Chechersk

In 1897 1,700 Jews lived in Chechersk. During the early Sovier period most Jewish residents were craftsmen or worked in agriculture. In 1929, during a major fire that broke out in the town, 93 Jewish houses and 3 synagogues were damaged. In 1939 977 Jews lived in the town, where they constituted 19 percent of the total population. Chechersk was occupied by the Germans on August 16, 1941, but most of the Jewish population had already managed to escape. A ghetto was soon set up and the remaining 200 Jews were concentrated there. At the same time a ghetto for Gypsies was set up in Chechersk. All the Jews still in town were murdered in November and December 1941, together with the local Gypsies, in anti-tank trenches. Chechersk was liberated by the Red Army on November 27, 1943.