Smorgonie, District Vilna;
Memorial Book and Testimony
(Smarhon, Belarus)

54°29' / 26°24'

Translation of
Smorgon mehoz Vilno; sefer edut ve-zikaron

Editors: Abba Gordin & Hanoch Levin

Published in Tel Aviv 1965


 

Acknowledgments

Project Coordinator

Marc D. Hodies


This is a translation of: Smorgon mehoz Vilno; sefer edut ve-zikaron
(Smorgonie, District Vilna; memorial book and testimony),
Editors: Abba Gordin & Hanoch Levin, Assoc. of Former Residents of Smorgonie in Israel,
Published: Tel Aviv 1965 (H, Y 615 pages)

Note: The original book can be seen online at the NY Public Library site: Smorgon

Purchase details for a printed copy of this translation can be found at http://www.jewishgen.org/yizkor/ybip/YBIP_Smorgon.html


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TOC translated by Sara Mages

Introduction
 
 
Map of the city of Smorgon   2
Preface to the Book   3
Words in Memory of Abba Gordin Chanoch Lewin 4
Words in Memory of Abba Gordin Eliezer Steinman 5
Words in Memory of Abba Gordin Chaim Dan 5
Members of the Editorial Board   6-7
Yisgadal VeYiskadash Chanoch Levin 8
Historical Introduction Abba Gordin 9-30
A Conversation from Ancient Times Chanoch Lewin 31-43
Smorgon– The Story of it's Town and Destruction [Y] A.Y. Goldschmidt 44-52
 
Persons of Merit
(Rabbis, authors, artists and personalities)
 
 
Rabbi Menashe from Ilya (1767- 1831) Abba Gordin 54-70
Our Master Rabbi Avraham Yitzhak HaCohen Kook Ephraim Tzoref 71-72
Two Lions Abba Gordin 73-77
 
Rabbis of the Community of Smorgon Moshe Tzinovitz 78-104
    A. Rabbi Chaim HaCohen, the First Rabbi   78-79
    B. The second rabbi, Rabbi Eliahu   80
    C. In Smorgon between Kings   81
    D. Rabbi Michel the son of Rabbi Feibish   82
    E. Rabbi Eliahu   82
    F. The Gaon Rabbi Menashe the son of Yosef Mailia   83-86
    G. The Rabbi and Gaon Rabbi Aryeh Leib Shapira   87-89
    H. Rabbi Yitzchak Menachem Zundel   89-90
    I. Rabbi Levi Shapira was famous as a Gaon   90
    J. Rabbi Chaim Avraham Shapira   90-91
    K. The Gaon Rabbi Chaim Yehuda Litwin   91-95
    L. Torah Kibbutz in Smorgon during the years 5656–5669 (1896–1900)   95-97
    M. The Rabbi and Gaon Yehuda Leib Gordin   97-102
    N. Rabbi Menashe Yosef Ginzberg   103-104
    O. Rabbi Shmuel Aharon HaCohen Plotkin   104
Natives of Smorgon Serving as Rabbis in Other Communities   105-112
Abridged Autobiography Tzvi Shimshi 113-119
Professor Nahum Slouschz David Tidhar 120-122
Abraham Kabak T. Z. Weinberg 123-125
Lines to the image of Aharon Avraham Kabak (1880-1944) David Tidhar 125-128
Drawings to the image of A. A. Kabak Lea A'mitan 129-131
Moyshe Kulback (1896-1937) [Y] Meir Alef 132-134
Characters from Karke [Y] Moyshe Kulback 135-137
Avraham Sutzkever [Y] From a conversation with Yacov Pat 138-141
Abraham Sutzkever [Y] Aharon Rubin 142-143
With Grandfather in Smorgon [Y] Avraham Sutzkewer 144-145
The Sculptor Itkind [Y] Daniel Charni 146-149
My Destroyed City - Holy Smorgon [Y] Eliahu Galob 150-159
Eliahu Golub [Y]   160
Gershon Broide [Y]   161
G–D and Samael (The Devil) [Y] Gershon Broide 162-163
Nissan Meckler David Yosefun 164-166
My Brother Avraham Forsite [Y] Benjamin Forsite 167-170
Yitzchak Bar'Eli (Izik Brudny)   171-173
David Raziel   174-181
 
The Town and its Residents
A. Till the First World War
 
 
Segments of Memories Abba Gordin 185-208
Our Works that were Published in Smorgon &nsbp; 209-220
“Ivria” Hanoch Levin 221-228
The Smorgon “Kibbutz” [Y] M. Ivenski 229-233
Whenever I speak about her….(a chapter of memories) Regina Helman 234-236
The Worker's Movement [Y] A. Farsayt 237-249
The Kibbutz and A. Veiter [Y] A.Y. Goldshmid 250-252
October 1905 [Y] Nechama's Isaac 253-255
The Last Days of Smorgon [Y] A. Forsite 256-260
A testimony Pesach Taburiski 261-262
Memoirs [Y] Harry L. Hofman 263-267
Smorgon Exploding [Y] A. Raple's 268-270
The Kibbutz and Mordecai Raziel [Y] Esther's Meir 271-272
 
The Town and its Residents
B. Between the Wars
 
 
My town Baruch Sutskover 275-277
My hometown Smorgon Rafael Weinstein 278-285
My Home in Smorgon Golda Shalem 286-293
My home in “Kreke” Leah Rotbart 294-297
The rebirth of Smorgon [Y] Perl Ginsburg-Teisner 298-302
The Tarbut School, From its Beginning to its End Henoch Levin 303-313
Lag Ba'Omer in Tarbut school [Y] Mariashe Yentes 314-315
The Pioneering Movement in Smorgon Beni Marshak 316-320
The Beginning of the “Halutz” Movement in Smorgon Tzvi Horovitz 321-324
Zalman Alperowicz – a Monument to the Soul of a Pioneer Y. Bankover 325-327
Political Parties and Youth Movements in the City Mordechai Taburiski 328-332
Our Fields and Forests (Poems) [Y] A. Ish–Ahuvi 333-336
On my “Stage” Smorgon Chanoch Levin 337-348
 
Few out of Many
Images from the town
 
 
R' Dov Bindman Benjamin Bindman 351-355
Betzalel Magidey – lines in his memory Refael Weinstein 356
Shloymale [Shalom] Magid - a Pleasant Musician [Y] Beile Magid-Bear 357-358
The Fiddle Song [Y] Hirshele-Zvi Levin 359-360
R' Ze'ev Wolf the Shamash Shoshana Pelavski 361-364
The Tehilim Jews of Smorgon [Y] Yakov Danishevsky 365-366
Chatzkel, the Backsmith [Y]   369
R' Meir Sofer Setam Moshe Mekler 370-372
Berta Shein z"l Baruch Sutzkover 373-374
 
The Holocaust and the Destruction
Chapters of Testimony
 
 
“The City of Slaughter”[1] (a segment) H.N. Bialik 377
Two Songs (Poems) [Y] Liba Elgin 378
The Destruction of Smorgon [Y] Mariasha Yentes 379-399
In the Ghetto and in the Camps [Y] Rivka Markus (Yamnik) 400-418
In Hospital in Smorgon [Y] Mariasha Yentes 419-421
Ponar - (a poem) Sherke Kaczerginski 422
What I survived [Y] Elka Baranovsky 423-432
In the War Shalom Sneidman 433-435
A Page from the Holocaust… [Y] Ida Levin 436-437
The experiences of a Partisan [Y] Eliezer Karpel 438-439
Smorgon was destroyed twice [Y] Margola Hurwitch 440-442
Emotional Experiences of Survival during World War II [Y] Leah Bubis 443-448
Words of Testament Tova Donski 449-452
Testimony Sh. Greis 453-454
 
To our Children
 
 
A Yizkor Prayer   457
First to be annihilated (lamentation) Yitzhak Katzenelson[2] 458-460
One Childhood Chanoch Al-Domi 461-498
 
Memorial Pages (necrology) 499-542
 
The Activities of the Committee of the Organization of Smorgon Natives Rafael Weinstein 543-544
The Smorgon Help Committee [Y] A. Tchipkin 545-546
The Society of Smorgon Natives in America [Y] Y. Miller 547-548
Stories through Photos   549-610
The Activities of the Board Baruch Sutzkower 611-614
In Memory of our dear ones    
On Your Heights You have Fallen… Baruch Sutzker  
Ninth Memorial Gathering in Hadera, August 1954    
Errata    
 
Addendum  
The story of the tombstone    
The Nazis Next Door    
Mollie Feldman's Family    
 
  1. http://www.history.umd.edu/Faculty/BCooperman/NewCity/Slaughter.html return
  2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Itzhak_Katzenelson return

 


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