The Jews of Sosnowiec were deeply affected by the ideology of the “Chibat Zion” [Love of Zion] movement, rather than by the Socialist ideology of the period. This situation began to change as a Socialist awareness began to develop amongst Jewish workers in the nineties. While the “Chibat Zion” movement was meeting in Katowice, the “Yiddishe Arbajter Ferband” [Jewish Workers Association] was meeting in Warsaw and began a massive educational drive. The organization, however, lacked sufficient human resources to carry on such a drive since most of the activists were from Lithuania and South Russia. They were imbued with a Russian culture that was unfamiliar to Polish Jewry. The Russification drive brought about the opposite effect in Poland. Polish Nationalism reached new highs and even affected the Jewish intelligentsia. The mere act of speaking Polish was considered a revolutionary deed. The educated Jewish youth in Sosnowiec as well as in other cities were imbued with the ideal of freedom and Polish independence. The Jewish intelligentsia was affected by assimilationist trends that strongly endorsed Polish national aspirations.

At the beginning of the 20^th century, the Jewish organized labor groups in Sosnowiec and Zaglembie did not achieve great social breakthroughs amongst the masses. It became crystal clear to the leaders of the Jewish Socialist movement that there was a need for locally trained leadership that was familiar with the local population and problems. One such potential leader was Icchak Mordechai Pejsachson, who became one of the most able and influential personalities in our region.

The Socialist Revolutionary idea reached Zaglembie in 1892 through the gates of the Steiger School in Dabrowa. The school was a hotbed of revolutionary activities and served as a center of illegal literature on behalf of the cause. The posters, proclamations, and tracts that were printed in this school soon found themselves plastered on the city walls, and in coal mines, factories, and official buildings. All appealed for more humane living conditions for the workers. Strikes soon began to take place. The first great strike started on March 8, 1894 at the Zawierce industrial complex, soon followed in April by the a strike of Piasker coal miners. On April 23, 1894 a strike started at Pitzner and Gamper in Sosnowiec. In September of 1894 a strike started at the Ditel factory, followed by a strike at the Dabrowa smelting factory. Slowly, wages improved as well as working conditions, in spite of the Russian government that tried to suppress the demands of the workers by all means. The Cossacks roughed up any worker that they met. The Governor of Piotrkow, Miller, plastered the walls of the area with proclamations warning the people not to strike. Penal paragraphs were cited, but to no avail. Meetings were forbidden, discussions were not permitted, and the courts handed down severe punishments for union activities that frequently reached two months in jail. All these attempts failed to stop the drive of the workers, and strikes continued to start without warning or notice. Management was forced to improve wages and working conditions in order to insure stability. The workday of thirteen hours had to be somewhat curbed.

Following the amalgamation of the Social Democratic group of the Kingdom of Poland and the Polish Socialist Party, there appeared an appeal in 1895 signed by the Workers Committee of Dabrowa. This was the first indication of the growing socialist movement in Zaglembie. Apparently this committee organized the big strike of the oven workers at the “Huta Bankowa,” and later organized the strike at the “Martimer Pits”. The illegal literature increased in circulation. The “Górnik” was for a long time the only paper in Zaglembie, and its circulation constantly grew. On May 13^th 1897, the miners stroke the “Ernst Michael Pits” in Czeladz, and in August of 1897, the workers at the “Jerzy Pits” in Niwka struck. This was a bitter strike and the government was determined to break the strike; it forced the workers to return to work without wining the slightest concessions.

The year 1899 brought with it a revolutionary fervor. Strikes were called all over, and most of them resulted in better wages and living conditions. On September 22, the spinners at Szajn's Spinnery in Srodula, Sosnowiec went on strike and the 900 spinners at Ditel's went on strike on May 22. The Piotrkow governor Miller took an active interest in the strike and arrested strikers each day. The number of arrested workers soon reached eighty. But the wave of strikes did not stop; it grew in intensity and reached Piaski, Grodziec, Koszelewki, Milowice, Czeladz and so forth.


[Page 150]


The revolutionary intensity declined somewhat in 1900 following the arrests of many Socialist leaders, notably Józef Pilsudski, Woyczechowski, and others. With the killing of Mazor, the police launched massive arrests and searches in Zaglembie. Many people were placed under police surveillance. May 1 was not celebrated that year. Many miners were arrested and detained. Cossack units were stationed in Dabrowa and Sosnowiec. The newspaper “Górnik” ceased to appear. The situation continued for another two years. Leon Czarkowski, a member of the central committee, wrote in March of 1902 that things had deteriorated beyond imagination. The miners of Niemce remained faithful to the cause of the red flag, and it remained a socialist fortress. The Russian government tried everything to stem the growth of this movement and detained many people on the mere suspicion of belonging to the Socialist party. Still the party grew in strength.

The year 1905 was a crucial year for the Russian Empire. It started on January 7^th with a strike of about 150,000 workers in the Russian capital of St. Petersburg. The shooting of unarmed strikers by the Russian army in front of the Winter Palace caused an outburst of emotion directed against the Czar. The P.P.S. (Polska Partia Socjalistyczna / Polish Socialist Party) in Zaglembie immediately launched an educational campaign that consisted of meetings and lectures in factories and mines to explain to the workers their situation. The Zaglembie region was already considered an important center, for it was comprised of mines, smelting furnaces and factories where thousands of workers were employed. The prevailing calm suddenly erupted into a chaotic situation. Political strikes were called and workers listened to the speakers in the streets and factories. They called for an end to worker exploitation, for liberty, and for the end of oppression.

There were hardly any Jews among the coal miners in those days. In contrast, Jews did work in factories in Zawierce, Czestochowa, Bedzin, and other cities. Jewish educated workers actively participated in the ranks of the P.P.S. movement [Polska Partia Socjalistyczna / Polish Socialist Party] that espoused the fight for Jewish equality in society.

In Sosnowiec there was already the nucleus of a Jewish proletariat. Jews worked in German firms as clerks. There were Jewish artisans and their assistants, there were Jewish jobbers, and all worked a fourteen-hour day for very low wages. Following 1905, the “Bund” organization became very active in the area. There was already a nucleus of Poalei Tzion activists in the area. A delegate from Bedzin, Juda Lajb Fajner, participated as a delegate to the Poalei Tzion conference in December of 1905 in Warsaw. Also amongst the activists was Mosze Merkin.

The people in Zaglembie did not really know what was happening in Russia in 1905. The newspapers were heavily censored and Zaglembie news items were sparse. Still the population was restive. Stores and factories were closed, transportation was halted, and demonstrations and clashes with the police and army occurred.

A news item in the Hebrew newspaper “Hatzfira” states that on January 27, 1905, striking workers tried to open the gates of the “Karina” smelting factory. Someone from the crowd fired at the army guards of the “Botirke“ battalion but the soldiers did not respond. In another area, a worker armed with a knife attacked a soldier, whereupon the soldiers opened fire and killed 21 workers and wounded 20. In the foreign press and in the Silesian and Galician press there were reports of soldiers having killed and wounded hundreds of workers.

The strike lasted 32 days and was called off without any gains for the workers. Still, morale was very high amongst the striking workers, and the circulation of the P.P.S. [Polska Partia Socjalistyczna / Polish Socialist Party] newspaper “Górnik” grew.

The next day there was another mass assembly with flags and banners facing the Cossack units. A clash was avoided at the last minute by the mediation of the mayor of Sosnowiec, Mr. Kronenberg. At a special assembly at the theater following the mass demonstration, the mayor proposed that the strike be called off and a committee be formed to demand all powers of government. The committee consisted of Perkowski – a member of Parliament, Fajnsztajn – Social Democrat, lawyer Wierzbowski, and Rokeach from Bedzin. The committee was ordered to negotiate the surrender of all powers to it. They met with Mirbach, the General Governor of the province, and handed him their demands. His reply was simple; there was no revolution and no need for drastic changes. This was the reason that he did not order the Cossacks to attack the large manifestation of strikers in the city. He did agree, however, to remove the police barricades in the city and to recall the police check posts in town. The general assembly also selected a special committee that included representatives from the P.P.S. [Polska Partia Socjalistyczna / Polish Socialist Party], the S.D.K.P.L. [Socjaldemokracja Krolestwa Polskiego i Litwy / Social Democracy of the Kingdom of Poland and Lithuania] and others. The city was divided into sectors and the police were expected to work with the representatives of the sectors in order to insure tranquility in the city. Posters were hung throughout the city explaining the situation. In effect, the citizen sector committees controlled the city for the next nine days. The gendarmes controlled only the Railway station. The gendarmes did not permit the city police to enter the area. The committee protested the ruling, but the Governor insisted that the area in question be under the control of the forces of the gendarmes.

Due to the constitutional freedom, the newspaper "Górnik" appeared daily and kept the people informed of the situation. The police soon received military reinforcements and began to tighten the reins of the city. Arrests and searches began in the city. The committee of district leaders met with the police chief and demanded an explanation. The answers were evasive and the leaders met to discuss the next steps. The next morning, posters appeared on the walls of the city announcing military rule. Strong police formations patrolled the city and Cossack units in battle formation were on the ready. Arrests and searches were carried out on a large scale, and police cordoned off certain areas. Thus ended the free rule of the city.

Terrible news began to reach the city about pogroms throughout Russia. Indeed some 200 pogroms took place against Jews in the Empire. There was no pogrom in Zaglembie, but the atmosphere was very depressing. Rich Jews began to leave the area and the rest of the Jewish population was gripped by fear.

The fear was intense, as demonstrated by the following example – a concert was held in the evening under the direction of the seven year old Henio Sienkiewicz, when someone shouted that there was trouble in the city. The audience panicked and tried to get out as fast as they could. In reality nothing happened, but the fear was so immense that anything was possible.

The capitalists of Upper Silesia exploited the events of Zaglembie. The gates of Poland were opened to them, as the tax on coal imports was abolished. German exports grew by 30%. But the joy was short-lived. Soon the Silesian miners joined the Polish and Russian workers in strikes. Mass demonstrations were held in support of the Polish and Russian workers. At the end of July 10^th, Russian sailors from the famous Russian battle ship "Potiomkin" appeared. On November 13^th, the miners and furnace workers of Myslowice went on a strike that resulted in clashes with the police.




[Page 152]

Ruins of palaces, forts, temples and princely dwellings tell the historical past of Dabrowa of Zaglembie. During the period of mass migrations in the 4^th and 5^th centuries, the Slavs appeared and conquered vast stretches of land between the rivers Dnieper and Dniester, the Wisla [Vistula/Weichsel], and west to the river of Elbe. They also settled in Silesia and in Zaglembie. The Slavs who settled the area were the white Chrabats, who came from the area of Krakow and spread throughout the province. Dabrowa was part of the ancient historical Slav settlement of the area that the Polish King Mieczyslaw the First annexed to his kingdom.

The area was already settled in 1070. When the Polish King Boleslaw Chrobry (“Boleslaw the Brave”) moved his capital from Gniezno to Krakow in 1020, the city of Dabrowa developed rapidly, and in 1110 received the title of royal region. In 1106, a man by the name of Dragoslaw received from Bolek Ksziwosti the right to establish the village of Koszeglo. Also, the feudal ruler of Wroclaw received permission to build the church to be named “Na Piasku”, according to Kazimierz Sprawiedliwi. The permit for an inn was also granted in 1193 for the church in Krimola.

M. Sztencel wrote in his “History of Silesia” that in 1228 Kazimierz the Great granted Klemense, governor of Opol, large tracts of land near the river Brinica. Anaroszewicz recalled in his book “History of the Polish People”, that in 1345 the village of Pogon already existed. The feudal lord of Krakow during the years 1318-1326 mentioned the following places: Bedzin, Czeladz, Grodziec, Kozieglowy, Sewer, Chruszczobrod, Zarnowiec, Krimolow, Glodowiec, Mrzyglód, Kirow, Niegowa, Przybynów and Dluzec.

Gromer, in his “History of the City of Bytom,” told the story that in 1340 a certain Piotr Panow donated the monastery of Vincenti in Bytom to the villages of Dabrowka and Mylowice. M. Bilski, in his “Polish Chronicles” wrote that Kazimierz the Great built palaces in Bedzin, Wanwalec, Mirow, Zarnowca, and Ojców during the years 1335-1360.

From a document in the diplomatic code book we learn of the existence of Zawierce on October 11^th, 1456. The document also stated that there were two communities by the same name, a smaller and a larger one.

The famous Polish historian Dlugosz mentioned that the following places existed in the period1440-1460: Boleslaw, Strzemieszyce, Okradzinów, Zabkowice, Losien, Kosmolow, Rokitno, Sziszialko [Krzykawka?], Ice [?], Lubianka, Myslow, Postaszowice, Ryczów, Rodaki, Golczowice, Drudkow, Rudniki etc.

In his book “Above Historical Events”, A. Fabinski mentioned the following places in the area about 1490: Czygowa, Smolin, Riczow, Pomrozyce, Golonóg, Leszniow and Old Dabrowa etc.

The 16^th century showed new places like Niwko, Niemce, Mrowisko (later Modrzejów) and Kazimierz. We must also mention that the present district cities Bedzin, Zawierce, and Olkusz freed themselves from the old district cities of Porzowo, Lelewo, and Krzondz as well as from oppressive princely ruling. With the first Polish partition in 1772, large parts of Zaglembie were divided between Russia, Prussia and Austria.

We lack precise documents to establish when Jews arrived in the area of Zaglembie, but the fact remains that by the 10^th century, Jewish merchants bought local produce and sold merchandise that they brought with them. Travelers told of encountering large-boned Jews with tanned faces, thick beards and long clothing who transported wheat, wood and flax. They also told of coins with Jewish lettering. During this period, the Zaglembie region was basically an agricultural area, somewhat behind the nearby region of Silesia economically. The Jewish presence in Zaglembie was at first very small and consisted mainly of Jews who fled from Germany and Silesia due to fear of the Crusaders.


[Page 153]


During the 11^th and 12^th centuries, Jewish artisans joined the Jewish merchants in Zaglembie. In documents of the Jewish community of Bytom, we can see that the Jews at first worked the land and were forced to pay prevailing interest rates, like all other residents in 1226. Following the expulsion of Jews from Spain, Jews settled in all major cities in Poland, including Zaglembie, especially in Bedzin. By 1450, the city of Bedzin already had an organized Jewish community, and in the 16^th century the community already had a full time rabbi.

We know very little of Zaglembian Jewry during the Tartar-Mongol invasions of the 13^th century. There is a lack of documents for the period, and we do not know where the Jews of the area moved during the time in question. It is possible that they escaped to Krakow or to Germany or Bohemia.

A similar pattern existed for the first Jewish settlers in Silesia. The earliest indications of their presence date from about 1150. Documents indicate Jewish ownership in Klein-Tinz. In 1190, there were already Jews in Bonzlau (Boleslaw). In 1203, the village of Sokolnice, which later became part of Wroclaw, was owned by the Jews Josef and Jecheskiel. In 1917 a tombstone of Dawid ben Sar-Szalom, who died on August 4^th, 1203, was discovered. We have bits and pieces of information indicating that from 1227Jews lived in Bytom on the river Odra [Oder], from 1270 in Swidnica, from 1280 in Glogau [Glogów], from 1281 in Troppau [Opawa], from 1285 in Münsterberg [Ziebice], and from 1301 in Liegnitz [Legnica]. At first the Jews of Silesia were primarily farmers, but gradually they exchanged their trades for commerce and manufacturing.

By the middle of the 13^th century, a number of Jewish communities in Silesia were already suffering from religious persecution. The priesthood embittered the life of the Jews through various edicts and discriminations. The senate of the province of Wroclaw issued various edicts aimed at the Jews, but princes protected them. In 1295, Duke Bolko the First issued a protective writ for his Jews; four years later, in 1299, Henryk the Third of Glogau [Glogów] did the same for his Jews. This was followed by a protective letter by Duke Bolko the Second for his Jews in Schweidnitz [Swidnica].

During this period, Silesia underwent rapid economic change, and the new inhabitants needed credit. They obtained it from the Jews. Even feudal barons, lords, princes and ministers had to borrow from the Jews. During the second half of the 13th century, Jews no longer worked in the fields but rather were engaged in commerce and banking. They participated in the economic growth of the province, particularly the Silesian cities, and they settled along the major highways that connected Silesia with Bohemia and Moravia. In a document from 1286, the bishop Thomas of Breslau [Wroclaw] complained that the Jews under the protection of Prince Heinrich the Fourth conducted their business without interruption while above the heads of the priests lurked various dangers. The Silesian princes understood the importance of Jews in the development of their cities through the growth of commerce and manufacturing. The economic situation of the Jews in this area was good, and they devoted themselves primarily to their synagogue and study centers.

The church, however, grew more antagonistic to the growing Jewish presence in Silesia. In 1267, the conference of priests of the area adopted several resolutions, namely: Jews could not live with Christians in the same building; a wall or water channel had to separate Jewish homes from Christian quarters; Jews had to wear a special hat. In 1319, the persecutions intensified and in 1337 the so-called Armleder gangs attacked Jewish communities under the pretext that the Jews profaned the “holy bread.” Jews were tortured and killed by these gangs. There were also some pogroms organized and led by Christian artisans. In 1420, the Jews were accused of supporting the Hussite movement, which revolted against the Catholic Church. There were even accusations that the Hussites sang Jewish songs that Rabbi Awigdor Karo assembled and published in Hebrew and German. Although they did not take part in the religious rivalries, Jews were not helped by them. Accusations fanned by the interested parties reached such intensity that severe persecutions resulted, as did frequent expulsions of the Jews from the area. Jews and their property became open targets for demagogues. The persecutions and expulsions lasted until well into the 15^th century. Much later, the Jewish communities began to rebuild themselves in the Silesian cities and their influence was felt in the development of the Jewish communities in Zaglembie.


[Page 154]

Until several hundred years ago, Dabrowa lay nestled between dense forests and swamps that prevented development of the community. Change came following the discovery of so-called “Black Diamonds” deep underground.

In books dealing with the history of the area, it is noted that Dabrowa belonged to the Duchy of Siewierz. According to maps of the royal family, Old Dabrowa already existed in the 15^th century. This community underwent many stages of development, robberies and fires.

The present Dabrowa Górnicza began with a mine named Reden. It was opened for exploitation in 1796 by Prussian authorities, during the reign of Frederick the Great^[10] . In 1807, ownership of the mine passed to a Frenchman, Marshal Lannes. Due to a large amount of unpaid interest, the civil court in the Krakow region appointed a Jew, Szmul Buchbach, as overseer of the mine. Ownership of the mine reverted to the Polish ministry of finance the following year.

In 1815, a huge smelting plant named Constanti was built next to the coal mine. Coal extraction grew year by year, as diggers went deeper and deeper into the ground. To avoid water deposits, a drainage channel was built to remove the water. Inhabitants of Old Dabrowa were the first coal miners. With time, a stream of workers from the Kielce region, from the areas of Miechó and Jedrzejów, from the region of Krakow and Silesia began to flock to the area. Following the failed November Uprising [1830-1831], the Russians forced dozens of Polish noble families to work in the coal mines. There was always a shortage of working hands, and in 1838 seventy German families from Saxony and Hanover were brought to provide labor. Within a year most of them left Zaglembie; a limited number remained and acclimatized themselves to the area.

Dabrowa belonged at first to the Radom regional office, despite the fact that the place was growing large enough to support a daily market. However the authorities did not want to recognize it as a city. In 1860, Dabrowa had a population of 600 inhabitants. After 1870, the place grew by leaps and bounds, expanding in all directions as streams of people kept coming. Only in 1916 did Dabrowa receive city status. The first mayor was Edward Kuszynski and the first presiding election officer was Dr. Adam Piwauer.

In 1767, on the border between Old Dabrowa and Bedzin there was an inn called “Under the Lion”, managed by Jakob Jozepowicz. He was a permanent resident of Bedzin and also dealt in animal skins. Until 1828, by order of the mine director, Jews were forbidden to open inns near the smelting or mine complex. Due to a constant shortage of working hands, the rule was relaxed and Jews began to work in the mines. Among the first Jewish workers was the family Cajg, which later changed its name to Cajgus and still later to Cygos. The same year, the families Rozencwajg and Natan arrived in Dabrowa. The latter opened a store to sell honey water, and the miners called him Miódownik [Honeyman]. The name stuck and was carried on by successive generations.

A larger influx of Jews began in 1864. Among the Jews who settled then in Dabrowa were people named Wajsholc, Zajdband, Nager, Szlesinger, Grosfeld, Grinboim, Demb, Kundak and others.

In the Dabrowa region, the Jews made the first attempts to enter the coal mines. The brothers Moritz and Ignac Majteles, sons of the pious Szmul Majteles from Modrzejów, lived in Sosnowiec. In 1902 they opened their mine, named Stanislaw, next to the Catholic cemetery in Dabrowa.


[Page 155]


They invested a large sum of money and installed new equipment and added new buildings. The mine was on the verge of bankruptcy when the brothers took it over, and they managed to turn the place around and increase coal production by forty percent.

The family Zmigrod did not wait for the Russians to cancel the edict against Jewish employment in the mines and smelting place, but financed their business enterprise indirectly through a fictitious non-Jewish figurehead. The Rechnic family of Dabrowa, which resided there since 1864, made similar arrangements. This family also specialized in leasing coal mines. Between 1900 and1909, Henryk Rechnic managed a large mine named Matilda in Dabrowa and a mine named Carol in Zaglembie. His brother, Samuel Rechnic, managed a mine named Jaroslaw in Niwka. The Rechnics had a great deal of experience in managing coal mines and dealt with coal until WWII.

The number of Jews in Dabrowa kept growing. From the year 5657 (1897), the rabbi in Dabrowa was Rabbi Mosze Rapaport, who was ordained by the Rabbis of Kalisz, Ostrów, and Bedzin. The Jewish community, however, belonged to the Bedzin Jewish community, where they buried their deceased members. In 1908, the Jews of Zagórze, Józefów, and Zabkowice appealed to the governor of Piotrków to permit them to establish their own Jewish community.

During that time, the Russian authorities banished several Jewish families from Dabrowa under various pretexts. They returned to the city in 1910. Only when Dabrowa became a city during WWI did Jews feel safe there.

In 1910, the Jews of Dabrowa decided to establish their own Jewish community. The first leaders of the community were Jakob Mendel Gliksman, Itche Majer Nusbaum, Szlomo Rechnic and Dawid Weber.

The synagogue on Mieszka Street was started in 1912. The founders were Berl Fuchs, Alter Futerko, Mordechai Lajb Miodownik, Kopel Chrzanowski, Mordechai Hilel Ferens, Icchak Majer Luksenburg, Hersz Rajchman, and Mosze Mitelman. The tin maker Berl Fuchs, who was also the gabbai [sexton] of the synagogue, donated the place. During construction of the synagogue, the Jews prayed in a rented study center. The cantor Mordechai Liberman, who later moved to the synagogue, prayed there.

The cemetery was built in 1920. The members of the chevra kaddisha [burial society] were Wolf Fajner, the society's founder, Mosze Aron Luria, Gerszon Henoch Szpilberg and Szpigler.

Most of the Jews of Dabrowa were Hasidim who belonged to various Hasidic courts. In the city there were many small one-room chapels where the followers of particular rabbis prayed, namely the Radomsker Hasidim, the Krimilower Hasidim, the Alexander Hasidim and the Gerer Hasidim. Among the Radomsker Hasidim who were very influential, Jakob Szalom Fiszel should be noted in particular. He was born in Bedzin, but moved to Dabrowa where he prayed with phylacteries that he had received on his bar mitzvah from the famous rabbi Tiferet Shlomo. He managed the revolving fund for the city's poor and died in 1933.

When WWI started, the Austrians occupied Dabrowa. A committee was formed that consisted of Jakob Sternir, a dentist; Szlomo Halperin, a son-in-law of Jakob Szalom, one of the first Zionists in town; Gerszon Henoch Szpilberg, as adviser; and Gecel Sztorchajn, Szlomo Rechnic, Jakob Szalom Fiszel and Ruwen Grosfeld.

By order of the military command of the area, a temporary Jewish community committee was established on September 3^rd, 1916. The committee called for elections on June 9^th,1916.^[11] The following Jewish leaders were elected: Mordechai Lajb Miodownik, Icchak Majer Nusbaum, and Lewy Strzegowski. Ruwen Grosfeld, Dawid Grinbaum, and Mosze Mitelman were elected as stand-by candidates. In 1924, a new community leadership was elected; the chairman was Lewy Strzegowski and the presiding officer of the community committee was Hersz Tobiasz Liberman.

In the census of March 18^th,1923, the total population of the city was 33,868 residents: 16,599 men and 17,269 women. The Jewish population was 5,000.

The Jewish community of Katowice sponsored a conference of Chovevei Zion [Lovers of Zion]. Thirty-six delegates from major European countries attended the meetings to revive interest in and promote the activities of the movement. Dr. Leon Pinsker was elected chairman and presiding officer of the conference. All major Jewish movements participated in the conference.


[Page 156]


There were problems of unity and major differences among various factions, and the movement almost collapsed in 1887. Two years later, in 1889, the Russian government granted a permit to an organization called The Company to Assist Jewish Field Workers and Artisans in Syria and the Land of Israel. The main office of this association was located in Odessa and was referred to as the Odessa Committee. The representative of this organization in Sosnowiec was Gerszon Stawski.

The Russian delegates who participated in the Katowice conference passed through the city of Sosnowiec as it was undergoing transformation from a rural village to a booming city. Some of the mood of the city affected them, as we can see from the fiery speeches that were given at the conference. These speeches and debates were read in the city and caused a slight awakening of the Jewish population. Even some assimilated Jews were moved by these debates and began to approach Zionism.

At the First Zionist Congress in Basel, Switzerland, in August 1897, we noticed Kempinski as the representative of the Sosnowiec Zionists. The movement took roots in Sosnowiec and Zaglembie.

Dr. Herzl traveled to Russia in 1903. On his way home he visited Zaglembie. He made a great impression in Sosnowiec.

Katowice was chosen as the site of the first conference. The Zionist movement was forbidden in Russia; however, the leaders of the Chibat Zion movement viewed Katowice as a suitable conference site for their conference since the city was ruled by Prussia but was also very close to Russia and Poland. Some important leaders of the movement also lived in the city. The founder of the Yeshuv Eretz Israel association in Katowice was Dr. Landsberg, a rabbi in Lignice and a member of the Alliance in Germany. The association called itself Bnei Brith and became a model for similar institutions in Germany and Silesia. During the years 1883-84 many conferences of the Chovevei Zion movement took place and the idea arose of establishing an international organization to represent the movement. The leader of the movement in Katowice was a merchant named M. Mozes, born in 1848, who always dreamed of rebuilding the land of Palestine. He encouraged all the members of the central committee in their work and together with Rabbi Dr. Landsberg and the teacher Z. Freutal they established the Bnei Brith lodge in Katowice. Similar lodges were established in other Silesian cities. The office in Katowice started to publish a weekly paper entitled Der Kolonist [The Colonist], which devoted itself to the problems of Palestine.

The Katowice office of the movement also started to assist in the opening of other branches in various countries. Because Romania was the only country that had a central committee, the movement planned conferences in many other countries to help launch itself and to unite those countries in a worldwide organization. The aim was also to establish a financial institution to help the colonization of Palestine. In 1883, invitations for the conference in Katowice were sent out. The organizers of the event established contact with the branches in Galac, Vienna, Lemberg, Warsaw, Bialystok, Odessa, Rostow, Minsk, and Wilna.

The number of participating delegates was still small. Katowice had five delegates. The next conference, in 1884, was much larger; there, the basis for an international organization was established.

In 1898, the first Zionist association in Sosnowiec was established under the initiative of the great Hebrew writer, Chaim Nachman Bialik. A similar association was created later in Bedzin. The first Zionists in Sosnowiec were primarily Lithuanian Jews. Among the founders of the association were Gerszon Stawski, a brother of the writer Mosze Stawski, Jakob Wajnberg, Kempinski, Mosze Gerszon Feldsztajn from the paper Hatzfira and the Yiddish paper Haynt. The association of Sosnowiec encouraged the creation of the Zionist lodge in Bedzin, whose leaders were Berysz Preger, Wilbuszewicz, Wroncberg, Frenkel, and Wdowinski.

During Chanukah 5659 (1898), the first Chanukah party of the Zionist organization in Sosnowiec took place; all the Zionists of Zaglembie were invited. Bialik read some of his poems, rich in content and poetic fantasy.


[Page 157]


The primary function of the Zionist movement during the years 1899-1900 was the popularization of shares of the Jewish Colonial Bank in London. Bedzin bought the largest number of shares. The firm Hendel Nunberg alone bought 50 shares, while all of Sosnowiec bought 25 shares. Payments for the shares were made on an installment plan.

With time, some younger Zionists joined the ranks of the movement, among them Dr. Wajsman and Klajnic. In 1903, the delegate for the Sixth Zionist Congress in Basel was Gerszon Stawski, who represented the Sosnowiec and the Noworadomsk Zionists. At this conference, a proposal was made to accept the Uganda plan that called for the settling of Jews in Uganda. Stawski was opposed to the proposal. The delegates from Bedzin and Czestochowa voted in favor of Uganda. Stawski also participated in the funeral of Dr. Herzl in Vienna in 1904. In December 1905, at the Ninth Zionist Congress in Hamburg, the delegates from Sosnowiec were Wajnres and Preger from Bedzin. There was a great division at this congress between two wings of the Zionist movement. The German Zionist wing was headed by Dr. Wolfson, Heinrich Löwe, and Professor Warburg. This faction greatly influenced the Zaglembie delegates who voted for them.

With the outbreak of WWI, a new period of activities began for the Zionist movement in Zaglembie. On the thirteenth of Sivan 5672 (May 29^th, 1912), a general conference of Orthodox leaders in Katowice took place that established the organization of Agudat Israel. World renowned rabbis from Russia attended the conference. From Bedzin came Rabbi Isachar Ber Graubart, Pinchas Lajb Buchwajc, Berysz Preger and Reb Wolnerman. From Sosnowiec came A. Lewensztajn, from Modrzejów came Rabbi Iszajahu Englard, and from Myslowice came Rabbi Dr. Winter.

From the Western countries came rabbis and doctors with rich cultural backgrounds. By and large, Hasidic rabbis were absent from the conference.

From that time on, Zionist activities in Zaglembie continued, conducted with a great deal of devotion and dedication until the total destruction of the Jewish communities during WWII.

Translator's Footnotes:

  Sosnowiec, Poland     Yizkor Book Project     JewishGen Home Page

Copyright © 1999-2024 by JewishGen, Inc.
Updated 09 Aug 2007 by OR