Kobryn, Belarus

0 Book of Kobrin;
the scroll of life and destruction

(Kobryn, Belarus)

52°13' / 24°21'

Translation of
Sefer Kobryn; megilat hayim ve-hurban

Edited by Betzalel Shwartz, Israel Chaim Bil(e)tzki

Published in Tel Aviv, 1951

Our sincere appreciation to the Holocaust center of Northern California,
especially to Judy Janec, for scanning the book and for permission to put this material on the JewishGen web site.
Our thanks also to Logan Kleinwaks for converting the scan into our format.

This is a translation from: Sefer Kobryn; megilat hayim ve-hurban
(Book of Kobrin; the scroll of life and destruction), ed. Betzalel Shwartz, Israel Chaim Bil(e)tzki, Published in Tel Aviv, 1951

Translation printed by Holocaust Center of Northern California 639 – 14^th Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94118
Edited and Printed by Joel Neuberg for HCNC February, 1992. Translated from the Hebrew by Nilli Avidan and Avner Perry.
Edited by Fred Landers, Shari Malkin, Joel Neuberg

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A Map of Kobrin		frontispiece
Preface	Ronald Wornick	iii
Introduction	Joel Neuberg	iv
At the Memorial Evening	Betzalel Shwartz, I. Ch. Biltzki, M. Motkes	1
Memorial Tribute	Betzalel Shwartz	1
Polsia	Betzalel Shwartz	9
The Story of Kobrin and the Jewish Population	Y. Pinchuk	11
Documentation	from the Registrar in Petersburg, 1899	15
The History of the Rabbinate Leadership	M. Tzinovitz	21
From Rabbi Yechezkel Kutik’s Memoirs	Y. Kotik	61
Memories	Chaim Kovrinitz	64
The First “Diplomatic Step” of Chaim Weitzman	C. W. Lichtenstein	67
Memories	Nehemia Wornick	68
The Fire Fighters of Kobrin and The Fantastic Military Band		71
Types		79
The Biggest Tragedy of Kobrin		81
The History of the Zionist Movement in Kobrin		82
Notes About My Town	Efraim Polonski	83
In the Years 1904-1913	Dr. M. Halperin	89
In the Years 1914-1926	S. Halperin	91
Kobrin in the Years 1909-1913	Yaakov Levin	105
Zionist Performance in Kobrin in 1909		107
A Visit to Kobrin	Sh. Anski	109
The Town of Kobrin	K. Faustovski	120
During the First World War	Moshe Flatstein	123
My Dear Town, How?	Abraham Levits	126
A Stranger and a Citizen	Zalman Lifshitz	127
My Memories of the “Chalutz” Movement	Isser Zever	130
From the Recent Past	Sh. Parman	132
The Revolutionary Movement in Kobrin in 1904-1905	P. Sapoznikov	135
Writers		141
The Great Synagogue		147
Purim Actors in Kobrin		150
Life of Religion and Tradition	Y. Tanchumi	155
Livelihoods in our Town	Joseph Vishengrad	159
Charity and Charitable Institutions		167
Institutions of Education and Culture		170
Yeshiva and Yeshiva Students	M. Tzinovitz	178
The Youngsters of the Yeshiva	Efraim Polonski	180
Kobrin in the Eyes of a Native of Chomsk	A. Ch. Zaritzki	183
The House That Shines in the Distance	E. Biltzki	189
Uprooted Stormy Chapters of Life		190
A Note to my Parents and Members of my Household		193
To the Memory of my Teacher and Rabbi		196
In the Paths of my Town	I. Ch. Biltzki	200
To the Memory of the Jews of Zemochevitz	M. Lifshitz	206
Zemochevitz	M. Vratinitzki	209
My Poor Small Town	Chana Stolovitzki-Markuza	210
My Little Town	Malka Levin	211
A Reality That Disappeared	Chaim Appelboim	214
Fragments of Memories	L. Tugman	218
A Passover Evening in the Alleys of “Mitzraim”	Joseph Schwartz	225
A Monument of Simple Souls	A. Novik	226
The Writings and Observations of a Foreigner and a Resident	Ch. Z. Yoni	228
The Movement of the Workers of Zion	L. Sirota	232
In the Club of Hashomer Hatzair	From the diary of the group	238
From the Life of the Movement in the City	I. Pinchuk	241
From Jewish Kobrin – a Book	Sh. Segal	244
Our Town in the Mirror of the Press	M. Tzinovitz	248
Rabbi Moshe of Kobrin	from M. Buber: “Stories of Chassidim”	261
The Kobrin Dynasty	Menachem-Meir Meirson	272
Rabbi Moshe of Kobrin and his Grandson, Yehalel	R. T.	278
Yehalel, the Rabbi's Grandson	M. Tzinovitz	281
The Blessing of R' Moshe Kobriner	Sh. Levinson	285
The Rabbi Yakov David, Son of Zeev, a Native of Kobrin		287
Tales of Ridbaz	various reporters	289
Rabbi Zalman Sender Kahana-Shapira of Blessed Memory	M. Tzinovitz	293
R' Eliezer Yitzchak Ilanaeh (Sheinboim) of Blessed Memory	excerpts	298
One Among the First	D. Cohen	302
Yaakov Meir Zelkind of Blessed Memory		305
Dr. Y. M. Zelkind	N. Alkon	307
A Conversation with Dr. Y. M. Zelkind		310
A Little Sentimentality	Y. M. Zelkind	313
Yaakov Meir Zelkind	A. Kahana	315
A Memorial to a friend from Among the First		318
Rabbi David Son of Rabbi Shmuel Greenberg, of Blessed Memory		324
Rabbis Native to Kobrin		327
Rabbi Pesach Pruskin and His Yeshiva	I. Vishengrad	331
Rabbi Pesach Pruskin of Blessed Memory	M. Tz.	332
Rabbi Michael Shmoish of Blessed Memory	M. Tz.	336
The Life and Work of Rabbi Michael of Blessed Memory	I. Vishengrad	337
The Last Descendant		342
N. Alkon of Blessed Memory	I. Pinchuk	344
Guarding Education	S. Stavski	347
From the Memories of a Student	Y. Tenenboim	348
Dr. Joseph Privolski of Blessed Memory	B. Pantal	349
An Unforgettable Friend	Noach Markuza	352
Engineer Avraham Levits of Blessed Memory	D. Feller	353
Gedalyahu Alon-Rogoznitzki	excerpts	354
A. M. Grossman of Blessed Memory	I. Beller	358
Yitzchak Pinchuk of Blessed Memory	L. Sirota	361
Benzion Pentol of Blessed Memory		362
Memories	Y. Z. Vilenski	364
The Synagogue “Chaye Adam”		367
Arie Polonski of Blessed Memory	excerpts	368
Various Personalities	Y. Ch. Biltzki	370
War…	D. Ashkenazi	378
From an Eyewitness	Ch. Goldfarb	380
The Holocaust	G. Beil	382
A Letter from Warsaw	A. Herman	393
A Story of a Friend	Akiva Weiner	394
In the Forests of Polsia	excerpts	395
On the Ruins of Kobrin	B. Kupitzky	397
Yizkor (Remembrance)	a memorial list	399
A creation of the painter Zusman, United States	from the Horodetz Book	407

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