Pokotilovo

A small number of Jews settled in Pokotilovo in the last quarter of the 18th century. In 1897 the Jewish population of Pokotilovo reached 1,670 or 55 percent of the total population. Annual trade fairs in the village became the source of income for many Jews. In 1889 the village had were two Jewish prayer houses. In 1901 many houses, including Jewish ones, were burned down in the fire that broke out in Pokotilovo. By the eve of World War I the Jews dominated small scale commerce in the village. In 1919 25 local Jews were killed in a pogrom. Under the Soviets the economic situation of the Jewish population worsened. As a result Jewish artisans joined cooperatives that were established in the village. The number of Jewish merchants decreased while the number of those disenfranchised grew. In the mid-1920s 75 Jewish families made their living from farming. In the late 1920s, during collectivization, the land was distributed to another 140 Jewish families. In 1923 a seven-year Yiddish school, with 136 pupils and 5 teachers, was opened in Pokatilovo. In 1927 the number of pupils increased to 260 but in 1934 it decreased to 160. German troops occupied the village on August 8, 1941. About 500 Jews of the village were murdered in February 1942. Pokotilovo was liberated by the Red Army on March 14, 1944.