Zoludek

The earliest references to Jews residing in Żołudek date to the mid-16th century: these were local tax-farmers. The number of Jews began to rise in the 19th century, and there was a corresponding broadening of the spectrum of their professions. The 1897 all-Russian census reported the presence of 1,372 Jews in Żołudek, where they constituted 73.8% of the total population. World War I and the Polish-Soviet War of 1919-1920 led to a considerable decline in the Jewish population of Żołudek, with the first Polish census of 1921 reporting a mere 1053 Jews in the town. This numerical decline was accompanied by an economic downturn – both because of the general economic crisis gripping the Second Polish Republic in the 1920s, and as a result of deliberate efforts by the Polish authorities in the 1930s to shut down Jewish enterprises in order to benefit ethnic Polish traders and industrialists. However, despite the deteriorating economic condition of the local Jews, their political and cultural life flourished to such an extent that Żołudek earned the nickname of "Little Vilna." The town was home to branches of almost all the East European Jewish political movements, including the Bund and the various Zionist factions, from the leftist Hashomer Hatzair to the right-wing Beitar. A Hebrew-language school of the Tarbut network operated in the town from the early 1920s, along with a Yiddish-only Tsisho school (each of these had more than 200 pupils in the late 1930s). Traditional "khadorim" (religious Jewish primary schools) and a general (Polish-language) school also attracted some Jewish students. A drama circle and evening classes for the study of Hebrew, Jewish history, and the Land of Israel were attended by numerous adults. In 1928, an agricultural training center (hachsharah) for prospective kibbutz members was opened in Żołudek, and a trickle of olim (immigrants to the Land of Israel) left the town for Palestine. In September 1939, Żołudek and the surrounding area were occupied by the Soviets. In 1940, there were 1,708 Jews in the town, including a few refugees from western Poland. The Germans occupied Żołudek on June 27, 1941. Their arrival was accompanied by a great fire, which had probably been started by Soviet agents; the occupiers pinned the blame for the arson on a local Jew, and executed him. Then, the Germans arrested six Jewish communists, took them out of town, and shot them – or, according to some sources, beat them to death with rifle butts. Twenty-two young Jews were killed for failing to wear a yellow badge; the Germans permitted them to be reburied at the Jewish cemetery. On November 1, 1941, a ghetto was established in Żołudek. On the next day, the Germans brought Jews from Orla to the Żołudek Ghetto. By the end of November 1941, the Nazis had murdered 28 Jews from Żołudek and 32 Jews from Orla. In winter 1941-42, wanton killings went on. In the first days of May, 140 (or, according to other sources, 200) Jews were sent to the labor camp at the Skrzybowce railway station. On May 8, 1942, an SS Kommando headed by Leopold Windisch and Rudolf Werner and accompanied by Lithuanian policemen came to the town from nearby Lida; they encircled the ghetto. On the next day, a murder "Aktion" took place. The Jews were ordered to assemble in the market square; the local police searched the ghetto for any hidden inmates. In the square, a selection was carried out, and 81 artisans were transferred to Szczuczyn. Afterward, more than 1,000 (some sources put the figure at 1,400 or 1,500, or even as high as 2,000) Jews from the Żołudek Ghetto were led several hundred meters toward the airfield, killed, and buried in pits that had been dug there by peasants. According to eyewitness reports, the killing went on for two hours. Only a few Jews survived as partisans, or by joining the family camp of the Bielski brothers. None of the survivors returned to Żołudek after the war. Żołudek was liberated by the Red Army on July 12, 1944.