[Page 723]

Facsimile of the ‘Bekanntmachung’

In the ‘Bekanntmachung,’ it says the following:

With this, the Jewish population of Zamość is notified that in accordance with the orders of the organs of German authority, a Labor-Company has been created by the ‘Judenrat’ of Zamość.

All persons desiring to receive a call to work, are required to present themselves promptly at the designated hour, at the gathering place (at the location of the local commander), and exactly fill out all the orders of the authority and the leaders of the various separate labor groups.

The list of those people who will not present themselves for work, or who want to undergo an involuntary subordination, will be presented each day to the organs of authority with the objective of [meting out] severe punishment.

Facsimile of document

Wednesday, August 14, 1940, all Jews of the city of Zamość from the age of 16 to 55 years of age must, without any exception, and independent of where they work, present themselves for an inspection at Janowica, the seat of the SS, at 6 o'clock in the morning. The ‘Judenrat’ once again emphasizes that without exception, everyone must be present, and it demands that this be done.

Those who will not follow the order of the Chief of the SS, will be drawn to severe punishment or employment does not release anyone from presenting himself for this inspection.

Personal documents are to be taken along, and concurrence from medical doctors.

[Page 724]

Facsimile of tax document

The following people who are delinquent in the payment of their taxes, are requested to pay those taxes immediately, the latest, by August 30, 1940 at 12 o'clock at the Judenrat.

After the expiry of this term, the list of the people with delinquent taxes will be turned over to the German authorities.

Edelsberg, Yankel	200 Zlotys	Sztab, Mendel	120 Zlotys
Fishman, Hirsch	70 “	Szarf, Josef-Chaim	190 “
Freid, Shlomo	95 “	Topf, Sholom	150 “
Finkstein, Mordechai	80 “	Witlin, Solomon	85 “
Fink and Son	130 “	Wilder, Baruch	75 “
Pfefferkichen, Sarah	120 “	Rubinsonova	3475 “
Goldman, Yankel	245 “	Peltz, Shmuel	340 “
Goldman, Gedalia	250 “	Pomper, Fishl	440 “
Goldgraberova, Ch.	100 “	Nemtzman, Shlomo	150 “
Goldstein, Judka	180 “	Scherer, Chaya	150 “
Greenbaum, Hirsch	130 “	Frieling,	230 “
Griener, Feiga	50 “	Katz, David-Leib	150 “
Harfin, Mottel	200 “	Cooperstein, Itzik	255 “
Hertz, Yankel	140 “	Koppelman, Chana	155 “
Inlander, V.	150 “	Schwartz, Ethel	700 “
Kliger, Wolf	190 “	Fartkin, Chaya	130 “
Lak, Mendel	220 “	Zoberman, Mashkeh	100 “
Messer, Hirsch	70 “	Zimlich, Shia	150 “
Neimark, Shia	110 “	Bokser, Esther	75 “
Scheck, Sarah	100 “	Fuchs, Tobias	300 “

Round Stamp of the Judenrat in German and in Polish”

[Page 725]

Facsimile of document number 5

In connection with the fact that incidents recur where Jews are detained, men and women, without the (Jewish) armbands, and also this occurs after the police hours, that is 19 o'clock, the Judenrat wants to make public to the Jewish Populace the severe penalties which potentially threaten those who violate the orders previously mentioned, which go up to 2 years of imprisonment.

The Judenrat especially notifies that the following listed people:

1. Hirschberg, Galla
2. Hirschberg, Regina
3. Milchman, Rosa
4. Lifschitz, Sh.
5. Bladi, Ida
6. Goldberg, David
7. Cohn, Yenta
8. Nachbar, Meir
9. Helbern, Kaya (Chaya-)
10. Rothman, Frieda

were yesterday, November 23,of this year, arrested for being on the street after the police hours and only now, after the intervention of the Judenrat, and the payment of a fine of 200 zlotys, they were released at 21:30 hours. In the possibility of a recurrence of the previously mentioned, the Judenrat declares that it will no longer intervene in such instances, and those people who will willfully disobey the previously mentioned orders (that means, wearing the bands, and not being on the streets after police hours) will be left to their own fate.

Simultaneously, the Judenrat forbids, on the basis of an indication from the authorities, any gathering without a purpose at the location of the municipal building, and also loitering in the streets (especially by young people of both genders).

In relation to the foregoing, the most severe penalties will be assessed, including the immediate transfer to work camps, because the Judenrat is operating on the assumption that at the same time, all Jews will be employed, and therefore those individuals who loiter in the streets belong to that group which is attempting to shirk the general work duty for Jews. They will find a better venue for themselves in the compulsory work camps.

Zamość, November 27, 1940.

[Page 726]

Facsimile of letter

Krasnobrod, May 4, 1941

To the Jewish Social Self-Help in Krakow.

Enclosed we provide two assessments for the months of March and April and four exhibits. As is shown by these exhibits, the condition of life in our town is at the present moment, very tragic.

In general, our population counts 977 Jews, of which 720 are previous residents, and the rest, meaning 255 people, are evacuees from Zamość, and this mostly the poor, of which only 30 are employed at German workplaces – the rest are women and children.

In general, salaried workers among the men between the ages of 16 and 60 years of age come to 125 people. The rest either have no skills for work, or work on a fee basis without a set salary (!!!) in the Judenrat, or with the Help-Committee.

Our situation is extraordinarily tragic. The particularly painful point of the present moment is the question of domicile. Because of a lack of housing, we have until now been unable to liquidate the dwellings of the refugees. A large portion of the refugees have been forced to live still at the municipal bath house and in the mikva, under extraordinarily difficult un-hygienic, simply inhuman conditions. This bath house is a danger to the entire populace, because at ever minute there is the threat of an outbreak of an epidemic, and under no circumstances are we in a position to be able to put an end to this situation.

The project to rebuild the edifice (of the fire-fighters command?), into residences, could not be realized for lack of funds.

The second painful problem that we feel intensely is that of clothing. Almost ha the population has no shoes, underwear or clothing. This also causes their inability to go out to work, and they are a burden to the Help-Committee, which does not have the power to help.

The problem of provisioning in general and in particular for the children as well as medical assistance does not make our concerns any less, as is the case with the prior issues, [in] our town, and there is no possible outlook for changes to take place for the better. The entire assistance that has been given to us by the Jewish Social Self-Hep to date is far from adequate. The scarcity of milk is felt particularly keenly, as kasha and even bread for the children.

There is no Jewish doctor at all in our town, and for each visit of a city doctor, we must pay even though we have nowhere to take the money from.

We believe that all this will give an accurate picture of our life an our pain-laden problems. Taking the above-mentioned into consideration, we believe that you, honored sirs, will make every effort, with all possibilities, to help us. Otherwise, our populace is placed in a hopeless position, without any possibility of sustaining itself.

[Page 727]

The validity of the previously presented facts can be certified by the municipal Help-Committee of Zamość, which is well acquainted with our hopeless situation.

With respect,

(Signatures and Stamps of the Judenrat and Help-Committee in Krasnobrod).

At this opportunity, we request that you send us the forms for the monthly reports of the activity of the Help-Committee.”

[Page 728]

Facsimile of document

“Jewish Social Self-Help
Jewish Help-Committee for the Region of Zamość

No. 76/42

Zamość, May 7, 1942

To the Jewish Social Self-Help – Presidium – in Krakow.

With this we are notifying you that on the day of April 11, 1942, 3,000 Jews were evacuated from Zamość. However, on April 30 of this year, the first transport of evacuated Jews from the protectorate arrived, in the amount of approximately 1,000 people; the following days – he 2^nd and 3^rd of May of this year, two additional transports arrived – of them, one was of 1,000 people from the protectorate, and the second, with 800 people, frm Westphalia (Dortmund) and vicinity.

From the general total of 2,800 people, 2,100 remained in Zamość, and approximately 700 people were taken to Komarow from our region. The evacuees from Zamość were mostly settled collectively in barracks.

We immediately placed a second kitchen into operation, and from the first moment of the arrival of the transport, the evacuated people find themselves under our oversight. The burden of the obligation for covering all of the expenses for maintaining and settling all these people falls upon us, as also upon the Judenrat.

Taking into account that after the evacuation of the day of April 11, 1942, about 40 percent of our population remained in Zamość, approximately 4,000 of the prior population, which consists exclusively of workers (because the only ones remaining in the city were those who in fact were at work at the time), the above mentioned tasks exceed our powers and our means. We request assistance from every standpoint, namely: money, clothing, (most of the evacuated Jews arrived without luggage) and sanitary help in the form of medicaments (we have enough physicians from those among the arrivals).

Respectfully – ”

[Page 729]

Facsimile of document

“To the Circle Head Man – in Zamość.

The people living in Komarow, who, on the first of May, arrived from Zamość with the Judentransport, permit themselves to approach you with the following request:

The transport was split in Zamość, so that a small part of it remained in Zamość and because of this were lost to work at the time that 729 Jews were forced to take up residence in Komarow. This Judentransport came from the ghetto of Theresienstadt, and conveyed its entire baggage in three wagons, with the permission and under the oversight of the Theresienstadt commander, was taken along with the transport. This baggage contains the only possessions of those ghetto residents on the transport, and consists of the necessary bedroom effects and items of clothing, as well as food, which, incidentally, during the process of being incarcerated in the ghetto, underwent quite a sufficient examination. These effects are the only things that the evacuees have to their names. Especially the children, which only were wearing undergarments and clothing, which they were wearing at the time of the evacuation.

We request therefore, to release an order to the railway management, that the luggage that is found at the Zamość train station is to be transferred to the local Judenrat there.

Komarow, May 9, 1942.

For the Evacuated Protectorate Jews in Komarow.

Signature not Legible.”

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