Mezirich, Ukraine

GREAT MEZIRICH

Dina Kurtz Yanai (nee Pressman) from Melzirich

In the middle of Wohlin, in a water-drawer, between two rivers, the Horin and the Slutch, sits Mezirich (which in the Slavic language means "between the rivers"), 45 km. from the iron rail tracks and the city of ROVNO - main city of the region, and 20 km. from Koretz - the city bordering the U.S.S.R., between the two world wars. To all appearances, Mezirich was like all other Wohlin towns, but it was set apart, distinguished as Great Mezirich. Rabbi Dov Ber, the Great "Maggid" (Preacher), a student and follower of the “Baal Shem Tov", chose Mezirich to be his dwelling and because of him, the name Mezirich became famous as the city of the "Great Maggid", the founder of Hassidism (devoutness).

The name Mezirich appears in a long list of sources, such as: "Hidden Light" of M. Bor, Judaic Encyclopedia, Berlin, "The History of Kaballah and Hassidism" J. Tomir 1870, the "Scriptures of the Maggid from Mezirich", Berlin 1923. The list is too long to be included here. Rabbi Levi Yitzchak from Berdichev, Rabbi Zussia Anopolier, who was buried in Mezirich and his tent stood in the Mezirich Cemetery until 1941, and other important Rabbis were all pupils of the Maggid. Mezirich is mentioned in Russian and Ukrainian Chronicles from the 16th Century. In the 18th Century, 2000 Jews lived in Mezirich. Following the Maggid's death, the Jewish Community declined. In 1897, 2704 Jews were registered in Mezirich. In 1932 - 3000 Jews. This is approximately the number of Jews who lived there until the Holocaust, perished during the Nazi period and are buried in a mass grave at a brickyard in Nevirkov (4 km. from the town).

I am looking through the pages of the Book of Mezirich: - Yes, a Jewish town, as the Diaspora Museum shows: A main street - (my parents' home. The pinching in my heart is sharp as always and will remain so forever) the commercial street. Small shops. Here's Hershel Chassia's shop -Hershel Shternshis. But who knows people in Mezirich by their family name? There's Moshe Bobe's and Moshe Srul's, Sheindl Naftule's and Chana Rive's. Only the Governor, Zolie Molior, is called by his family name. So we said, Hershel Chassia's shop, where I always bought a notebook, sometimes candles for mother, but what was there in the shop? A half a sack of flour, a half a sack of coarse salt, a barrel of herring, a few packages of sugar cubes, 2 Cans of kerosene and a pump, a few bars of laundry soap, a dozen notebooks, a half-empty pencil box and many empty shelves. That's it. On Sundays, all the shopkeepers used to gather at his shop - to hear news. Hershel Chassia's was an intellectual Jew. At that time, he received regularly the "Modia” ("Informer" - newspaper). On Saturdays he read regularly the newspaper "Heint" (Today). Sometimes he traded with a friend and looked over the "Moment", and on Sundays he passed on his impressions. It was to him women came to read them letters from their husbands, from America; he wrote the replies, the addresses for everyone. Everyone knew that if Hershel Chassia's wrote the address in his clear and round handwriting, the letter would reach everywhere. Even America it would reach.

But on Mondays, Market Day, no one would dare to bother anyone. There were two Market Days in Mezirich: Mondays and Thursdays. Two very important central pillars in the merchants' livelihood.

A Summer Market Day was, of course, different from a Winter Market. Day. In the summer, from early morning, the wagons would start arriving: it was important to get a central place. The industrious farmer-women had gathered forest berries and blackberries, before sunrise, to preserve the dew on them. They filled small straw baskets or wicker baskets for sale. The forest fruits would give off their aroma all around, and dyed its tasters' mouths black and red. Summer. There' were those who brought dairy products: butter, yellow as wax - from the flowers the cows eat in summer - covered with large green leaves, to protect freshness. A triangle bag of cheese was brought (a “vorchek" In Yiddish). The cheese was made in our area in a snow-white linen sack, thinly woven, so that the butterfat could drip through it and the cheese would remain in the sack: A triangle of cheese with the markings of the woven sack. And onions were brought, a wreath of onions, and wreaths of dried mushrooms, and fresh mushrooms, yellow, for dairy dishes, and young potatoes, radishes, green onions, eggs, and, of course, chickens. The sellers sell their merchandise and buy a new head kerchief, a ribbon - for the daughter to braid in her hair, sometimes a candy for the grandchild, sewing thread, kerosene for lighting, sometimes a piece of fabric for a shirt or a skirt. The men farmers would sell a wagon of grain and a wagon of wood, sometimes a horse -if a son had to be married. Sometimes they sold a wagon and bought clothes, shoes, a wheel for the wagon, work tools. On the market there was an honourable place for the sellers of ready-made hats ("Tandetta”). They set up stands in the square and called out loudly to sell their merchandise. Sometimes, the farmers would end their Market Day in a tavern and spend part of their money there . The taverns were also the livelihood of Jews.

From the top of the hill, the Palace looks over the town. Count Stetzky's Palace. The entire area of the town belongs to him, and he charges each one a leasing charge, left over from the Medieval Ages.

Most of Mezirich's Jews dealt in small commerce, grain, were tradesmen. There were three oil presses in the town, a brickyard, supplying building materials for the surrounding area. There were seamstresses and embroiderers, tailors and well-known hat makers in the area. There were years of relative prosperity. There were years of depression which is when many of the townspeople emigrated to Canada and the U.S. Mezirich had intellectuals who studied the Gemora (religious studies), taught children - regularly taught very small children in a "Cheder" - a room.

Mezirich Jews excelled in their piety, benevolence, charity, kindness and devoutness, modesty, and well-being with G-d and man. In Mezirich, there prevailed a rich traditional atmosphere and a rich national spirit. This atmosphere, in which we grew up, sprouted the type of Wohlin Jew who was open to people, hospitable and a good friend.

As in other communities, Mezirich was an organized community: there was an orphans' council, brides council, money for the needy. Charity boxes helped with small loans, at no interest, to every needy person. There was a hostel for the poor, for passers-by. Two libraries supplied books free of charge - one from "Tarbut", a Hebrew library, and one in the name of Ber Borochov, in Yiddish, from “Poalei Zion" (The Workers of Zion).

There were five synagogues in Mezirich: The Great Synagogue, in the center of town - built by the old "Paritz" (landowner) for his Jews. It was truly a very big synagogue, taller than all the houses, and. could be seen from afar.

The big Study House - the Maggid Dov Ber's Study House, an important learning center in the past, was old. Every once in a while, it would be fixed but it was strictly forbidden to rebuild it for secretive reasons. . .

The learning house of the Hassidim and Tora students, the "Trisker Cluz" was the new-town Synagogue (in the new town).

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