRWeissJGS@aol.com stated in a posting of
12-7-02 that he believes the building is now an
Asian mortuary. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kletsk
Gorky Uyezd, Mogilev Guberniya.It is
located on the Dnieper River, 15 miles south
southwest of Orsha. It is known for
manufacturing cement. Surrounding shtetls: Shklov (Mogilev Uyezd, Mogilev Guberniya. http://www.jewishgen.org/belarus/shtetls/skopysgm.htm
Regional Special Interest
Groups
Contact Merle Horwitz
Yizkor
Book
It is mentioned in the
Yizkor book "Pinkas Novradok"
published in 1963. The area was known for
lumbering and grew rye, wheat and potatoes.
http://www.jewishgen.org/Shtetlinks/Belarus.html
A village located in the
District of Minsk. Until WW II the town
was in the District of Vilna, Poland.
Jews lived here from the beginning of the 18th
century and was surrounded by small towns having
Jewish communities. In 1867 there were
1,325 Jews among a population of 1,955. The town
had four synagogues. http://www.mtu-net.ru/rrr/ukraine.htm
"From Belarus To Cape
Breton And Beyond" Authored by
Larry Gaum lgaum@total.netSome of the
scenes of the atrocities that Larry Gaum learned
of when he visited Lakhva in 1994 from a former
resident and survivor are included in this book.
Holocaust In the
ghetto an uprising occurred prior to the mass
execution of Jews on September 3, 1942.
"My
Iz Vosstavshei Lakvy"
- a book, in the Russian
language, authored by former survivor and Jewish
partisan Boris Dolgopiaty (Ben-Zion Dagan)
was published in Tel Aviv in 2001. The book
contains interesting data about Jewish life in
this shtetl in prewar years 1937-1941 http://www.agcholocaustlibrary.org/ghettos.html
TheDisna Uyezd
Research Group Has translated
information for this Shtetlach. Further
information can be obtained from Batya
Olsen batya@netsynthesis.com
Cemetery There is a photograph of the
Lida [now in Belarus] Jewish cemetery
taken in 1916. The cemetery has been
destroyed. Almost
nothing is to be found of the Jewish community
from the pre-World War II era. Even the
Jewish cemetery is gone, replaced with a park.
Lida is 68.1 miles WSW of Gorodok. http://www.iajgsjewishcemeteryproject.org/belarus/lida.html
The
war crimes material in the book's appendix is
from my English translation posted on the Lida District ShtetLinks; the URLs given in
the book are long stale. It's quoted directly
from the site & was not translated into French.
There is a reference to this book on the Lida
District ShtetLinks http://www.shtetlinks.jewishgen.org/Lida-District/lida-dist.htm
either on the Lida Area Page or the Lida city home page.
The fastest way to find it is on the what's new
page,
and search for one of the keywords with your
browser's find feature. From a posting by Irene Newhouse
http://www.shtetlinks.jewishgen.org/Lida-District/whatsnew.htm
Lida Town This town is about 2.5 hours from
Minsk and Grodno. There are some
fairly good hotels, but you must ask for a 'Luxury
room' to get a decent room. One of the
hotels is right across the square from the
famous ancient Lida castle. It used to be
known as Sovetskaya. Coordinator Irene
Newhouse.
Lida Uyezd A web site has been developed for the
Lida Uyezd, which at various times, was in
Lithuania, Poland, the Russian Empire
and now in Belarus. Information, in
varying degrees, are available for over
200 shtetls - Ellen Sadove Renck, Coordinator. http://www.litvaksig.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=article&id=10&Itemid=7
All tombstones in the Jewish
Cemetery have been photographed,
however, the large monuments are all
gone and many smaller ones too. One
of the large monuments is pictured
in Scattered Seeds authored by
George Sackheim.
Located in the Novogrudok Uyezd, Minsk
Guberniya. The 1784 census has
information on 84 families and is written in
Polish. Leonid Zeigler leonidze@iec.co.il has been translating
the list from Polish.
Research The
City Hall Archives Department of the Ministry of
Justice of Grodno Province Municipal
Court reported to Robert Mandelbaum
Rmandelbau@aol.com,
that civil registries from the Synagogue of the
town of Lunno for the years 1850-1944
have not survived. http://www.dartmouth.edu/~projpreservation/lunna/index.html
Research
Now
available are the 1880 and the 1889 draft list;
a list of donors to the United Grodner Relief
of New York, March 1940, September, 1944,
March 1948 and 1949.
A 20
page list of the Jews who lived in this town is
available at the Holocaust Museum in
Washington, D.C.
It is also spelled Melnitsah in
Yiddish and
Mielnica in Polish. http://openlibrary.org/books/OL19092414M/Melnitsah
"The
history of Minsk is a history of wars and
destruction. It is a history of a city, which
owing to the will and diligence of its citizens
many times rose from ruins and ashes like
Phoenix-bird. During its existence Minsk
was ruined more then ten times. The precise date
of its foundation is unknown. It was firstly
mentioned in the chronicles in 1067" http://www.belarusguide.com/cities/minsk_DZ/minskhist.html
Minsk was
mostly restored after WWII and the
original beauty of the city has been replaced by
post-war Soviet style architecture."A little History of Minsk -
Minsk before 1917 and Minsk 100 Years Ago and
Now" http://www.eilatgordinlevitan.com/minsk/minsk.html
Holocaust Minsk was
occupied on June
28, 1941. Its leadership secretly left the
city on the evening of June 24, 1941, without
declaring evacuation. As a result, nearly
100,000 Jews were killed. http://www.agcholocaustlibrary.org/ghettos.html
Holocaust In
August of the same year, a further 350 were
killed; some were shot and others fell prey to
experimental mobile gassing units. They
were buried, together with Jewish victims and
POWs in mass graves. For information and
photos, contact Franklin
J. Swartz eejhp@yahoo.com
who is the Executive Director of the EEJHP
(East European JewishHeritage Project
in Minsk.
Jewish Memorials More than 700,000 Jews
were killed in 163 ghettoes in Belarus
during WW II. There is the Zaslavskaya
Memorial, behind Hotel Yubileynaya and not far
from the Hotel Planeta (a few hundred meters
(quarter of a mile), across the intersection
in a park-like low area and at the base of
several apartment buildings). The memorial
stone commemorates some 5,000 Jews who were shot
and buried, some still alive, in this gully in
1941. Another monument to Holocaust
victims is to be erected on Sukhaya Street in Minsk. In part, the monument is to
commemorate members of the 42 Belarusian
families that saved Jews from executions. http://eritchka.blogspot.com/2007/03/yama-holocaust-memorial-ceremony.html
Minsk Memorable Gardens for Holocaust Victims The Solomon Family Charitable Trust in Great Britain together with the Minsk Jewish
Community are building a sculpture garden on the
grounds of the Novinki Orphanage and
Psychiatric Clinic in Minsk to
commemorate the mentally handicapped individuals
murdered by Germans during their occupation of
the Soviet Union. One hundred and twenty
mentally disable patients were murdered in early
July, 1941. http://eng.belarustourism.by/catalog/382_20919.html
Research
Minsk Guberniya
Jewish Population Information obtained from the
Table XXII of the Census
1897 in Russia is in a column format in JewishGen Digest Archives dated 12/12/1998
on page 4. The Vsia Rossi -"All
Russia Business Directory of Minsk Guberniya in
1903 and the 1911"andMogilev Guberniyaas compiled by
members of the BelarusSIG http://www.jewishgen.org/databases/vsiabelarus.htm
Minsk andPinsk Belgium
List People Of the Belgian file
who once lived in Pinsk or Minsk.
If you are interested, contact Micheline
Gutmann, GenAmi, Paris, France asso.genami@free.frwho offers more
complete information. http://asso.genami.free.fr
1919 Marriage
Register from Minsk while these
records are after the peak migration period,
they should provide the names of relatives who
did not migrate and who perished during the "Great
Patriotic War". Based on what was
found in the 1912 marriage records, David Fox,
the Belarus SIG Coordinator stated that "I
suspect that many of the people who were married
in Minsk originated from all over Belarus as
well as other parts of the former USSR.
Minsk -Belarus
National Archive offers their
research services for about $80.00 dollars
(payment in advance). Writing to the
archive in English is o.k., but they will reply
in Russian. There is a second archive
located in Grodno operating under similar
rules and regulations http://archives.gov.by/eng/index.php?id=439239
Minsk Vedomosti
Translation Center TheMinsk
Vedomosti was the official newspaper for the
Minsk Guberniya, an important region in
the Russian Empire, from 1838 to 1917.
Here are some translations of Vedomosti
legal notices, along with
other translations and research resources.
Please be aware that Norman Ross Publishing, the
same company that publishes the Minsk
Vedomosti microfilms, has also microfilmed
the complete runs of the Kiev and Warsaw Vedomosti http://allbell.tripod.com/minsk.html
Occupations of Minsk Guberniya Jewish
population Information obtained
from the "Table XXII of the census 1897 in
Russia" is available. Look for the
Digest dated December 10, 1998 - page 4 http://www.jewishgen.org/archives
Minsk Main Synagogue 13b Dauman Street Minsk 220002
Phone/Fax: +375 (0) 17 234 33360/5612
E-mail:
EEJHP@user.unibel.by The Rabbi of the Minsk Central Synagogue is
Iosif Gruzman The President is Yuri
Dorn and the Chief Rabbi of the Republic of
Belarus is Rav Sender A. Uritsky
The
town of Mir is located about 88 km
southwest of Minsk in the Grodno Region.
In the ghetto an uprising occurred prior to the
mass execution of Jews on August 9, 1942. http://en.academic.ru/dic.nsf/enwiki/681706
TheMirweb site has more than 1300
names of people buried in the New York
cemetery plots owned by the Mir
Landsmanshaft (Young Men's Mirer Society).
The list also includes names of people who
probably have bought plots from the society.
"Mir - and The
History of the Mir Yeshiva" written in
Hebrew. There are 791 names from
the Mir Yeshiva which was founded in 1815
and attracted students and teachers from all
over Europe.
http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~rkimble/Mirweb/MirYindex.html
In
the 1890s, Mogilev was a city and a Guberniya unto itself and was part of
Russia. By 1910, or so,Mogilev Guberniya was absorbed into
Minsk
Guberniya. There is also a town called Mohaliva in
Bessarabia. 10,000 out of
20,000 Jews were murdered by the Nazis when they
occupied this town on July 27, 1941.
"Moliff
doesn't exist, but nevertheless was sometimes
written on naturalization papers for individuals
who referred to their town of origin as Mogilev (often meaning the Guberniya, in
Belarus). It may even refer to the
actual city of Mogilev (also in
Belarus) From a posting by Schelly
Dardashti Tip: ManyMogilev familieshad branches inBobruisk and inGomel
This
is a map site - type in Mogilev,
or any name of any city in the world for
a detailed map. A List of 2,860 entries
from the Mogilev Guberniya Records can be
found in the National Archives of Belarus
(Minsk). http://www.expediamaps.com/
Mogilev Birth
Index
Click
on "Mogilev Birth Index". There
appears to be two archives in this city; an
archives of vital records (ZAGS archives)
and the archives of documents related to
organizations in the territory of an oblast.
At present in Mogilev, the first stores records since
1925, while the second has been storing since
1917. http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=1464
Mogilev the Mormons have filmed the Index to
Mogilev Boy Births from 1864-1894. The
films are not easy to use without a familiarity
of handwritten Cyrillic and/or Yiddish.
The films include all births (both
boys and girls) as well as deaths and
marriages. http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=1464
Vital records before 1925
Documents before 1917 were earlier transferred
to National Historical Archives of Belarus in Minsk. Concerning the
Mogilev
archives, in 1941, they were destroyed and
90 percent of the documents were lost.
According to the rules currently in force, all
documents are preserved in local archives for
only 75 years, and after that are transferred to
Minsk. http://search.ancestry.com/search/category.aspx?cat=34
Mogilev Guberniya consisted of twelve
Uyezd (districts): Byhkov; Chausy;
Cherikov; Gomel; Gory-; Klimovich; Kopys;
Mogilev; Mstislavl; Orsha; Rogachev and Senno.
The 1911 Mogilev Guberniya "Vsia Rossi"
is available and consists of 2,860 entries. http://www.zum.de/whkmla/region/russia/xgovmogilev.html
Primarily a Lubavitcher community.
The shtetl of Monastyrshchina also
belonged to Mstislavl District (Uyezd)
of Mogilev Province (Guberniya) and had
one of the most uniform Jewish population.
According to "audit" of 1847 its Jewish
community totaled to 864. In 1897, according to
that year's census, it equaled 2179 (out of a
total populationof 2696). http://www.drack.info/shl_gur/Monastyrshchina.html
Located in the southern area of
Grodno,
Chaim Weitzman was born here. There is a
web site dedicated to the 'Destruction of
Motol' at Sam Fine's web page.
This shtetl is located
about 26 miles West of Pinsk, in the PripetMarshes of Belarus. A
Motol group of genealogists have banded together
and if you have an interest in this shtetl, or
the area around, subscribe online. Scroll down to "Discussion
Groups" and then click on "Special
Interest (SIG) Mailing Lists". Click on
"Subscribe, then select Motol down at the
Shtetl Research Groups, and the form will take
you through the registration process http://www.jewishgen.org
In
the ghetto an uprising occurred prior to the
mass execution of Jews on July 22, 1942. First
hand information about this shtetl http://www.nesvizh.org/Nesvizh_/
Both strong
Zionist and Bund groups originated and prospered
in the town. The area shtetls include
Baranovichi, Delyatchi, Gorodea, Lubtch,
Lyakhovichi, Lyubcha, Nova Muzh, and
Novogrudok. http://www.eilatgordinlevitan.com/novogrudok/novogrudok.html
Ghetto Inmates offered armed resistance in the ghetto
before being murdered by the Nazis.
Anatoly (Tuvya) Belsky was the principal
behind the idea of organizing the escapes from
many Western Belarusian ghettoes to Naliboki
Forest. The main objective was not only
resistance to the Nazis, but also to saving
Jews. http://jrmn.info/en/prisoners
Yizkor Book - "Pinkas Navaredok" [Navaredok
Memorial Book) edited by E. Yerushalmi in
Tel Aviv, includes maps, portraits, facsimiles,
in Hebrew and Yiddish. The book
has been translated http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/Novogrudok/Novogrudok.html
Nowy Dwor Maz.,
Image Taken at the beginning of the 20th century
The name Nowy Dwor means "New
Manor". Apparently, a Polish noblemen
established a new manor on the bank of the Narev
and the lean soil of the Mazovshe province.
In time a village grew around the manor and
developed into the town as it was known up to
1939. http://www.boker.org.il/davids/nowydwor/pinkas2.htm
No Jews live today
in this shtetl but did up to the late 1930s. It
is a small village in the northeast corner of Lithuania near the
Latvian border.
Names of some of the families who at one time
lived in Obeliai which was then located
in Lithuania. Links to Cemetery
Restoration; References and Research Sources;
Photos and a Map are part of the contents of
this site. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obeliai
Located south of Kovno (62 Kilometers SSW),
about 60-70 km from Vilnius, and is part
of Trakai District. It is
divided into two parts by the Neman river.
One part once belonged to Poland and the
other to LithuaniaorRussian Empire, depending upon the year. In
Yiddish it was known as Alite - 'Litvishe
Alite and Polishe Alite'.
Two hundred and
seventy nine Jews were murdered here at the
beginning of WW II
The town goes back
to the Neolithic age, and historically included
lands on the left bank of the Nemaunas, which
runs roughly north/south in the area.
After the 1795 partition of what was left of the
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Alytus
was divided in half, with the right (eastern)
part of the town (Alytus I, was assigned to
Russia) and the left (western part of the
town, Alytus II), left in Prussian hands for 12 years.
Napoleon Bonaparte
assigned it to the Duchy of Warsaw in
1807 and in 1815, it became part of the Kingdom of Poland, a Russian protectorate.
The 1831 Polish uprising resulted in the
elimination of the Polish State, and
incorporation of all Polish lands into the
Russian Empire.
The
Grodno Archives is included in
"Dokumentalnye
materialy po istorii evreev v arkhivakh SNG
istran Baltii: predvaritelnyi spisok arkhivnykh
fondov" published by Akropol in St.
Petersburg in 1994 - Olitais
mentioned. http://www.jewishgen.org/belarus/newsletter/ragas.htm
Research
Alytus II was
assigned to the Guberniya of Augustow beginning in 1837 (Alytus I was assigned to
the Vilnius Guberniya) and to Suwalki
beginning in 1867. This situation of two
separate towns persisted until Lithuanian
independence in 1918, when they were
reunited.
The Jewish vital
records are very plentiful and well documented.
Those from the "Polish" side (in
Kalvarija District of Suwalk Guberniya of the
Kingdom of Poland of the Russian Empire) are
at the Lithuanian State Historical
Archives in Vilnius, and some marriage
records are at the Polish State Archives branch
in Suwalki.
The1835-1865 marriages at the Suwalki
Archives were microfilmed by the Mormons and
extracted and transcribed by them -- the full
extracts were published in 1992 in "Landsmen",
the quarterly journal of the Suwalki-Lomza SIG
http://www.jewishgen.org/SuwalkLomza
Records from
the "Russian" side (in Troki
District of Vilna Guberniya of the Russian
Empire), the Jewish Vital Records of
1852-1914 are at the Lithuanian State
Historical Archives in Vilnius. Harold Rhode
and Sallyann Sacks "Jewish Vital Records,
Revision Lists and other Jewish Holdings in the
Lithuanian Archives" devotes nearly three
full pages to the inventory of the Alytus
Jewish Vital Records. They are plentiful and
are available in the Lithuanian Central Civil
Register Archives (Lietuvos Centrinis Metriku
Archyvas) in Vilnius. See Avotaynu
XIV:1 (Spring 1998), pp. 21-24. http://www.shtetlinks.jewishgen.org/alytus/alite.html
The 1858 Revision Lists for the entire
district of Trakai has been translated
and most of the towns are searchable on the
ALD and accounts
for 544 individuals is available through the Trakai District Research Group. http://www.jewishgen.org/litvak/all.htm
A detailed study
of the Olita Marriage Records were
published under the title "Some Problems in
Researching Eastern European Records" in
Avotaynu IX:3 (Fall 1993), pp. 12-13 -
authored by Boris Feldblyum and Yakov Shadevich.
Names of Jewish
contributors from Olita can be found in
HaMagid: Volume 11 (Supplement), Page 15,
3/15/1871 and Volume 6 (Supplement), p.
70, 2/7/1872
Research
A database indicated that
there are Kahal/Jewish Community Records 1897 to
1900, however, the quoted price is $80 according
to a posting by Rhoda Miller http://shtetlinks.jewishgen.org/Belarus.html
Orsha is a town in Belarus
in Vitebsk region on the fork of the Dnieper
and Arshytsa rivers with population of 125,000 (est.
2004). It is located halfway between Mogilev and
Vitebsk. http://www.jewish.by/congregations/orsha/
Located west of Molodetchno and 28 miles
southeast of Vilna, Lithuania in the Grodno
Region. In 1931, this was an agricultural
processing center and had a population of 7,334.
Residents were employed in hides, grains, hops
and potatoes as well as making bricks and milled
wood. There are ruins of a 17th century
church. It was an old Rus settlement,
which was captured successively by
Lithuanians, Teutonic Knights and Poles.
In 1795, it passed from Poland to Russia.
In 1921, it reverted to Poland, and was
ceded to Russia in 1945. http://www.shtetlinks.jewishgen.org/Lida-District/voro-area.htm
Cemetery
An Oshmiany Association of the
survivors from this town and surrounding area
exists in Israel. They have erected
a grave stone on the destroyed Jewish cemetery
in Oshmiany in memory of the holocaust
victims of this community.
Located about 26 miles East ofVilnius and nearly 14 miles North of
Oshmiany in Vilna Guberniya, now in Belarus.
An urban-type settlement and the administrative center of
Ostrovets Raion, Grodno Oblast, Byelorussian SSR. Situated 5 km from the
Gudogai railroad station on the Minsk-Vilnius line,
Ostrovets region is the fourth largest region of the
Grodno oblast situated at the very north of it.
Ostrovets has the lumber and food-processing industries.There is aOshmiany Research Group in JewishGen.
http://schuchin.grodno-region.by/en/photos?t_id__95=6&id=230
"Jews in Belarus: From Our Common
History 1905-1953"
Authored by Dr. Leonid Smilovitsky,
Diaspora research Institute of the Tel-Aviv University and published by ARTI-FEX in
Minsk, 1999 in Russian. See the Online Newsletter of the Belarus SIG for the article.
"Ghettos"
The Ghettos of Belarus
- Examples of Genocide From the book "Holocaust in
Belorussia, 1941-1944"
Major Jewish Ghettos. Memories of the Holocaust: Kishinev (Chisinau). The Ghettos of
Belarus-Examples of Genocide http://www.agcholocaustlibrary.org/ghettos.html
"Jews in Belarus: From Our Common History, 1905-1953" Authored by Dr. Leonid
Smilovitsky, Diaspora research Institute of the Tel-Aviv University and published by ARTI-FEX in
Minsk, 1999 in Russian. See the Online Newsletter of the Belarus SIG for the article.
A small shtetl near Bobruisk.
Located in Minsk
Guberniya - about 1 mile from the
DnieperRiver
[2] and about 30 miles[3] from
Bobroisk [4] (the nearest town on a Russian map).
The streets were cobble stoned - trains came through; it had all types of shops, commerce - doctors - police - and government offices.
It was an active city established in 1841 and called
Schedrin.From Schedrin to go anywhere, one had to go to
Bobroisk.
In order to get there, one had to go to
Parichi,[5] which was on the opposite shore of the
DnieperRiver from
Bobroisk.
So one walked from Schedrin to Horkes [sic] (possibly
Gorki,
IgumenUyezd, Minsk Guberniya Latitude: 54ş17' Longitude: 30ş59')
which was on the way to
Parichi. http://www.ldorvdor.net/stories/The_Story_As_It_Is_Best_Remembered.htm http://www.belarusembassy.org/belarus/worldwarII/IB__28-06__157.pdf
Scroll
down on the right until you come to "Pinsk
Organizations", and click on it. "This is the third
Pinsk Landsmanshaft
listed on the Belarus website. The first was a
benevolent society, the second a group of fur
workers, and the latest a Workmans Circle. This
should give those interested in the Pinsk area a
wider perspective of Pinskers in America. I have
not limited this message to the Belarus website
because Pinsk is as much associated with Poland
as with its present eastern roots. We often see
correspondents seeking their roots in Pinsk. I
wonder if they consult the Pinsk Landsmanshaft
name lists found on the Belarus website.
Particularly useful on this latest name list is
the date that the member joined the Circle. Some
names joined before 1905 which might place their
date of birth in the 1870's. I would suggest
that all who joined prior to 1925 could be cross
checked on the Ellis Island database. You
already have Pinsk as the city of origin."
From a posting by Jerome Seligsohn
There is a 1906
Pinsk Uyezd Duma List and a 1906 Pinsk
City Duma List http://www.jewishgen.org/belarus/static_index.htm
Holocaust Pinsk
Records from the Soviet Extraordinary Commission: Compilation of testimonials about 11,704
Holocaust victims from
Pinsk. Holocaust
Translations are now available for Bildyugi,
Diszna, Glubokoye, Postavy, Plisa and
Sharkovshina. Bildyugi (Bilziugi) and
Diszna are already in the ALD, Glebokie
(Glubokoye) and Postavy will be added
Porzwye, among others, is a small town located at 52° 56'
north latitude, 24° 22' east longitude in modern
day
Belarus. It is located 17 miles SSW of Wolkowysk
(Volkovysk), a city in West Belarus.
There's a lot of information at this site. http://www.porozow.net/
TheDisna Uyezd Research Group
Translation of the 1850 Revision List for
the benefit of DURG members. Contact Batya
Matzkin Olsen
batya@netsynthesis.comfor information.
Translations are now available for
Bildyugi, Diszna, Glubokoye, Postavy, Plisa
and Sharkovshina. Bildyugi (Bilziugi) and
Diszna are already in the ALD,
Glebokie (Glubokoye) and Postavy
will be added soon. http://www.eilatgordinlevitan.com/postavy/postavy.html
Cemetery PURS
(Pruzhany Uyezd Research Society)
was investigating the possibility of restoring
the cemetery. "Old vertical stones were
found here and in Vysokoe." Here, more
than a thousand Jewish stones are in good
condition". http://www.iajgsjewishcemeteryproject.org/belarus/pruzhany.html
Research PURS (Pruzhany Uyezd
Research Society) indicated that they have added to
their website: 1910 House Owners Inventory -
Bereza and the 9th and 10th Revision Lists from
Bereza. They are also acquiring
these lists:
Township of
Bereza-Kartuzskaia: List of residents
in 1929 List of taxpayers from 1931-1932 Lists of conscripts for 1931, 1938-39 Parish
register transcripts about birth, marriage and
deaths from 1933-1937 Electoral Lists
1934-1935 and 1939 Record cards and lists of
the township's residents have real property in
1935-36 List of voters to the town Rada (council)
1939 Family List of Inhabitants of
Bereza 1874, Page 36-270
The data listed above and the data already on
the PURS website is made possible through a paid
subscription ($25 ayear) to PURS. PURS includes
research from the five major towns of the
Pruzhany District in Grodno Guberniya,
Russia now Belarus, including Pruzhany, Kartuz Bereza (Bereza), Selets, Malch
and Shershev. http://www.purs.org
Punsk was divided into three separate units:
in
Smoliany, Becejty and Punsk.
In 1931, most of the Jewish section of
Punsk was destroyed by a fire. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pu%C5%84sk
Located in the
Vileyka Uyezd, Vilna Guberniya.
There were 455 Jews in 1765, 1,701 in
1847; 1,519 (58.9% of the total population) in
1897 and 1,215 (49.4%) in 1921. At the
beginning of WWI I there were about 1,200 Jews. http://shtetlinks.jewishgen.org/Belarus.html
Research
Litvak Genealogy
Mailing List Discussion Group Devoted to the study of the town of
Radoshkovich located on the road between
Vilna and Minsk. This town has been in
Lithuania and Belarus. Mainly
genealogical, this list is open to all topics
relevant to
Radoshkowitz. Milt Botwinick is the
webmaster of the list. radoshkovichlistTo subscribe to
the list: http://www.onelist.com/subscribe.cgi/radoshkovichlist
Yizkor Book "Sefer
Yizkor le-Kehillot Radomsk ve-ha-Seviva"
Located about a 20 minute drive from
Minsk. There is a large cemetery
with an estimated 500 intact stones. Three tombstones are made out of
millstones. There is a wall around it, and a foundation stone in the
wall has a date of 1922 on it. http://www.eilatgordinlevitan.com/
Cemetery A report states that the cemetery is
being used as a soccer
field. Many tombstones have been overturned and
goalposts placed on the territory of the
cemetery. Burials have taken place in the
cemetery as recently as the 1980s. Official
protests have been made to
Belarus officials.
If the one you are looking for is near
Minsk then
Rezhitsa (Kovali) is the closest (53.4 miles NW of Minsk). However, it might just mean that it was in
Minsk Guberniya, in that case Rechitsa, Rechitsa Uyezd, Minsk Guberniya,
Latitude: 52ş22' Longitude: 30ş23' found on the
Belarus website in "Shtetls of Belarus" might be the right one. http://www.jewishgen.org/belarus/Shtetls/Belarus.htm
Research Jewish Vital Records
for certain towns inLida Districtare available from the Mormons for particular years including the
1899 Death Records.It did not have many deaths in that year.
A transliteration of 2,780 Jews
who perished in and around Ruzhany and environs has been completed. In addition to name, additional details may include maiden name, sex,
marital status, father's name, mother's name, spouse, residence, children
and other comments. Environs include Liskovo, Kalazuby, Kolyany,
Sheypyak, Konstantynowo and Pavlova.There is no search
engine, Polish spellings are recommended
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruzhany
The
Senno Uyezd, includes the town of Senno and these shtetls:
Tolochin, Bobr, Krupki, Tchereja, Lukoml, Ostrovna, Zarechny, Obchugi/Obchugi.To join the group contact Vivian Levensohn, WI
vivian@nconnect.net
The
Disna Uyezd Research Group Translation of the 1850 Revision List for the benefit of DURG members. Contact Batya Matzkin Olsen
batya@netsynthesis.com for information.
Translations are now available for
Bildyugi, Diszna, Glubokoye, Postavy, Plisa and Sharkovshina. Bildyugi (Bilziugi) and Diszna are already in the ALD, Glebokie (Glubokoye) and Postavy are to be added
Located in
Minsk Guberniya.See also Scadryn.
It was the only all-Jewish town in all of
Russia.
Schedrin itself was created by a family called “Golodetz.”
They were in the lumber and rope business.
They moved in and setup housing with their children - married and single and brought every craft needed as carpenters - tailors - shoemakers - blacksmiths and workers to cut forests and flax to make rope.
They separated their homes from the workers.
Even most of their domestic help that were married had homes built in the shtetl.
Their homes were built in what was referred to as the “Haif.”
In 1897, there were about 4,000 Jews in
Schedrin (and very few non-Jews). http://www.ldorvdor.net/stories/The_Story_As_It_Is_Best_Remembered.htm
There is quite a bit of information, not only about this shtetl, but also about families from this town and other genealogical information. Also, there is a link to the
Shchedrin E-mail list
http://shtetlinks.jewishgen.org/Belarus.html
"Holocaust and Genocide Studies"
Volume 20, Number 3, Winter 2006 Authored by Leonid
Rein, Local Collaboration in the Execution of the "Final Solution" in Nazi-Occupied Belorussia
Holocaust and Genocide Studies - Volume 20, Number 3, Winter 2006, pp. 381-409 published by
Oxford University Press
http://www.oup.com/us/
SSN: 1476-7937 Print ISSN: 8756-6583
Shershev had approximately 2000 inhabitants, most of them
Jews.
Cemetery PURS(Pruzhany Uyezd Research Society) was investigating the possibility of restoring the cemetery. "Old vertical stones were found here and in
Vysokoe. Here more than a thousand Jewish stones are in good condition". http://www.iajgsjewishcemeteryproject.org/belarus/shereshevo.html
,
located 35 km north of
Mogilev on the
Dnieper river. It has a railway station on the line between
Orsha and
Mogilev. The population is 13,282 (2007 estimate)Shklov (in Belarussian -
Shklou) was a traditional Jewish place in
Mogilev region. According to the famous
Russian Empire census of 1897 - 6931 inhabitants were in
Shklou (5442 were Jews). In 1910
Shklov had a Talmud-Torah, two schools: two-class men's and private women's schools. http://www.belarus.by/en/belarus/territory/mogilev/shklov/
"Russia's First Modern Jews:
The Jews of Shklov"
Authored by Yoichi Funabashi and edited by David Fishman. In the course of a generation, the community of Shklov -- the most prominent of the towns in the area -- witnessed an explosion of intellectual and cultural. The book has a list of Illustrations in addition to the story of the Jews of the area. A Paperback from Amazon.com
http://bcrfj.revues.org/index922.html
"The
Jew in the Medieval World: A Source Book, 315 - 1791 Authored by Jacob Rader Marcus and Marc Saperstein. It was issued in 1786 by the anti-Hasidic community of
Shklov ISBN: 087820217X http://tiny.cc/1c7k6
Located in
Grodno Guberniya about 31 km from Grodno.Civil registries from the Synagogue for the years 1850-1944 have not survived according to a letter received by Robert Mandelbaum
rmandelbau@aol.com
Located in the greater vicinity of
Bialystok in the region formerly known as
White Russiaand now in western Belarus http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slonim
Holocaust The entire Jewish population of 39,000 people, plus 2,000 Jews from surrounding areas were murdered during the war. For further information, contact Franklin J. Swartz, Executive Director, East European Jewish heritage Project,
eejhp@yahoo.com
Synagogue The
Slonim Synagogue, listed by the World Monument Fund as the most important Jewish structure in East Europe requiring restoration, has long been in a state of disrepair. It was built in 1632. It is still standing in the center of the city. It was spared from destruction by both the Luftwaffe and the Soviet Air Force because of its utility as a landmark for aerial navigation. After the war it was used as a warehouse and for the past two decades it has been empty. http://www.wmf.org/project/slonim-synagogue
Yizkor Book A
Yizkor Book has been written and a copy is in the library at
Yad Vashem. The call number is T996. Once at this site, search for
Slovatyche http://www.genealogylinks.net/europe/belarus/
Slutzk
(Slutsk)
At one time, this town was
Polish, another time Lithuanian and now is in
Belarus. It has been a prominent center of Jewish life since the 16th century and the home of many prominent rabbis. In the late 1890s, 77 percent of the town's population were Jews. There is a
Jewish cemetery in this town located about 60 miles south of
Minsk, the capital city.
In 2002, a mass grave with the remains of up to 12,000 people killed during WW II has been found on a military base in
Slutsk. Residents of the area stated that Nazis executed
Jews from Slutsk and prisoners from a nearby concentration camp at the site from 1942 to 1944. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slutsk
22 km northwest of
Orsha which is exactly halfway between Mogilev
and Vitebsk. The shtetl is named after the local Slavic tribe of the Smolyani, and probably cognate to the Slavic word smola which means resin. http://wapedia.mobi/en/Etymological_list_of_provinces_of_Bulgaria
It is now located in the
Grodno Oblast. It was passed from
Poland to Russia in 1793; between 1921 and 1945 it was within independent
Poland. From the 16th century until the second half of the 19th century, the town was the private property of the princes of Radziwill. Jewish settlement in
Smorgon is believed to date from the early 17th century. From 1628, the
Jews of Smorgon paid their taxes to the community administration of
Grodno. In 1631, the community of Smorgon became the center of a Galil (Province) within the framework of the
Council of Lithuania. The autonomous status of the community was confirmed in 1651.
In 1765, there were 649 Jews who paid their poll tax. During the 1830s, a Jewish agricultural settlement,
Karka, with 30 farmsteads, was established near the town. On the eve of WWI, 40 Jewish families worked on the land. In 1847 there were 1,621 Jews in the city. In the 1860s, a tanning industry was begun in the town as a result of Jewish initiative. In addition, the Jews earned their livelihoods from carpentry, the knitting of socks, the baking of bagels (famous throughout Russia), retail trade and peddling.
From 1899, a Zionist organization was active in the town and in 1905, a branch of the SS (Zionist Socialist Workers' Party) was established.
In 1897, there were 6,743 Jews (76% of the population). On the eve of WW I, there were two battei Midrah, seven synagogues, three elementary Yeshivot and a Jewish hospital in the town.
A part of the town's Jewish population were Chabad Chasidim. In 1915, during WW I, many of the Jews were expelled to the Russian interior. Jewish refugee tanners from
Smorgon, founded the tanning industries in
Kharkov, Rostov and Bogorodsk. When
Smorgon reverted to Independent Poland after WW I, the Jewish refugees began to return to their destroyed homes. Between the two World Wars, a Hebrew Tarbut school; a Drama Circle (Bamati), sports clubs; Zionist youth circles and branches of Po'alei Zion, He-Chalutz and Betar function in the town.
During the fall of 1915, there was a pogrom. The Jews were forced to leave. Jews without funds to emigrate were allowed to take the train east, in the direction of
Siberia and Harbin. http://shtetlinks.jewishgen.org/Belarus.html
"TheJewish Book of Why" Authored by
Alfred J. Kolatch
Nahum Slouschz, the author of Aaron Abraham Kabak; the Yiddish poet Moshe Kulbak, and David Raziel, commander of the Irgun Tzevai Le'ummi, were natives of
Smorgon.
Holocaust In September 1939, the Red Army entered the town and a Soviet Administration was established until the outbreak of the
German-Soviet War in June 1941. When the
Germans occupied the town, they established two ghettos in different places there. In the summer of 1942, some Jews were sent to
Kovno (Kaunas) and shared the fate of that community, while the others were sent to
Ponary (near Vilna) and were killed there. After the war, the Jewish community of
Smorgon was not reconstituted. An organization of former residents of
Smorgon was formed in Israel. From a posting by Samuel Arutt. http://www.u.arizona.edu/~kgoodman/middlepages.pdf
Research TheSpiritual Leaders of the community
during the early second half of the 18th century included the Rabbi of the community, R. Chayim Cohen. In 1827-28, the town Rabbi was the renowned Manasseh B. Joseph of Ilya, a native of
Smorgon. Subsequently, a dynasty
of rabbis descended from R. Leib Shapira, established themselves in the town. From 1910 to 1917, Judah Leib Gordin, the author of Teshuvat Yehudah, held rabbinical office in the town.
http://tracingthetribe.blogspot.com/2010/03/jewishgen-yizkor-book-project-february.html
In 1930, there were 384 Jews.
Soly was in the Vilna District of Poland, but is today in
Belarus. In 1847, there were 245 Jews which increased to 530 in 1897. After the arrival of the
Germans in late June 1941, a ghetto was established under a regime of forced labor. In the spring of 1943, all the Jews of the ghetto were evacuated and murdered in
Poland.
"The
Jews of Bielorussia During World War II" Authored by Shalom Cholawski - Google Books ISBN 9057021935 "The Holocaust in the
Soviet Union" Authored by Yitzhak Arad -
Google
Books
"Lippincott's Pronouncing Gazetteer: A
complete Pronouncing Gazetteer" Google
Books
"Shtetl Finder: Jewish Communities in the 19th
and Early 20th Centuries" Authored by Chester G. Cohen -
Google
Books
Cemetery The cemetery in
Sviris now restored. The
East European Jewish Heritage Project in
cooperation with the Restoration of Eastern
European Jewish Cemeteries Project, Inc provides
this restoration service at cost. The
Svir restoration project partners were
Binghamton University Hillel and the citizens of
Svir. For more information eejhp@voluntas.org
There are two Svislochs in
Belarus. One is about 40 miles north of Bobruysk and at the
junction of the Svislich and Berazina rivers. The other Svisloch is
closer to Pinsk. Both are also known as Svislovitchor Svislich. One Svisloch, located near Mscibow,
shared a rabbi. One is in the Grodno province. The first
Jews began to settle in Kholui at the end of the 18th century. By the
end of the 19th century Jews constituted a majority of the town's population
(3500 out of 4500 residents). Most Jews were involved n the lumber industry
or were peddlers. http://www.shtetlinks.jewishgen.org/Mscibow/
Szczuczyn, which lies 96
kilometers northwest of Bialystok, is on record as from the 14th
century, but it was granted the status of a town, together with the right to
hold five yearly fairs and a weekly market day, only at the end of the 17th
century. In 1742 a hospital was established in the town. A few Jewish
families lived in Szczuczyn in the 18th century and their number
increased in the 19th century, mostly in consequence of the movement of Jews
from the villages to the towns.
"Before the Hitler armies’ invaded Soviet territory, Telekhany
was a typical little town in the wooded district of Byelorussia, with
a large Jewish population. Most of the Jews were artisans and
tradesmen, whose sphere of activity extended to the outlying villages.
They were tailors, cobblers, smiths, tinkers, watchmakers, harness and cart
makers, coopers, butchers, barbers and petty traders."
Located about 44 miles northwest of Mogilevand near Orsha.
History
"Irving Berlin: American Troubadour" Authored by Edward Jablonski in 1999, which opens with a description of
how a Jewish Family was able to emigrate to America in 1893 and includes a
detailed itinerary mapped out by the Pris based
Alliance Israelite Universelle included. The article may be
referring to another Tolochin located in Siberia.
Research
TheSenno Shtetl Research Group.
The Senno Uyezd, including the town of Senno and these
shtetls: Tolochin, Bobr, Krupki, Tchereja, Lukoml, Ostrovna,
Zarechny, Obchugi/Obchugi.To join the group contact Vivian
Levensohn, WI
vivian@nconnect.net
A small one road town. It
is mentioned in "A Personal Journey" authored by Cheryl Pinkus, a
first grade teacher who traveled there and took photos of her trip.
She mentions that the remains of the synagogue and the old Jewish cemetery
are viewable
http://www.gfsnet.org/Publications/Winter%202000-2001%20Studies/Pinkus.html
A
district town in the western part of Ukraine. Many Jews and
Poles lived here. Polish and Austrian period name
was Trembowla. The
Town is one of the oldest in western Ukraine and during medieval
times it used to be the center of Terebovlya principality in the late
11th century (then it was called TEREBOVL /Trembowl in Polish).
Terebovlya principality included lands of whole south east Galicia,
Posdillya and Bukovina. The city was first mentioned in chronicles in
the year 1097.After the construction of a castle in 1366,
Poland occupied Terebovlya, which became part of system of
border fortifications of the Polish kingdom, mainly against constant
Crimean Tatar and Turkish invasions from the south and south
east. That is why Terebovlya castle, monastery and churches all were
designed as defensive structures.
In 1594 the Ukrainian peasant rebel
leader Severyn Nalyvayko captured the castle. During the liberation war
of Ukrainian people (against Polish rule) in 1648-54 Terebovlya
became one of the centers of the Ukrainian struggle against
Poland's rule in Galician Posdillya lands. The city was
frequently raided by the Crimean Tatars and Turks and during the final
invasion of 1688 the castle was destroyed. For the history of Terebovlya
(Trebovl) and Halych principalities. It was the
old capital of Terebovlya province in East Galicia and district
center in Ternopol region. Information about the town including
history and monuments.
Records are available in the Grodno (Belarus)
archive. Dolina - (Dolyna) - a village in Terebovlya
district and west of Ivano Frankivsk
http://www.personal.ceu.hu/students/97/Roman_Zakharii/terebovla.htm
Located in Grodno Guberniya,
about 20 miles SW of Vaukavysk and about 20 miles NW of Pruzhany.
It is very close to the Polish border. Volkavisk
Administrative District.
http://villages.ws/belarus/Tsikhovolya
Tuchinka is a village
not far from Minsk, where approximately 25000 Jews were
shot. From November 1941 to October 1942 more than 35000 Jews were
deported. In the ghetto, an uprising occurred prior to the mass execution of
Jews on September 23, 1942.
http://meod.by/en/news/e9392ff6128e0435.html
Before the 1917 revolution, it
was a shtetl of the Mozyr District (Uyezd) of the Minsk region
(Guberniya). Now it is a little town of the Zhitkovichi
district (Raion) of the Gomel region (Oblast). There is a
Mozyr Regional Archive and a Turov Town Museum.
http://www.belarusembassy.org/belarus/worldwarII/IB__28-06__157.pdf
A
village in the province of Bialystok. Tykocin came
into being in the 13th century as one of the strongholds of the Masovian
dukes. In the middle of the 1500s, Jews started to settle and their
community grew rapidly to define the town's character for the next four
centuries.
http://ddickerson.igc.org/tykocin.html
Synagogue There is an early Baroque masonry synagogue built in 1642 and
restored between 1974 and 1978. The synagogue was not destroyed during
WW II, although the Nazis did ruin the interior and the women's section
according to the Encyclopedia Judaica, No. 15.
Our
Minneapolis Rabbi, David Aronson (of blessed memory) was born
here. The shtetl is still in existence.
Genealogical records for Ulla District, 1928, 1930 - 1931Do a Google (see the top of this page) for Ulla,
Belarus and you will find a number of interesting links
http://boards.ancestry.com/localities.eeurope.belarus.general/566/mb.ashx?pnt=1
Vetka Gomelski is Vetka
- (a little town) near Gomel. Vetka
is at 52 degrees 32 minutes North, 31 degrees 10 minutes East, or 11.6 miles
northeast of Gomel (5225 N, 3100 E)
http://www.beljews.info/Vetka.htm
Located about 125 miles north of Vilna, a Yizkor book has been
published which contains over 500 pages of which, about one half is in
Yiddish, and the rest in Hebrew, with some English. It is now part of
Belarus
http://www.eilatgordinlevitan.com/vidzy/vidzy.html
Vishnevo (Vishnova, Vishnevo-
see also Vishnive) ("Pamiat") Vishnev, Wishnev, Wiszniev)
A shtetl in the District of
Novogrudok and between the World Wars, was part of Poland.
It was founded in the 14th century on the banks of the River Olshinka. There
is an informative and interesting site where you will find history of the
shtetl, old photos, stories, links and a list of Vishnevo Martyrs.
500 out of a total of 712 in 1907 were Jews that lived here at the time.
Shimon Peres (Shimon Perski) was born there in 1912.
A web site, based on the memories about this shtetl,
was the basis entitled "The
Shtetl and I", which I found very interesting at
http://www.vishnive.org/e_index.html
Yizkor Book A Yizkor
Book (in English) "On Sunday, Elul 17th, 5702, (8/30/1942), the
Vishnive ghetto was annihilated. The church bells began ringing
early in the morning, announcing to the gentiles of the surrounding villages
about the slaughter. By the thousands, they poured into town, filled
its streets and gathered near the synagogue. They watched the victims
burning, some still alive." (From the Vishnive Memorial Book)
published in Israel, 1972.
http://www.jewishgen.org/yizkor/vishnevo/vis159.html
Vitebsk
Vitebsk Guberniya - North of Minsk.The city of Vitebsksits by the westernDvina
River.It was the capital of the
Vitebsk Guberniya, one of the districts which had been divided up by
the Russian Tsarist. The population, at one time
had around seventy thousand with a substantialportion beingJewish. This made it the tenth largest Jewish city in the
Pale.Much is available about this areaand city and
can be found at:
http://lide.pruvodce.cz/federn/dy/vitebsk.htm
"Bashert: A Granddaughter's
Holocaust Quest" Authored by Andrea Simon and published by
University Press of Mississippi Willie Morris Books in Memoir and Biography
American Jewish writer exposes Brona Gora massacre and Holocaust
tragedy. When Andrea Simon separated from her American tour group to
hunt for ancestral traces in the village of Volchin in Belarus, she
met a tragedy no one had written about. $28.00, hardback, ISBN
1-57806-481-3
Jews were living in this shtetl from the 16th century. In 1766 there were 383 Jews and in 1921 there were 1,434 out of a total population of 5,600. Industry of the area consisted of tanning, flour milling, cement block manufacturing, and bricks. In 1793 it was acquired by
Russia and in 1921 it was returned to Poland, but in 1945 it became part of
mother Russia. From 1802 until 1939 it had a
yeshiva. The yeshiva was closed by the Russian government.
The Volozhin Yeshiva was begun in 1803. The Orthodox Jewish Archives of Agudath Israel of America 84 William St. New York, NY 10038
may have some information about the yeshiva.
Lida District. On May 8, 1942 the Nazis killed most of the Jews.
Chaim Goldmanis head of theLida Survivors Association of Israeland lives in Netanya, Israel. http://www.367-safe.com/voronovo/background.htm
Yizkor book "Sefer Zoludek ve-Orlowa: Galed le-Zikaron".
The English title is:
(Book of Zoludek and Orlowa; A Living Memorial). Editor was A. Meyerowitz and published in
Tel-Aviv in 1967. Included is a
necrology ... a listing of the dead.
http://www.jewishgen.org/yizkor/zaludok/zheludok.html
Zaslavi (Zaslav)
During February 2003, while cleaning town dump of
Zaslavi (a former shtetl which is located 35 km from Minsk), 26 Jewish monuments were found. It was determined that before the war the
Zaslavi Jewish cemetery was located where the dump is now located.
At present the cemetery is considered as completely destroyed. According to local citizens who gave this information and brought some pictures, there is a good possibility that a larger number of monuments can be found when the weather conditions. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Jews_in_Belarus
Located east of
Bialystok and close to Volkavisk (Volkovysk) and
Derechin and in the Grodno area. Its inhabitants engaged in dairying, flour milling, sawmilling and were also involved with lime and brickworks. It has a train station.
http://kehilalinks.jewishgen.org/zelva_belarus/
Located near to
Oshmiany. It is a few kilometers from Kelme, with only eight
Jewish families. Their records were included
Traby, Vishnevo, Volozhin, Zaskevichi, Zhuprany. It is on the border with Belarus and is southwest of
Vilnius and north of Grodno http://www.jewishbelarus.org/index.php?pid=52&lang=en
The
Oshmiany District Research Group has data on this town, as well as for other towns in the
Oshmiany district. Most of the towns are searchable on the ALD
http://www.jewishgen.org/litvak/all.htm
Among the towns in
Oshmiany district are: Dieveniskes, Dvorets, Golshany, Ivye, Krevo, Lipnishki, Nabiloki, Oshmiany, Smorgon, Solsk, Traby, Vishnevo, Volozhin, Zaskevichi, Zhuprany.
To learn how to become part of this group contact Jeanne Saltman
Jsaltman@msn.com
East European Jewish Heritage Project Offers assistance in independent travel including accommodations, transportation, guides and interpreters. Contact:
Frank Swartz, Executive Director East European Jewish Heritage Project
13b Dauman Street Minsk 220002, Republic of Belarus.
Phone/Fax: +375 17 234 5612/234 33 60 E-mail
eejhp@yahool.com http://eejhp.tripod.ca
Green Castle Agency Consultations are free of charge. The company offers their services, which include genealogical researches in various archives, photographs and or videos and CDs of the village of interest as well as providing excursions. They have excellent contacts with genealogists in
Belarus, Russian and Ukraine Genealogical Agency Green Castle,
P.O. Box 3434, Vilnius apskities centrinis pastas, LT - 2000 Lithuania. http://genealogy.z-port.com/
Guide Unless you can read or understand
Russian, you most definitely need a guide.
In Your Pocket Guide A wonderful, detailed commercial travel site that offers much information about the history and current traveling conditions in the country, along with city map information
http://www.inyourpocket.com
Money Travelers checks should be exchanged at banks for cash. There are a few ATM machines in
Minsk and there are places that will accept credit cards including many banks, stores and restaurants. The currency is the
Belarusian ruble (BR). The ruble is the money used in
Belarus.
Warning, be careful of street people approaching you to exchange rubles for dollars. You risk big problems with the police. Bring one dollar bills along with $20 dollar bills. They both are quite acceptable currency. There are legitimate currency exchanges opened in larger cities. You can also get rubles from a bank that accepts credit cards as there are no ATM machines. I ran into an experience in
Ukraine, that may be happening in Belarus. It had to do with exchanging $100 bills for rubles. Unless the $100 are fairly new, the banks, and the street exchangers frown on accepting them, especially the older bills. Those were easier to copy. I brought mostly $20 bills along with many singles.
Personal Services available Anatoly Neverov offers his services for a variety of
considerations of a traveler, including providing an invitation to visit Belarus, a guide, delivering parcels, and a whole lot more at his web site
http://belarus.virtualave.net/neverov.htm
I do not know this person personally and cannot make any recommendation, but should you use him and are satisfied with his work, please notify as such
There are four direct
trains from Minsk to Grodno. There is also a direct bus route connecting these towns. It takes about five hours by bus to
Grodno. It is also possible to go from
Poland to Grodno and Minsk from Poland, but it is more expensive and takes longer. Train Schedules can be searched at Deutsche Bahn web site www.bahn.de
Visa Information You will need an
invitationto visit
Belarus, along with a current visa. Contact the nearest
Belarusian Embassy for obtaining your invitation. A phone call first to the Embassy would be in order to verify that you will be invited. A
Visais required as is an "Invitation" to visit
Belarus from a friend, business, hotel. You can request an
Express single-entry visa, which can be processed within an hour, but costs about $120. The regular visa processing time takes longer. This information may have changed since it was added to the site. Check with the
Belarusian Embassy for up to date information.
Vyttours Located in New York City, often seems to have better pricing than the larger web companies
Phone: 718 423 6161 or vyttours@earthlink.net
Yulik Guvitch
Offers his services as a guide. He has helped guide some well known celebrities touring
Belarus and Lithuania. Yulik speaks fluent
Hebrew, Yiddish and English. Though I have not met Yulik, or used his services, I have been in correspondence with him yulik@delfi.lt
I want to know what you think! Your valuable feedback helps me design more useful
pages. You can reach me via E-mail or use the
feedback pageor
the
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link.
Please let me know if there is a favorite link of yours that is not included in my site and I will be happy to
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