Translation of Sefer Lida

Irene Newhouse

Our sincere appreciation to Chaim Basist, of the Lida Society of Israel,
for permission to put this material on the JewishGen web site.

This is a translation from: Sefer Lida (Book of Lida),
editors: Alexander Manor, Itzchak Ganusovitch, Aba Lando, Tel-Aviv,
Former residents of Lida in Israel and the Committee of Lida Jews in USA, 1970.
(438 pages, Hebrew, Yiddish, English)

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.

Table of Contents

Introduction (E)	IV
My Lida Heritage (E) - Sol Feinstone	V
The German Occupation (E) - E. Damesek	VIII
Lida and its environs
Map of the District	3
Map of the City	4-5
Lida through generations (H) - History of the city and its Jewish Community - A. Lando	15
The sentence of seven Jewish community leaders in Lida	20
To the history of Jewish Lida during the period of restored Poland (H) - J. Ganazowitch	56
Lida and its environs (H) - Z. Vinogradov	73
Jewish Family Names of Residents of Lida and Its Neighborhood (H) - Itchak Ganuz (Ganuzowitsch)	75
Economic life of Jewish Lida before World War I (Y) - A. Gelman	83
In the days of World War I (H) - Mrs. Y. Guinzburg (Boyarsky)	86
Memories of the First World War (Y) - Moshe Ganuzowitsch	86
Remembrances from the First World War (Y) - Moshe Ganuzowitsch	86
CENTER OF LEARNING
Rabbis and Religious Teachers (H) - A. Lando	89
R. Yitzhak Yakov Reines (H) - A. Lando	94
Rabbi Aaron Rabinovitz of Blessed Memory (H) - R. Avigdor Tzipershtine	98
R. Aron Rabinovitch - Rabbi of Lida (Y) - Mrs. Henia Rabinovitch	100
To the History of the Yeshibah (H) - M. Tsinvitch	104
The Yeshibah of Lida (H) - S. Zack	106
One of the Nation's Leaders (H) - Dr. H. L. Gordon	111
The “Yiloui" R. Shlomo Poltcheck (H) - Dr. H. L. Gordon	113
Innovator and Activist (H) - R. Meir Berlin	115
“The little Horodishtchian" (H) - R. A. Rabinovitch	116
R. Yithak Takov Reines -- founder of the “Mizrahi” Organization (H) - R. Y. L. Hakohen	117
The Great Yeshivah (H) - P. Shifman	117
The restless man - M. Kahan	118
Sayings of R. Yitshak Takov Raines (H) - M.Hinitch	119
Biography of the “Yiloui” of Meitchut (H) - M. Goldberg	122
“Tish'a Be'Av” at the house of Rabbi Yitshak Yakov Raines (H) - D. Vinogradov	125
Close to R. Yitzhak Yakov Reines (H) - D. Aloni	126
Influence of the Yeshibah on the life of the city (H) - J. Ben-Sira	128
Reminiscences of former students of the Yeshibah (H) - L.-G.	130
The Lida Yeshiva (Y) - Nakhum Khinutz	131
R. Mordechai Shmukler (H) - Avram Hakoben Eliav	134
FOLKLORE, MODE OF LIVING
Memories (Y) - Yakov Ilutovitch	137
Lida at the beginning of the 20th century (H) - J. Youdelvitch	145
Common people (H) - M. Evensky	149
Everday life and holidays in Lida (H) - H. J. Argov	153
In an atmosphere of learning and enlightenment (H) - H. Amitay	156
Hebrew in Lida (H) - A. Lando	157
The Hebrew school (H) - workshop of the nation's soul - L. Ettinger	165
My Teachers, Rabbis and Schoolmates in the Tarbut school (H) - Itzhak Genozovitch (Ganoz)	166
Singing, theatrical performances etc. (Y) - A. Lando	170
Sights of the town (H) - I. Ganuzovitch	179
Charitable institutions (H) - A. Lando	182
“Beth Lehem: (Y) - J. Levine	185
T.O.Z. (O.Z.E.) Institutions (Y) - J. Ganuzovitch	186
TOZ in Lida (Y) - H. Jijemsky	187
Fires and firemen (Y) - A. Lando	189
The fire brigade (Y) - A. Guelman	192
The butchers' synagogue (Y) - T. Tsigelnitsky	193
Reb Eliyoe the carpenter (“Tsheshler”) (H) - J. Ganuzovitch	194
“Tyf'ereth Bahourim” association and synagogue (H) - I. Ganuzovitch	195
Common folk (H) - M. Amitay	197
Moshke the orphan (H) - I. Iloutovitch	199
Melameds and Kheders (Y) - Yehudit Ganuzovitsch	200
Tuvia the Teacher - Tuvia Tzigelnitsky	200
Moshke - the “Pourim Player” (H) - I. Ganuzovitch	201
Lida Drunkards (Y) - A. L.	202
FOLKLORE AND LANGUAGE
Games of Jewish children in Lida (H) - I. Ganuzovitch	203
Regional Expressions from Lida and the Surrounding Vicinity (H) - Yitzkhak Ganuzovitch (Ganuz)	211
Odd bits of Lida folklore and humour (Y) - A. Lando	216
Means and ways of “expelling fright” and an evil eye (H) - I. Ganuzovitch	219
ON THE WAY TO ZION AND ZION AS WAY
“Aliyah” to Eretz-Israel from Lida (H) - A. Lando	221
To the history of youth movements in Lida (H) - A. Polatchek	229
The cell of “Hashomer Hatzair” (H) - L. S. Vinogradov	234
Jewish Youth in Lida (H) - B.Z. Volah	239
League for the “Working Eretz-Israel” (H) - A. Guelman	240
The “Betar” movement (H) - M. Aronovitch	242
The cell of “Betar” in Lida (H) - S. Mikoulitzki	242
Mr. father (H) - Z. Shiff	245
“Hehalutz” in Lida (H) - J. Bankover	246
“Hakhshara” Kibbutz in Lida (H) - A. Gelman	247
“Hehalutz” movement in Lida (H) - M. Orzechovski	249
“Hehalutz Hatzair” (H) - A. Bassist	252
In the ranks of “Hehalutz Hatzair” - Z. Berezovsky	252
DYING OF A CITY
The Soviet occupation (H) - E. Damessek	255
First underground (H) - Z. Evienski	256
At the time of Soviet occupation (H) - M. Youngman (Slonimtchek)	258
We did not give up (H) - J. Pupko	259
The spoiled hymn (H) - I. Ganutzovitch	261
Lida, there was such a town (song) (Y) - Th. Pupko	263
In the Birkha (Flight) Routes - I. Solovietchik	264
The Russian occupation (Y) - S. Shiff (Rubinsvitch)	265
Pages of an exile (H) - I. Ganuzovitch	270
From Lida to Vilna (Y) - Z. Bielig	276
First Flames (H) - A. Movshovitch	279
The German occupation (H) - E. Damesek	281
Life in the Lida ghetto (H) - D. S. Amarant	288
In the Lida Ghetto (Y) - I. Rubinsvitch	301
How We Saved Ourselves and Remained Alive (Y) - H. Movshovitch (Zafran)	302
Between life and death (H) - F. Bialobroda	303
In the flames of destruction (H) - N. Kamienietzky	304
To the events of March 1, 1942 (H) - M. Youngman (Slonimtchik)	306
The murderer of Jews, Leopold Windisch (H) - Dr. S. Remigulsky	306
Reminiscences from the Lida Ghetto (Y) - N. Mudrick	307
Destinies of a Jewish boy (H) - E. M. Pupko	309
The story told by Sioma and Mrs. Pupko	311
In the Face of Death (H) - A. Bassist	313
The last way (Y) - R. Ozzechovsky (Orcher)	314
THE LAST FIGHT
The struggle for life (Y) - I. Kaplan	317
My Sad Journey [My Tragic Journey?] (Y) - M. Reznik	320
From the Ghetto to the partisans in the woods (Y) - L. Engelstern	325
The Battle of the Partisan Reuben Rubenstein (Y) - Yakov Druck	343
My way to the woods - M. Youngman (Slonimtchik)	345
The wanderings of a Jewish partisan (H) - D. L. Berkovitch	347
In the ranks of the partisans (Y) - B. Baran	348
“He will render vengeance to his adversaries” (H) - F. Bialobroda	351
A printery in the wood (H) - E. Damesek	354
David Boyarsky (H) - I. Ganuzovitch	357
From the war of the partisans to the War of Independence (H) - D. Boyarsky	357
The partisan Leib Orzechovsky (H) - M. A. Guer	362
My way to the partisans (Y) - Y. Reznik	363
My way to the partisans (Y) - M. Reznik	367
On the front (Y) - I. Rubinovitch	373
Lida in the literary works of J. Goldo (B. Gorin) (H) - J. Ganuzowitch	142
ON THE RUINS OF THE CITY
A visit to Lida after the destruction (Y) - M. Youngman (Slonimtchik)	374
My arrival after the destruction (Y) - E. Damessek	375
Back in my birth town (Y) - K. Sopotnicky (Kreyer)	377
After the destruction (Y) - S. Shiff (Rubinovitch)	379
Liquidation of the Jewish cemetery (H) - I. Rubinovitch	381
The monument on the grave of the victims of Lida (H) - I. Rubinovitch	382
THE TRIAL
The murderers before the tribunal (H) - A. Lando	383
The trial of the German murderers (Y) - Z. Arlouk	384
LIDA EMIGRANTS
The United Lider Relief in U.S.A. (H) - K. Orzechovsky	386
To the history of Jewish emigration from Lida to U.S.A. (H) - A. Lando	387
Michael Evensky (H) - Z. Evensky	389
Jacob Dvoretzky (H) - A. Lando	389
Days of anxiety and grief (H) - A. Lando	391
Organization of Lida emigrants in Israel (H) - A. Lando	392
MEN OF MARK
S.L. Gordon (Sh. L. G.) (H) - I. Ganuzovitch	398
Pinhas Shifman (Ben Sira) (H) - A. Lando	398
Kopelovitch (H) - A. Lando	399
M. Guelman	399
R. Itshak Yeroukhmanov (H) - A. Lando	399
My teacher, R. Joseph Epstein (“Trikeler”) (H) - A. Bassist	401
Lichtman the teacher (Y) - Paves	401
R. Israel Aron Shelubsky (H) - A. Lando	402
R. Shlomo Podolsky (H) - A. Lando	404
Joseph Darshon (H) - A. Lando	405
Mordecai Dov Yudlevitz of blessed memory (H) - A. Lando	406
Avraham (Abrasha) Steinberg of blessed memory (Y) - A. Guelman	406
IN MEMORY OF FALLEN SOLDIERS
Reuven Kopelowicz (Y)	407
“Help the People” (poem) (Y) - R. Kopelovtich	407
Officer Ariye Tchertok (H)	407
Ithak Spokolny (H)	407
Ariye Dobkovsky (H)	407
With Shaul Furman (“Hagaglili”, “Arnon”) (H) - Z. Evensky	408
Shaoul Furman (“Hagalili”) (H) - S. Mikulitzky	409
Omri Arlav (H) - A. Lando	410
Shaul Zehavi (H) - S. Snovsky	411
Dr. Moshe-Yerahmiel Ben-Sira (H)	412
Moshe Rosenhaus (H) - Eli	413
Dov Eilath - Lea Eilath	413
List of the perished	414
List of former residents who died in Israel	434
List of former residents who died overseas	434
List of Lida residents in Israel	435
List of Photographs