IN THIS ISSUE... A RADOM MEMOIR: "IT MUST NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN" by Henry Zagdanski 3 THE JEWS IN A POLISH PRIVATE TOWN: THE CASE OF OPATÔWIN THE 18th CENTURY, by Gershon David Hundert Book Review, by Mark Froimowitz 9 DZIAtOSZYCE YIZKOR BOOK Table of Contents and Necrology translated by David Goldman 1 1 THE QUIET TIMES: JEWS IN ZWOLEN from the Zwolen Yizkor Book edited by Berl Kagan 2 0 Qpecicd interest Group JRI-PL NEWS UPDATE by Warren Blatt. 2 6 POLISH BUSINESS DIRECTORY PROJECT ^journal Jewish Records Indexing - Poland by Stan Diamond 2 7 PINKAS HA-KEHILLOT, Volume VII Kielce and Lublin Districts Book Notes, by Warren Blatt 3 0 2000 EXTRACT DATA IN THIS ISSUE 3 2 • KIELC E BIRTHS 1868-188 4 y^ journof oj <Jovisfi by Dolores Ring 3 3 published quarterly, • OLKUS Z MARRIAGES 1851-187 0 covering tfte G-u&crnias of by Robert E. Heyman 5 2 •SZYDtÔW DEATHS 1854-186 7 aruf by Warren Blatt 5 8 GLOSSARY, PRONUNCIATION GUIDE . 64 as defined 6^ tfte Bouncfarics ...but first a word from your coordinator . 2 as tfic^ existed 1867^1917 Kielce-Radom SIG Journal Volum e 4, Number 1 Winter 2000 ... but first a word from our coordinator As the new coordinator o f the Kielce-Radom SI G and a 3pcciaf interest Group relatively new member, I must say that I have been quite impressed by the high quality of the publications put out by the group. Also , as I grapple with the diverse responsibilities of ajournai being the coordinator, I think that the group owes a debt of ISSN No. 1092-8006 gratitude to Gene Starn for his years of service in that position. ©2000, all material this issue Which brings me to the topic of participation in the group by its members. I would like to remind readers that the journals ar e published quarterly by the put out entirely on a volunteer basis and that it is crucial that the KIELCE-RADOM members continue to participate i n this. O f course, we need Special Interest Group (SIG) members to continue to perform extraction s of the Polish record s that we publish in the journal. Thi s is a splendid opportunity fo r a non-profit, informa l world-wid e members to perform extraction s on the specific town s that body of individuals interested in Jewish interest them the most. Mor e experienced members would, o f genealogical research from Kielce and course, be available for advisin g novices on the extraction of Radom, two gubernias in the Kingdom Polish records. of Poland as defined by the boundaries One issue that the group might want to consider for th e near as they existed from 1867-1917 . future i s acquiring non-profit status . A t this point in time, the official statu s of the group is somewhat nebulous. Ther e are ADVISORY GROUP: some benefits t o having a non-profit statu s such as cheaper Warren Blatt, Editor postage rates for som e kinds of mailings and the tax deductibility Sid Orfus, Production Manager of donations to the group, at least in the United States. M y Mark Froimowitz, Coordinato r initial investigation of this suggests that it would not take an onerous effort t o do this. I f any member o f the group has VISIT OUR WEB PAGE experience with this and would be willing to take this one as a www.jewishgen.org/krsig task, please let me know. Subscriptions and all administrative We again have a collection of articles that should be of correspondence should be directed to: interest to our readers: part I of a translation o f the yizkor book of Zwoleri (in eastern Radom gubernia), outlining the town's KIELCE-RADOM SIG , history, with part II to follow i n the next issue; translation s fro m Mark Froimowitz, Coordinato r the yizkor book of Dzialos2yce (in southern Kielce gubernia): the 90 Eastbourne Rd. table o f contents an d a compilation of residents who were killed Newton, MA 0245 9 in the Holocaust; excerpt s from a memoir o f Henry Zagdansk i e-mail: [email protected] who was born and raised in Radom and who went back to visit in Phone: (617) 527-4036 the 1970' s with his family; tw o book reviews, one of a scholarly study of the documentary evidenc e of Jewish life in Opatôw (in All matters relating to research and southern Radom gubernia), and the other o f volume seven of an editorial articles should be directed to: encyclopedia o f Jewish communities in Poland, published by Yad Warren Blatt, Editor Vashem, coverin g former Kielc e and Radom gubernias; and , o f 8 Bishops Forest Drive course, extracts of Jewish vital records from LD S microfilms — Waltham,MA 02452-880 1 birth records from the city of Kielce, marriage records fro m e-mail: [email protected] Olkusz (southwes t Kielce gubernia), and death records fro m Szydlôw (southeast Kielce gubernia). Al l of our extracts in this Dues (U.S . funds) are : issue come from Kielc e gubernia. Let' s hear from som e $26.00 for U.S., Canada and Mexico Radomers fo r the upcoming issues. $32.00 for all others [add $6.00 for oversea s airmail delivery instead of surface mail delivery] Winter 2000 Kielce-Radom SIG\ Journal Volum e 4, Number 1 Excerpts from Henry Zagdanski's memoirs "It Must Never Happen Again" Edited by Sid Orfu s I was born on the 11t h of November of knowledge, sevent y to seventy-five pe r cen t the year 192 5 in the city of Radom, which is of th e people who live d there were Jewish . located abou t on e hundred kilometer s sout h They ran the town, and were mostly involved of Warsaw. So , I am a Radomer. i in tanneries and shoemaking. M y father was born there, but late r moved to Radom. M y When I was born , Rado m wa s th e mother cam e fro m Ostrowiec , a smal l cit y largest city in Kielce province in east central with a population of 20,000. Poland. I t wa s a n administrativ e an d industrial cente r o f some importance, an d it The schoo l I wen t t o wa s name d still is . Radom' s populatio n a t th e timejo f Dlugosza, after a well known Polish poet. I n my birt h wa s clos e t o 120,00 0 people . my class there were fifty-three students, most About on e thir d o f tha t populatio n wa s of them children of military officers fro m the Jewish. Man y Jews had moved to the Radom army camp, which was located a five-minute area fro m Russi a an d fro m othe r borde r walk from th e school. Althoug h the schoo l countries. Toda y about 200,000 people live was a good one, the degree of anti-Semitism in Radom. Ver y fe w are Jewish. ! there was indescribable. Th e principal of the i school, a man name d Mr. Wpawloski , was We lived at No. 23 Rwanska Street,j in very good to me and to my friend Dersz. W e the heart of the city. Th e building we lived were the only two Jewish boys in that class. in was made of brick and had two entrances. Mr. Wpawlosk i protecte d me . M y fathe r One entrance opened on Rwanska Street, the would sen d hi m a littl e gif t fro m tim e t o main street. Th e other opened onto Szewska time. A priest would visit the school once a Street, a back street. Th e building had three week t o teac h religio n classes . W e wer e floors i n all, an d two or three families live d excused fro m thes e lecture s becaus e w e in the other parts o f the building. W e liad attended cheder every afternoon, afte r school running wate r bu t n o indoo r toilet , i In ended, for a couple of hours. Th e priest was another win g o f th e building , ther e was a also good to Dersz and to me. tavern on the main floor an d a small hotel! on the second floor. Bot h were operated by the But I will never forget th e pain and the owner of the building, Mr. Czerwinski . H e fights w e ha d t o endur e durin g th e schoo l named the hote l afte r himself , callin g i t me day. I had to enlist the help of three or fou r Czerwinski Hotel. Hi s daughter was married Polish students. I made friends with them by to the publisher of a local newspaper, Dzien offering t o d o all thei r homewor k i n Dobry Ziemi Radomski (Goo d Mornin g exchange for the protection they would give Radom). It s founde r an d publisher was i an me. A t recess, w e would stan d i n a corne r unpleasant man named Borowski. H e was an and these big boys would stand there and not anti-Semite, an d hi s newspape r wa s let anyon e com e nea r us .