Ruzhany, Belarus

Rozana; a Memorial Book to the Jewish Community
( Ruzhany, Belarus)

52°52'/ 24°53'

Rozhinoy; sefer zikaron le-kehilat Rozhinoy ve-ha-seviva

Edited by: M. Sokolowsky

Published in Tel Aviv, 1957

Click here to see how to add a Memorial Plaque to this Yizkor Book

Acknowledgments

Project Coordinators

Edith Taylor

and

This is a translation of: *Rozhinoy; sefer zikaron le-kehilat Rozhinoy ve-ha-seviva;
Rozana; a memorial book to the Jewish community. Ed. M. Sokolowsky.
Tel Aviv, Former residents of Rozhinoy in Israel, 1957 (232 pages H,Y).
With a supplementary chapter in Yiddish by Joseph Abramovitsch "Once there was a shtetl."

*Ruzhinoy = Rozana (Polish pronunciation), now Ruzhany in Belarus.

My copy has a handwritten dedication to my father: "Abraham Vegotsky, fellow citizen of Ruzhnoy, as a sign of respect and thanks from the committee of Ruzhnoyan landsmen. Tel Aviv, May 7, 1958."

Translation by Nurith Brier and Edith Vegotsky Taylor.

This material is made available by JewishGen, Inc. and the Yizkor Book Project for the purpose of fulfilling our mission of disseminating information about the Holocaust and destroyed Jewish communities. This material may not be copied, sold or bartered without JewishGen, Inc.'s permission. Rights may be reserved by the copyright holder.

JewishGen, Inc. makes no representations regarding the accuracy of the translation. The reader may wish to refer to the original material for verification. JewishGen is not responsible for inaccuracies or omissions in the original work and cannot rewrite or edit the text to correct inaccuracies and/or omissions. Our mission is to produce a translation of the original work and we cannot verify the accuracy of statements or alter facts cited.

TITLE PAGE

RUZHINOY

Commemoration Book to the Ruzhinoy Community and Environs

A Memorial to the Jewish Community

Collected and Edited by Mayer Sokolowsky

Published on the 15th year to the Shoah

5717

Published by the organization of Ruzhinoy Landsleit

in Israel on the 300th year of the Blood Libel

Subject	Page

Introduction by the Editor	5
Ruzhinoy Map	6
History:
History of the Town of Ruzhinoy	7
Ruzhinoy according to the registry of the Committee of Communities	8
Ruzhinoy according to General Encyclopedia*	8
Ruzhinoy according to the Jewish encyclopedia	8
Martyrs:
Ruzhinoy’s martyrs according to Daat (early book)	10
Slichot over early martyrs	12
Martyrs tomb	17
Martyrs’ descendents	17
Ruzhinoy’s martyrs according to Souls of Israel	18
Torah:
Cheders	21
Melameds Association	22
A Cheder for Girls	23
Splendor of Youth (Tiferet Bachurim, vocational education)	23
Yeshiva of Ruzhinoy	24
Various study groups	26
Rabbis	29-41
Story written by Chernikovsky, "Sha’at Nez"	41-46
Labor (Economy of the town):
Lives of weavers in Ruzhinoy in 19th century	48
Workers family in the shtetl	49
Labor movement in Ruzhinoy in 19th century	50
Founding of Pavlova in Constantinova	51
G’milut Chassadim (Benevolent Societies):
Idealists of the people	52
Hadassah	54
Leib Vash and other members of Pines family	56
Yona the Shoemaker	59
Nimele the Butcher	59
Shapis of Pavlova	59
Our Shetl Ruzhinoy:
Synagogues of Ruzhinoy	62
Public life in Ruzhinoy	64
The tax (on meat)	65
My childhood in Ruzhinoy	66
The Fires:
Plague of fires	68
Leib "the only one"	71
How the fire brigade was set up	72
Fire brigade in Ruzhinoy	72
Fire brigade parades	73
Fear of pogroms in the shetl in 1904	75
The beginnings of Zionism:
"Hurry up Brethren," written by Yechiel Michal	77
Pines (song still sung in Israel)
Beginnings of Zionism in Ruzhinoy	78
Yechiel Michael Pines	78
More about Y. M. Pines	80
Passages from "The Children of My Spirit" by Y. M. Pines	81
Itta Yellin	82
Rabbi Ze’ev Wolf Shachor (black)	82
The founding of Akron (agricultural settlement south of Tel Aviv)	83
Yearning of redemption	85
The years of agitation:
The year 1905--the political parties	87
The struggle for 12-hour work day	87
The big strike of 1910	88
Public figures and personalities:
Lullaby	90
Aron Lieboshitsky, Mayer Krinsky, Zelig Sher, Melech Epshtein, Dov Lobsovsky, Avigdor Michal, Goldberg, Dr. Mayer Pines, Moshe Limon	91-95
First World War:
World War I	97
Rule of the German Occupation	98
About the German Occupation	99
The Forest People	100
The Big Fire	101
The Kinder Heim (Children’s Home)	102
The Choir	103
Hazamir "and Hertzliah" (gymnasium)	104
Consume verein (consumers’ organization)	107
In between powers--the German occupation and the Russian revolution	108
Pogroms in Ruzhinoy	108
Way of Life in the Shetl:
The libraries of Ruzhinoy	110
The library in Pavlova	110
Memories of childhood	111
Longing for the land of Israel	114
Ma’ot Chitim (food fund for needy)	115
Passover eve in our shetl	115
Economic Situation:
After World War I	119
In Ruzhinoy	119
The bank in Ruzhinoy	120
Zionist Movements:
Hechalutz Movement in Ruzhinoy	122
Actions in behalf of the Jewish National Fund	126
The Zionist Organization	129
Hashomer Hatza’ir	131
Hashomer Hatzi’r renews its activities	132
Betar (Jabotinsky’s youth movement)	136
My birth place	137
Educational Institutions:
Educational institutions in the stetl	138
The Tarbut School	139
The Talmud Torah Institution	143
Dovid Miller	144
Charitable Institutions:
In the 19th century	145
In the 20th century	146
Second World War and the Holocaust:
19 days of German-Polish war & Russian jurisdiction	150
Echoes of the times in writings	151
Under the Nazis in Ruzhinoy	153
Passing through Ruzhinoy	162
Echoes	167
Poem: "Everything Precious to Me"	170
In German Captivity	170
On what had passed on my return	171
Jacov Mayer Maruchnik	172
In Memory of Ruzhinoy’s Martyrs	174
Beloved	175
In Memory of Those Who Made Aliyah:
A.Y. Haboynik and Wife	177
Rabbi Ze’ev Wolf	178
Leibl Ziskind	178
Nachum Alperstein Committee ofLandsmen’s Organizations	181
Our Families:
A listing & photos of some of the families	184
The Fallen in the War of Independence: (Israel)
Listing of many names & photos	190
Poem: The Jewish Body	192
More names listed	193
Another poem: Liberty	197
"Amal is Geven a Stetl"- Ruzhinoy as I Remember:
Survey in Yiddish	199
In Memory of our Martyrs	212
Ruzhinoy and Environs	213
Lists of Ruzhinoyer in Israel	229
Lists of Liskovers in Israel	232
Once There Was A Shtetl - Supplementary chapter

Yizkor Book Project JewishGen Home Page Ruzhany, at Shtetlinks

Yizkor Book Project Manager, Lance Ackerfeld
Contact person for this translation Edith Taylor
This web page created by Elsa Drezner