I had no ancestors in Jedwabne, but I believe there were some cousins. Few records, or perhaps only one, indicate my family was in Jedwabne. Kurlender has appeared on surname lists.
This town is a sad tale in Poland’s history. Most of the atrocities brought against the Jews were committed by the Nazis, but there were some Poles who took it upon themselves to also contribute. In this village, already under some German influence, they rounded up the Jews into a barn by the Jewish cemetery and burned it down.
I saw three stories about the fate of the Jews in Rutki. In one, they were sent to Łomza. In a second, they were marched out to the forest and killed. (It was along the way to Łomza, so maybe both of those stories are the same.) In a third, they were sent to Jedwabne.
I knew where the synagogue used to be in town, but I just drove by the spot quickly. I went out to the memorial and the Jewish cemetery.
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- Jedwabne
Continuing north from my previous stop.
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- Jedwabne Holocaust Memorial
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- Jedwabne Holocaust Memorial
Prayer for the dead.
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- Jedwabne Holocaust Memorial
"In memory of the Jews of Jedwabne and surrounding villages, men, women, and children, our fellow citizens of this land, who were murdered, burned alive at this place, 10 July 1941."
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- Jedwabne Jewish Cemetery
Directly across from the memorial. The gate was stuck; I didn't fight it hard enough to get in.
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- Jedwabne Jewish Cemetery
"Jewish cemetery in Jedwabne, founded in the nineteenth century. The final resting place of Jews from Jedwabne and the surrounding area. Graves of Jews murdered 10 July 1941. Part of their memory."
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- Jedwabne Jewish Cemetery
It was a pretty big cemetery for a small village. I didn't see any traces of other gravestones, only the one memorial.
You can read more about the Jedwabne pogrom.
The URL of this post is http://idogenealogy.com/blog/2012/10/02/jedwabne/.
All photos and content Copyright 2012 by Banai Lynn Feldstein.
Tags: Kurlender
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