Preface

By Marc Zell

Sefer Biala Podlaska, the Yizkor Memorial Book for the town of Biala Podlaska and vicinity, was the result of the combined efforts of many individual Bialans and others following World War II, culminating in the publication of the volume in 1961. But this extraordinary tome would never have been created without the singular contribution of its editor, Moshe Yosef Feigenbaum (1908 - 1986). Before the War, M.Y. Feigenbaum was a bookkeeper in Biala. When the Nazis invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, he was a conscript in the Polish cavalry which was no match for the Teutonic horde. He returned to his native Biala after Poland was decimated. He survived the Holocaust in Biala and nearby Mezritch, after losing his wife and two-year old daughter, and most of family, to the Nazi murderers.

From his hiding places in Biala he chronicled the fate of his family and his birthplace on scraps of toilet paper. After the War he published his personal history in two volumes on of which has been translated into English and appears on this Portal: “Podlasie in Umkum” (“The Extermination of Podlasie -- 1942 - 1944”)[Munich, 1948] and “Podlasie in Nazi Klem” (Podlasie in Nazi Chains -- 1939 -1941 (Buenos Aires, 1953). This two-volume memoire served as the foundation for Sefer Biala Podlaska now presented here in English translation.

After the liberation, Feigenbaum along with a handful of Jewish survivors collected documentation and other evidence which was used by the Soviet Army to prosecute and punish Nazi war criminals responsible for the destruction of Jewish Podlasie. Leaving Poland for the West, Feigenbaum was one the members of a small but distinguished group located in Munich that worked to collect materials to document the Shoah. Their efforts formed the basis of the archives that are now housed at Yad Vashem in Jerusalem. We owe an enormous debt to Moshe Yosef Feigenbaum for his prodigious work in perpetuating the history of Biala Podlaska and its surrounding towns and villages; and in creating the basis for documenting the Holocaust for generations to come. May his work and memory be a blessing forever.

Title	Author	Page
Foreword [H]	The editors	3
Foreword	The editors	5
The Jews in Biala: Tracing their History to the Middle of Nineteenth Century [H]	Dr. M. Handel	9
Jewish Biala During the Last Generation [H]	M. Y. Fiegenboim	30
Total Destruction [H]	M. Y. Fiegenboim	47
The Zionist Organization [H]	M. Bruhel	77
The book	M. Y. Feigenbaum	87
Biala	M.Y. Feignbaum	89
Jews in Biale	Dr M. Hendl	95
Jewish Biale in Recent Generations	M.Y. Feigenbaum	125
The Economic Life
A. Trade until World War 1;    B. Forerunner Of The Banks	M. R.	149
Jewish Income	M. Y. Feigenbaum	151
Trade	Gedalyahu Braverman	157
A. Factories;    B. Printing	M. Y. Feigenboim	159
The Biale Estate	Alter Vineberg	162
The Professional [Workers] Movement	Yisroel Hochman	168
The Artisans Union	B. Winograd	170
The Retailers Union	Shmuel Kahan	171
Credit Cooperation    a. a. Until the First World War	A. Wajs	172
b. In Liberated Poland	M. Y. Feigenbaum	174
Workers Consumer Cooperative Einikeit	W. Szuster	177
Cooperative Mechanical Bakery	M. Y. F–M	178
The Interest-Free Loan Fund at the Small Businessmen's Union		178
Parties
The Zionist Organization	M. Bruchl	179
Hashomer Hatza'ir		192
The Revisionist Organization	Jacob Bernstein	198
The Mizrachi	M. Bravermann, A. Brandweinman, Y. Beitl	199
Poalei Zion Left	Avraham Lavi	202
The National Funds		204
The “Bund”    a. From the start to 1918	Gedaliahu Braverman	206
b. Between Both World Wars	V. Schuster	215
The Rise of “Agudat Yisrael”	Moshe Braverman	219
The Communist Movement	Gottl Biederman	220
An Anarchistic Group in Biale	Gedalyahu Braverman	222
The Cultural Life
General Overview	M. Y. Feigenboim	224
The “Yavne” School	M. Raboun	230
Nachman Schiwak's Private Elementary School		233
Evening Courses to learn Polish	Gedalyahu Braverman	234
An Attempt at Culture	M. Rabon	234
The “Tarbut” Library	M.Y. Feigenboim	235
The Bundist Library	Gedalyahu Braverman	236
The Library of the Left Leaning Po'alei Tzion	A. Labi	237
Maccabi	Nachman Vineberg	238
The Press	Chaim Rozmarin	241
Dramatic Circles	Gedalyahu Braverman	243
The Dramatic Circle of “Bet–Am”	M. Y. Feigenboim	245
Purim Plays at the end of the 19th Century	Gedalyahu Braverman	247
The Religious Life
General Overview	M. Y. Feigenbaum	248
The Talmud Torah		253
Houses of Prayer The synagogue, The Beith Hamidrash, The Additional Beith Hamidrash, The Beith Hamidrash Of Volia	M. Y. Feignbaum	254
Prayer Houses of Chassidim and the opponents of Chassidism	Fyvl Gold	258
Cantors	Feivel Gold	261
The Rebbe's Court	Asher Hoffer	264
Rabbis and Rebbes in Biala	Meir Edelbaum	266
A Portrait of Rabbi Shmuel Aryeh Leib, a Holy Person, of Blessed Memory, the Rabbi of Biale	Shmuel T. Halevi Rubinshtein	274
The Rabbi Reb Tzvi Hirshhorn		279
Rebbe Berish Landau		280
Rebbe Ahron Landau		282
Our master and Teacher Rabbi Yitzchak Ya'acov Rabinowicz		283
The Khevra Kadishe		284
The Cemeteries		284
Hassidic Biala in Literature
Between Two Mountains	Y. L. Peretz	286
The Silent Man From Wurk	Y. Opatoshu	292
Poland	Y. Y. Trunk	294
Biala's “Yard”	A. Litwin	299
Social Institutions
The Hospital	M. Y. F – M	301
In the Health Service for the Welfare of the Population	Alter Wajnberg and Asher Hoper	304
“Achiezer”	Moshe Braverman	305
The Children's Home		308
TOZ	Baruch Vinograd	310
The Moyshev–Skeynim	M. Y. F – M	313
Women's Aid Committee		314
Other Voluntary Institutions in the City	M. Y. F – M	315
Personalities, Figures and Types
Political activists		317
Apollinaire Heartglass	Yitzhak Grinboim
Apollinaire Heartglass, Moshe Rubinstein, Joshua Fisher	M. Y. Feigenboim
Moshe Smolyor	Jacob Aaron Rosenboim
Baruch Weinberg
Yeshayahu Weinberg
Elie Shimsheles (Elijahu Yustman), David Kruses (Goldfarb)	Gdaliahu Braverman
Elie Bobkes (Elijahu Hoffman), Tankhum Freind	P. Gold
Hirsh Richter (Lazar the Carpenter)
Rabbi David Pizich	Elijahu Mazor
Religious Persons and Figures		334
Rabbi Dovid'l Karliner	Dr. Shmuel Elyashiv
Bialer Yichus (pedigree, O.A.), “The Hoseh” (The Prophet), Rabbi Noah (The Giant of Biala), Rabbi Moshe Cohen, Rabbi Moshe Moses (The Great), Rabbi Moshe Shahor (the Little), Rabbi Shimele Kreidshtein (the “Skoreyi”)	Pavel Gold
Rabbi Velvel Moses
The Rabbi Shmuel Tanhum Levi Rubinstein
Rabbi Shmuel Jacob Rubinstein	Shmuel Tanhum HaLevi Rubinstein
Portraits		342
Yakov Steinman, Menachem Mendel Gelenberg, Moshe Kave, Idel Schwartz, Alter Zukerman, Hershel Zak, Haim Mustovitch (The Kobryner), Benjamin Konolstein, Yakov Virnik, Hershel Nuchovitz, Dr. David Cohen, Dr. Butche Finkelstein, Dr. Nathan Tsigelnick, Shimon Goldsmith	M. Y. Feigenbaum
Social Workers, Writers and Personalities
Ya'akov Kahan	Yosef Zide	358
Aharon Beckerman	Y. Papiernikov	359
Yossel Birshtein, Yitzhak Perlov	Melech Ravitch	359
Ya'akov Cohen		361
Ya'akov Falatitzky		362
Yosef Zide	Yakov Kahan	363
Advocate Avraham Yitzchak Gottlieb	Zalman Gottlieb	364
Fyvel Friedman	F. Gold	364
Bernard Lieberman	Arthur Lederman	365
Dr. Yehuda Leib Davidson	Yosef Babitsh Prozshani	365
Fritz Kornberg	Moshe Ravon	366
Women Characters		369
Tille Berlin	Yitzchak Shein	369
Rivkah Akivaches, Pesl the “Deaf”, Esther the “Lizard”	B. Wineberg	370
Godya Shteinman	Dina Arbitman	373
Chavale Rodzinek	M. Y. Feigenboim	374
Types		375
Moshe Tuvia the carpenter	B. Vineberg
Shmerele Becker (Hochman)	Gedalyahu Braverman
Leibe Mednik (Reb Yehuda Leib Bornshtein)	Ya'akov ben Yechezkel
Abik Ogrodnik (Abush Rozenblum), Mordche'le Weintraub	Berel Fakman
Boruch Sholem the Teacher (Krideshtein), Motl Domatshever, Shualke Cohen, Yossel Vetshik (Gotfried), Pesach Skos, Moshe Bass, Alter Nemirover, Yitzchak Urtsheles, Meir Tallitmacher [lit. prayer shawls maker], Idl Tzinnes (Kanalshtein), Chaim Chaveles, Moshe Bukkes (Puterman), Yos Drozshkarzsh (Gerrman)	F. Gold
F o l k l o r e
Words, Aphorisms, and Jokes by Biale's Sharp Minds and Fun Lovers; Surnames according to towns of origin, Grandmothers and Grandfathers and occupations; Mocking Surnames and Nicknames; Customs and Charms; Clothes and Fashions of 80 years ago	M. Y.Feigenboim	384
Tales and Legends
“Stoyontse” The “Upright” Burial		388
Without Success		388
The Dead Man	M.Y. Feigenboim	389
The Muddy Neighbourhood	F. Gold	390
Stories	M.Y. Feigenboim	390
In the town they used to narrate the following legends	F. Gold & G. Braverman	392
The “Hero” from Biale	A. Litvin	392
A Blood Libel	M.Y. Feigenboim	394
Destruction and Annihilation	M.Y. Fajgenbaum	399
Survivors Tales
The Beginning of the End	Berish Asenhaltz	445
A. In the Miedzyrzec Ghetto;    B. In a Bunker in the Center of Miedzyrzec	R. Bachrach	446
Leaving Home	A Bialer	460
Some Memories	Leon Fokman	461
In Liberated Biala	M. Y. Fiegenboim	464
Bialer in the World
In Israel	M.Y. Feigenboim	470
In North America
A. New York		472
B. Los Angeles	David Gordon	477
In Argentina	Yakov Aranovitch	478
In France		481
In Canada	Noakh Bresker	481
In Australia	Hershel Orlanski	483
Our Compatriot, Yakov Wirnik a Witness at the Eichmann Trial in Jerusalem		484
Index of names and places		485

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