Belchatow, Poland

Belchatow Memorial Book
(Bełchatów, Poland)

51°22' / 19°23'

Translation of: Belchatow yizker-bukh

Edited by: Mark Tarkov and Abraham Mittleberg.

Published in Buenos Aires: Association of Polish Jews in Argentina, 1951.

Acknowledgments

Project Coordinator

Roni Seibel Liebowitz

Our sincere appreciation to Indiana University Press https://www.indiana.edu/~iupress/,
for permission for the following chapters
“The Struggle for the Right to Work” & “Belchatov without Jews” from
From A Ruined Garden

This is a translation from: Belchatow yizker-bukh Belchatow memorial book,
Editors: Mark Tarkov and Abraham Mittleberg. Buenos Aires: Association of Polish Jews in Argentina, 1951.
Pages: 511 Language: Y

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

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

This material is made available by JewishGen, Inc. and the Yizkor Book Project for the purpose of
fulfilling our mission of disseminating information about the Holocaust and destroyed Jewish communities.
This material may not be copied, sold or bartered without JewishGen, Inc.'s permission. Rights may be reserved by the copyright holder.

JewishGen, Inc. makes no representations regarding the accuracy of the translation. The reader may wish to refer to the original material for verification.
JewishGen is not responsible for inaccuracies or omissions in the original work and cannot rewrite or edit the text to correct inaccuracies and/or omissions.
Our mission is to produce a translation of the original work and we cannot verify the accuracy of statements or alter facts cited.

All the profits from this Yizkor Book are pledged to
the fund to aid the Belchatow survivors.

Series Title Page 2

Title Page 5

From the editor 9

A word to the reader 11

Dedication 14

Belchatow on the Geographic Map of Poland 15

The Seal of the Belchatower Municipal Government 16

I. The Story of the Jews in Belchatow

Dr. P. Friedman: The history of the Jews in Belchatow 19

II. Belchatow in struggle, work and art

Israel Pitowski: The Beginning and the End 63

L. Rodnitski: “The Belchatow Revolutionary” 81

P. Wald: Belchatow in the year 1898 83

Yosef Reich: Belchatow that lives in my memory 102

Zalman Pudlowski: On the border of two centuries 110

Levi Herzkowicz: This is how we began 144

Avraham Laib: Belchatow 1914 - 1922 148

Relief activitites during the First World War 200

Hersh Goldminc: The struggle for the right to work 208

Shlomo Zytnicki: Once there was a shtetl 218

Yakov Botoshanski: Y. L. [Yoel Lajb] Goldsztejn - A writer who wanted to solve the most difficult problems of man and Jew 246

Moshe Janowsky: “Hands” 268

III. Political movements

Moshe Efrati: Belchatow and Zionism 271

Elimelech Pudlowski: The Zionist groups in Belchatow 275

Fishel Szmulewicz: The Leftist Poalei Zion [Zionist Workers' Party] 291

Leib Pudlowski: The Orthodox movement in Belchatow 300

M. Gliksman: From the Bundist Movement in Belchatow 323

Zainwel Przedborski: The story of the Leftist Workers' Party [Labor Party] 358

Jakov Tsingler: The Leftist Workers Movement between the two World Wars 369

Y.M. Pukacz: Portraits of Progressive Activists 379

IV. The Destruction of Belchatow

Leib Pudlowski: Under the Nazi's occupation 391

Zaken Liberman: The Four Days of Horror 456

M. Kaufman: In the Years of the Holocaust 463

Documents of the Holocaust and Destruction 477

Belchatower Martyrs in France and Belgium 498

Yosef Reich: Belchatow without Jews 501

Polish Jewry Book Collection from the Central–Union of Polish Jewry in Argentina 505

Press Articles about the Book Collection 508

List of Pictures

Note on translation: For the sake of consistency, wherever possible, the spellings of names have been edited using the English or Polish spellings preferred by the families.

Yizkor Book Project JewishGen Home Page Belchatow, at Kehilalinks

Yizkor Book Director, Lance Ackerfeld
Emerita Yizkor Book Project Manager, Joyce Field z”l
Contact person for this translation Roni Seibel Liebowitz
This web page created by Mike Kalt and Lance Ackerfeld

Series Title Page	2
Title Page	5
From the editor	9
A word to the reader	11
Dedication	14
Belchatow on the Geographic Map of Poland	15
The Seal of the Belchatower Municipal Government	16

I. The Story of the Jews in Belchatow
Dr. P. Friedman: The history of the Jews in Belchatow	19

II. Belchatow in struggle, work and art
Israel Pitowski: The Beginning and the End	63
L. Rodnitski: “The Belchatow Revolutionary”	81
P. Wald: Belchatow in the year 1898	83
Yosef Reich: Belchatow that lives in my memory	102
Zalman Pudlowski: On the border of two centuries	110
Levi Herzkowicz: This is how we began	144
Avraham Laib: Belchatow 1914 - 1922	148
Relief activitites during the First World War	200
Hersh Goldminc: The struggle for the right to work	208
Shlomo Zytnicki: Once there was a shtetl	218
Yakov Botoshanski: Y. L. [Yoel Lajb] Goldsztejn - A writer who wanted to solve the most difficult problems of man and Jew	246
Moshe Janowsky: “Hands”	268

III. Political movements
Moshe Efrati: Belchatow and Zionism	271
Elimelech Pudlowski: The Zionist groups in Belchatow	275
Fishel Szmulewicz: The Leftist Poalei Zion [Zionist Workers' Party]	291
Leib Pudlowski: The Orthodox movement in Belchatow	300
M. Gliksman: From the Bundist Movement in Belchatow	323
Zainwel Przedborski: The story of the Leftist Workers' Party [Labor Party]	358
Jakov Tsingler: The Leftist Workers Movement between the two World Wars	369
Y.M. Pukacz: Portraits of Progressive Activists	379

IV. The Destruction of Belchatow
Leib Pudlowski: Under the Nazi's occupation	391
Zaken Liberman: The Four Days of Horror	456
M. Kaufman: In the Years of the Holocaust	463
Documents of the Holocaust and Destruction	477
Belchatower Martyrs in France and Belgium	498
Yosef Reich: Belchatow without Jews	501
Polish Jewry Book Collection from the Central–Union of Polish Jewry in Argentina	505
Press Articles about the Book Collection	508

List of Pictures