“Poreba Koceby” & “Poreba Srednia”
- Encyclopedia of Jewish
Communities in Poland, Volume IV
(Poland)

52°42' / 21°41' & 52°41' / 21°42'

Written by Abraham Wein

Translation of
“Poreba Koceby” & “Poreba Srednia”
chapters from Pinkas Hakehillot Polin

Published by Yad Vashem

Published in Jerusalem


Acknowledgments

Project Coordinator

Ada Holtzman z”l

Our sincere appreciation to Yad Vashem
for permission to put this material on the JewishGen web site
.

This is a translation from: Pinkas Hakehillot Polin:
Encyclopedia of Jewish Communities, Poland, Volume IV, page 345, published by Yad Vashem, Jerusalem


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[Page 345]

Poreba Koceby & Poreba Srednia

(Ostrow Mazowiecki District, Bialystok Region)

Translated by Meir Garbarz Gover, Savyon Israel

The two villages of Poreba are unified in one community. In 1921 251 out of the 1,201 residents were Jewish. Most of the Jews were small merchants or peddlers; others were tailors, shoemakers, blacksmiths, tinsmiths and glaziers.

An annual fair in Poreba was famous for its high quality linen textiles produced by the local villagers. The two medical practitioners of the village were Jewish. Other Jews were owners of agricultural fields and orchards.

The Jewish community in the 20th century was well organized. It had a spacious Beit Midrash (religious Jewish school) which used to accommodate also worshippers from the surrounding villages. Two Shtibels (small synagogues) existed which belonged to different movements. The community held a Shochet (ritual slaughterer) who was also a Hazan (cantor). A Mikve (Jewish bath) existed in Poreba. The Rabbi was R' Kalinshtein who later on moved to become dayyan (rabbinical judge) and teacher in nearby Wyszkow.

The Jewish children studies in two Cheders and in one of them taught a Melamed Dardaki, a teacher of beginners.

A library existed between the two World Wars which served also readers from the neighboring villages. Concerts and lectures took place from time to time in the library. Branch of “Hashomer Hatzair” (Young Guard) Youth Movement was established in the 30s. In one of the concerts organized by “Hashomer Hatzair”, there were fist fights with Jewish Communist youth.

The Jewish community in this remote village became, in the 30s, also target for Polish Endeks from the right wing party in Poland, together with local hooligans, for Anti Semitic attacks and commercial boycotts. On June 1938 about 50 Endeks hooligans that came back from a convention in Radzymin, threw stones and broke windows of all Jewish houses, destroyed Jewish properties and orchards. 4 of the hooligans were put to trial but released due to “insufficient evidence”

There are no clear details about the faith of the Poreba Jews in the Holocaust. Most probably their destiny was similar to the destiny of the others resided in the Ostrow Mazowiecki district. They suffered 2 weeks from the Germans which occupied the area on September 1939, then for the town was held by the Soviets until June 1941. After the Germans returned Poreba, the Jews were transferred to bigger Jewish communities imprisoned in ghettos - which have been but big forced labour camps - in the area, and finally murdered them and deported them to Extermination Camps.


Sources:

Translator's Note:

More information about the Holocaust in Poreba is available from the translator, Adv. Meir Garbarz Gover.


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