Memorial book of Zaglembie
(Zagłębie, Poland)

 

Translation of  Pinkas Zaglembie

Edited by: J. Rapaport, Zaglembie Society in Melbourne

Published in Tel Aviv, 1972




Acknowledgments

Project Coordinator

Lance Ackerfeld




Our sincere appreciation to Mr. David Apfelbaum, of the Zaglembie Landsmanshaft in Australia,
for permission to put this material on the JewishGen web site.

This is a translation from: Pinkas Zaglembie: Memorial book of Zaglembie,
ed. J. Rapaport, Zaglembie Society in Melbourne, Tel Aviv, Hamenora, 1972 (H, Y, E)


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Translated by
Dr. Hannah Berliner Fischthal

Lance Ackerfeld


Table of Contents – Yiddish Section[1]

 
List of photographs   2-489
Introduction Yoysef (Josef) Fridman 13
Our memorial book Yoysef Orbackh (Joseph Orbach) 14
Our holy goal Book committee 16
A word from the publishers D. Apfelbaum, Y. Palukh (Paluch) 18
A Stone on the Road Yoysef (Josef) Fridman 19
 
Jewish Zagłębie and its history
History of Jewish Zagłębie Dr. N. M. Gelber 23
Sosnowiec Mordkhe (Mordechai) Hampel 60
Dąbrowa Mordkhe (Mordechai) Hampel 81
Jewish religious life in Zagłębie M. S. Geshuri 88
 
Parties and Movements
General Zionists Mordkhe (Mordechai) Hampel 107
Zionist Workers' Party Mordkhe (Mordechai) Hampel 121
Revisionist Movement Mordkhe (Mordechai) Hampel 125
“Hashomer Hatsair” M. Hampel 133
“Gordonye” M. Hampel 138
“Hakhaluts” M. Hampel 139
“Hanoar hatsiyoni” M. Hampel 144
“Hashakhar” in Będzin M. Hampel 148
“Mizrachi” and “Tsairi Mizrachi” Shmuel Broner 150
Labor “Agudat-Yisrael” in Będzin M. B. Klaynman (Klajnman) 157
“Bund” in Zagłębie Yoysef (Josef) Fridman 175
 
Memories
O, sweet hours of my childhood! Alter Verthaym (Wertheim) 183
The part of the Będzin Jews in the Polish struggles for freedom Moyshe Faynkind (Mojsze Fajnkind) 184
Memories Dr. Yankev Shatzky (Szacki) 186
Memoires of the first Zionists in Zagłębie Gerszon Stawski 187
Chaim Nachman Bialik in Sosnowiec Mordkhe (Mordechai) Hampel 196
Dąbrowa, my birth-town Iser Lavy (Lemkowicz) 199
Memories of Sosnowiec Mordkhe (Mordechai) Parasol 202
My shtetl Olkusz Nekhemia (Nechemia) Unger-Drori 204
My shtetl Zagórze, How can I forget you? K. Nayman (Najman) 207
Blood accusation in Sosnowiec Mordkhe (Mordechai) Hampel 209
From the yeshiva bench straight to the “Bund” Artur Nunberg 210
Memories of the Bund in Zagłębie Yakov Belek 213
In the noise of motors Yoysef (Josef) Fridman 215
The only Polish-Hebrew high school, “Yavne” Mordkhe (Mordechai) Hampel 222
 
Way of Life
Legend of the tombstone Dr. Yankev Y. Maytlis (Jacob Majtlis) 226
“My home in Zagłębie” A. N. Shtentsl 230
The Jewish musician Reuvn Braynin (Ruwen Brajnin) 241
Memories and Prophetic Visions Dovid Malets 243
“People” Dovid Mitsmakher (Mitsmacher) 245
Doom of the streets Yoysef (Josef) Fridman 247
“Get Thee Out” Yosl Kharif-Ostri 249
 
Writers, Artists, and Scientists
Motek Hampel Y. A. 250
Max Erik, the Tortured Writer Motek Hampel 251
K. Tsetnik, the Famed Writer of the Death of the Jews   253
M. Sh. Geshuri (Brukner)   254
Dr. Yankev Maytlis (Dr. Jacob Majtlis)   255
Avrom Nokhum Shtentsl   256
Prof. Yeshua Praver (Prawer)   257
Stanlislav Vigodzki (Wygodzki)   258
Roza Yakubovitsh (Jakubowicz)   260
Dovid Malets   261
Yehuda Yafat (Dovid Shpiro)   262
Shabtai Weiss   263
Avrom Shimin (Shimele) Rotenberg   263
Dovid Mitsmakher (Mitsmacher)   265
Yehuda Erlikh (Erlich)   265
Dovid Zisman   266
Efrayim Klayman   267
Yeshaye Lefkovitsh (Lewkowicz)   268
Yisroel Shvaytser (Szwajcer)   269
Alter Volf Verthaym (Wertheim)   270
Avrom Goldberg   271
Artur (Altush) Viner (Wiener)   273
Yistkhok Lis   275
Shmuel Tsigler (Cygler)   275
Moyshe Apelboym   277
Arn Priver (Aron Priwer)   278
Arye Reznik   279
Rekhl (Rehel) Gutman   280
 
The Press
 “Zagłębie Zeitung”[newspaper] Mordkhe (Mordechai) Hampel 282
“Dos Yiddishe Vochenblat” [weekly] Eliezer Elbe 285
 
Holocaust and Death
The forest Yoysef (Josef) Fridman 289
In the valley of death Yeshue (Stanislav) Vigodzki (Wygodzki) 290
Community of Sosnowicz Shabtai Weiss 293
The Jewish holocaust in German documents Dr. Nakhman (Nachman) Blumental 295
The past horror Y. Orbakh (Orbach) 303
My horrible camp-years Akiva (Kuba) Nayman (Najman) 306
Our heroes and martyrs Y. Fridman 327
The Judenrat in Zagłębie M. Parasol 329
Mosze Meryn – the false messiah Pinchas Orbach 334
On the Night of the 9th of September Janka Abrami-Lustig 340
Lost years F. Shtaynbakh (Sztajnbach) 342
My missions on behalf of Jews and their results M. Shvarts-Davidovitsh (Szwarc-Dawidowicz) 345
Eichmann's mob A. N. Shtentsel 348
Jews from Zagłębie during WW II Layb Shpizman (Szpicman) 350
Memories of the last world war Rabbi Menakhem (Menachem) Hager 357
In the first days of the Hitler occupation in Sosnowiec Mikhal (Michael) Hager 359
Bendin youths revolt Dovid Liver (Dawid Liwer) 361
In the ghetto and camps Avner Feldman 365
My experiences Kalmen Khentshinski (Kalman Kenczinski) 379
Pages of a diary Moyshe Benyomin Klaynman (Klajnman) 381
At my father's tombstone Rekhl (Rela) Gutman-Groybart 393
Which of her two children should the mother sacrifice on the altar? Yisroel Shvay[ts]er (Szwajcer) 395
Yom-Kipur in Auschwitz Zev Montshik (Monczyk) 396
The uprising in the death train Moyshe Yarkoyni (Yarkoni) 397
My war years – A woman from Będzin   398
Did Zagłębie Jews go to their death like sheep to the slaughter? Y. F. N. 403
Zagłębie men tell their stories – Yoysef [Josef] Fridman   404
The last letter from Będzin (17.7.43) Nakhman (Nachman) Blumental 419
The Zagłębie “Hanoar Hatsiyoni” at war with its persecutors Testimony 422
“I'm not a Nazi,” said the Secretary of the Gestapo   431
In the Gestapo net Regina Kukelka 434
A mission to Będzin Sore Erlikhman (Erlichman) 437
In the bunker Arn (Ahron) Brandes 439
Bendzin “Hashoymer Hatsayir” on alert for folk – honors Khayke Klinger-Rozenberg 441
Lamentations from Będzin A. M. Verthaym (Wertheim) 445
Dr. Shloyme Vayntsiher (Weinzieher/Winciher) Yitskhok Grinboym 446
Dr. Salomon Vayntsiher (Weinzieher/Winciher) Yoysef Orbakh (Joseph Orbach) 447
Yitskhok Mordkhe (Mordechai) Paysokhzon (Peisachson) Emmanuel Nowogrodzki 448
Dr. Khayim (Chaim) Perl, the tall bear, Berish Fromer Yoysef Orbakh (Joseph Orbach) 451
How the Jewish intelligentsia was murdered Dr. Emanuel Ringelblum 455
My father Simkha [Symcha] Lustig Yanka Abrami-Lustig 457
My brother Yakub Oksenhendler F. (Steinbock) Shtaynbok-Oksenhendler 460
My brother Henech David Zicher 461
Itshe Mayer Fridman, Yoysef [Josef] Goldberg N. Shtaynits (Sztajnic) 462
Accursed on earth Yoysef Fridman 464
The death of Faygushe Broner Fela (Steinbock) Shtaynbok-Oksenhendler 481
After 23 years, a pilgrimage to Będzin   483
To the anniversary of the death of Zagłębie Jews Y. Orbakh (Orbach) 484
Zagłębie Jews weep Y. Fridman 485
 

Table of Contents - Hebrew Section

 
Editorial Mordechai Hampel 493
Jews in Będzin Szymon Rotenberg 494
The emergence of Jewish Dąbrowa Dr. M. Gelber 498
A Jew from Będzin who was an officer in the Polish Legion during Napoleon's regime Prof. Dr. Majer Bałaban 500
The reminisces of a Jew from Będzin of the Polish Uprising of 1831 and 1861 Dr. Jakob Szacki 501
Rabbi Isachar Berisz Graubart, z”l – Będzin's rabbi M. Hampel 502
The Jewish musician (memories) Ruwen Brajnin 505
An accomplishment of Chaim Nachman Bialik – who converted an assimilated Jew into a Zionist Gerszon Stawski 506
A day with the pioneers A. Einhorn 508
In the bowels of the earth Yitzhak Ben-Zvi 508
From Sosnowiec to “Eretz Yisrael” in 1909 Baruch Priwer 510
The Hebrew-Polish Gymnasia “Yavne” Motek Hampel 511
Zagłębie in her destruction David Liwer 516
Thus it began… D. L. 518
The hanging (taken from the book “Salamandra” ) K. Tzetnik 521
Reflections and thoughts David Meletz 523
The Sosnowiec community Shabtai Weiss 525
Synagogues in Zagłębie and their destruction   526
Three years of the agricultural farm in Będzin Arie Liwer 528
A tear falls on your devastation, city of my parents Aryeh Ben-Tov (Hessenberg) 531
With a friend in need in Zagłębie… Dr. Natan Eck 534
Under the soldiers' boots Hadasa Priwes 535
The youth of Sosnowiec in the resistance movement Attorney N. A. Szternfinkel 537
How heroes fell Chawa Lenczner 539
The extermination camp in Auschwitz M. L. 540
Last letter from Będzin (17th July 1943)   541
The universe closed in on me Baruch Gaptak 545
“And you raised my bones from there” Yechiel Stern 546
In the ghetto and in the camps Avner Feldman 549
Did the Jews of Zagłębie go to their death like lambs to slaughter? Y. P. N. 559
The heroism of Hersz-Dawid Skolimowicz J. Frydman 559
My sister Gucia Y. Avrahami-Lustig 560
The history of the original, 200 year old ledger of the Będzin “kehila” [community] M. Hampel 562
The history of the original, 200 year old ledger of the Będzin “kehila” (Yiddish) Mordechai Hampel 566
Epilogue (Yiddish) H. Feldman 569
In memory of our beloved [2]   573-613
 
Photographs
Hebrew Section   494-571
 
Table of Contents – English Section
 
The last letter from Bendin Nachman Blumenthal (Jerusalem) 3
The congregation-council Katzetnik 5
The legend of the grave-stone Dr. Jacob Maitlis (London) 14
An atonement day in Auschwitz Zev Maltshil (Israel) 20
The lost years D. Steinbock (Australia) 23
My evacuation from Buchenwald camp K. Neuman 28
The past horror J. Orbach 38
My escape from the German camp Zosia Wolfowicz-Kleiner 43
On the anniversary of the fall of Zagłębie Jewry J. Orbach 47
My war years L. T. 49
The annihilation of the Jewish population of Zagłębie from the Eichmann trial Mordechai Hampel (Tel Aviv) 57
Jews in Zagłębie during the Second World War Leib Shpeizman (United States) 60
Itschok Mordechei Peisachson Emmanuel Nowogrodzki 71
My brother Henech David Zicher (Australia) 76
Joseph Goldberg   78
Our heroes Joseph Friedman 79



[1] The names appearing here were translated from the Yiddish and we have indicated in brackets the way a number of these names were spelled in the 1939 Będzin census. back
[2] The survivor's dedications from the book have been converted into a searchable, alphabetically arranged list of names. For those interested in seeing the original dedications with photographs of the victims, links have been provided to copies of these pages. back



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