130.1 miles N NW of Minsk ON THE BORDER OF BELARUS AND LATVIA
Latitude: 55º47' Longitude: 27º27'
Also known as Druja
Location: small town in Belorussia
Jewish Presence: first mentioned in the 16th century
Jewish Population in 1939: 1,500
Fate of Jews during WWII: the Nazis ghettoized the Jews. In June 1942 ghetto was destroyed. Some escaped to the forests. 50-60 survived
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Portrait of pupils in front of the wooden 'folkshul' (secular
Jewish elementary school) building.
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#dru-13:Zusia Barkman Birth; Druya 1930 Holocaust Period ;Area of Combat Kozyany Forests Unit 4-th Bielorussian Brig. Fighter |
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#dru-16: Lesia Blachman nee Trybuchow (on the left) was born in Druya in 1911 |
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#dru-38: Druja, 1926 |
#dru-39: Yekutiel Aharon Levitanus and his wife Libe |
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#dru-41: Survivors at the Druya killing field (grave) after the war Amongst |
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#dru-45: Meir Levitanus with his older sister Chaia Miryam Levitanus |
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#dru-52: Boris Barkman, a relative of the Berkman family of Druya during |
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#dru-54: Sonia and Sima Barbakov, Zusia and Zelda Berkman, Zeidlin, Feiga Lurie and Pliskin. |
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| #dru-55: R' Avrohom Levian of Druya |
#dru-56: ard File of Jewish Refugees in Tashkent |
#dru-57: David Levinman with his daughter Braina. David Levinman was born in submitted by his great niece, Julia Sherman <shjulia16@yandex.ru> ( |
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| #dru-61: My Name is David Peltin, son of Basya Genya nee Abramzon and Zalman. I David Peltin (libby.nisenbaum@gmail.com) |
#dru-62: Gitel Rabinovitch and behind her is Hirsch Joffe (b 9.9.1899, Druya) The two children are Rosa and Avremele Joffe. ( other woman might be Hirsch' sister) submitted by the granddaughterDanielle Joffe (Australia) |
#dru-63: The Synagogue |
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#dru-66: Pupils and teachers of the Jewish school of Druya, 1938(?) |
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#dru-67: This is a tiny photo of Tevye Bartak, youngest son of Bentsion Bartak of Druya. Tevye was conscripted into the Tsar's army around 1910, never to be heard of again. |
#dru-68: Back of photo to the left.
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#dru-70: Beitar in Druja |
#dru-71: A group of young men before the war ( amongst them Mr. Levitanos) |
#dru-72: Alter Druyanov in Druja in 1932. |
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#dru-73: The fireman band. |
#dru-74: Bringing the New Torah scrolls. |
#dru-75: Dvora Zeidlin was born in Droja, Poland in 1924 to Shlomo and Sonia. Dvora was murdered/perished in Druja, Poland at the age of 18. This information is based on a Page of Testimony submitted by her stepbrother meir, a Shoah survivor. |
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#dru-76: Malka Sorkin nee Zeidlin was born in Druya, Poland in 1919 to Shlomo and Sonia. She was a teacher and married to Beniamin. Prior to WWII she lived in Druya, Poland. Malka was murdered in Druya, Ghetto at the age of 23. This information is based on a Page of Testimony submitted by her relative, a Shoah survivor. |
#dru-77: Shlomo Zeidlin with his sons Baba and Yitschak, survivors of Druja |
#dru-78: Meir Zaidlin was born in Druja, Poland in 1922 to Shlomo and Sonia (nee Eidelson). Prior to WWII he lived in Druja, Poland. Meir was murdered in 1942 in Druya, Ghetto at the age of 20. This information is based on a Page of Testimony submitted by his stepbrother Meir, a Shoah survivor.
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#dru-79: Sonia Zeidlin nee Eidelson was born in Braslaw, Poland. She was a housewife. Prior to WWII she lived in Druja, Poland. Sonia was murdered/perished in 1942 in Druja, Poland at the age of 45. This |
#dru-80: Perets Papkin was born in Potashnya, Ukraine in 1927 to Yechiel Aba and Reizel. He was a pupil and a teenager. Prior to WWII he lived in Druya, Poland. During the war he was in Druya, Poland. Perets was murdered/perished in 1942 in Druya, Poland. This information is based on a Page of Testimony submitted by his cousin Meir, a Shoah survivor |
#dru-81: Shlomo Itshak Papkin was born in Potashnya, Ukraine to Leibe and Rode. He was a linen dealer and married to Beile nee Goldberg. Prior to WWII he lived in Druya, Poland. During the war he was in Druya, Ghetto. Itshak was murdered in 1942 in Druya, Ghetto. This information is based on a Page of Testimony submitted by his grandson Meir, a Shoah survivor. |
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| #dru-82: Yechiel Aba Papkin was born in Potashnya, Ukraine (USSR) to Shlomo and Beile. He was married to Paye. Prior to WWII he lived in Druya, Poland. During the war he was in Druya, Ghetto. Ihiel was murdered in 1942 in Druya, Ghetto. This information is based on a Page of Testimony submitted by his nephew Meir, a Shoah survivor |
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http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/Hlybokaye/hly38
Read Druya 1976 original Yizkor book (online)
geting more chapters translated)
http://www.jewishgen.org/yizkor/Druya/Druya.html
Please share your comments or photos or links for posting on our Guestbook Page here: egl.comments@gmail.com
members translations of the 1850 Revision List for the shtetlach of
Bildziugi, Disna, Druya, Germanovici, Glubokoye, Golubicy, Leonpol,
Plisa, Postovy, Sharkovshina, finally Luzhek.
Translations were sent to each member
best regards,Batya Matzkin Olsen, Concord, Massachusetts USA
http://www.jewishgen.org/jgff/jgff-faq.html#q3.7
Facebook page for Druya:
http://www.facebook.com/#!/group.php?gid=5582068363
Early Communal History
Small town in Belarus, near the Lithuanian border. The Jewish community is mentioned in the 16th century. Many Jews there were occupied in the local soap industry. The community numbered 1,305 in 1766; 2,366 in 1847; 3,006 in 1897 (out of a total population of 4,742); 1,011 (41) in 1921; and 1,800 in 1925. The author Alter Druyanow was born in Druya.
The Holocaust Period
On the eve of World War II the Jewish population of Druya numbered about 1,500. Between October 1939 and June 1941 Druya was occupied by the Soviets. On July 6, 1941, after the outbreak of the German-Soviet war, the Germans entered the town. During the first days of the war many people accused of allegiance to the Soviets were killed. In the spring of 1942 a ghetto was created. On June 17, 1942, the Germans surrounded the ghetto in order to liquidate it. The inhabitants tried to break out and some groups succeeded in reaching the forests. In order to prevent a mass escape, the Germans shot at Jews and set the ghetto aflame. Some of those who escaped to the forest joined the partisans around the village of Balnia and participated in activities against the Germans. Courtesy of:
"Encyclopedia Judaica"
©1972, Keter Publishing House Jerusalem Ltd
Jerusalem, Israel
DRUYA:
[Source: Swartz eejhp@user.unibel.by ] Located at 5547 2727 in Vitebsk Oblast, 130.1 miles N of Minsk. Alternate names: DRUJA, near the Latvian border. Thanks to the support of Druja descendents in Israel and the United States, we have been able to clear all undergrowth and bushes and reset the nearly five hundred stones which had fallen over during the last 57 years. Incredibly these stones are painted in bright hues of white, red, yellow and blue to accentuate the carvings. The surrounding soil had preserved both the stone ornamentation and pigmentation. Now that the stones are upright once more we are very concerned that exposure to the atmosphere will cause the paint to flake and fade. These stones are the only painted stones I have encountered here. If anyone has any experience in the conservation of this type of artifact I will be grateful for advice. Source: Belarus SIG Archives and Franklin J. Swartz eejhp@user.unibel.by
Sefer Druya ve-kehilot Miory, Druysk ve-Leonpol [The book of Druya and the communities of Miory, Druysk and Leonpol] /Ed. M. Neishtat. Tel Aviv: Druya and Surrounding Region Society, 1973. 255 p., ill. (H, Y). Mordekhai Neishtat
Druja and Surrounding Region Society
Disna district. Disna
Uezd Research Group offers the translation of the 1850 Revision List
for the town of Druya to DURG members. Check out http://www.jewishgen.org/BELARUS/shtetls/sdisna.htmÂ
 Â
Druya - 1850 Revision List for the Disna Uyezd is currently being being
translated by the Disna Uyezd Research Group. In 1850 the Shtetlach
of Disna Uyezd were in Vilna Guberniya and the records reside in the
Central State Historical Archives of Lithuania.
On Saturday nights, even
in the summer when the Sabbath went out very late, the Jews of Filipan
gathered in the house of Gedalla the blacksmith. He was the tallest
in town, and the only “man of the world,�
the only Filipan Jew who had traveled further than Varnyan in one direction
and Astrovetz in the other. There was no blacksmith like him in Lithuania.
He made round iron bands for the rims of wooden wagon wheels. From spring
to autumn he traveled as far as Druya up north and Valozhin down south.
People gave him wheels and he took them back to his smithy in Filipan;
weeks later, he returned them beautifully forged all around. A wheel
done by him never needed to be banded again.Yiddish Short Story - From
Lithuania for the entire story;
http://www.balticsww.com/witch_gold.htmDruya
history in Russian http://sosnyrest.narod.ru/istorijaD.htm
Pryanikov Family This pages
are about the famililes that - I believe - are related
What's common between them is:
Jewish origin
family name: Pryanikov (sometimes spelled slightly different like Pranikoff)
place of residence in the mid-1800s: Druya and Kraslava (Russian Empire,
Vilno gubernia)
http://capital.lk.net/~leonkoll/pryanikov/myfamily.htmlMSS.240/R/3/14
Drujanow, Tila 1960 July-1972 March 1 file Correspondence with Rollin
family regarding Druya.MSS.240/R/3/1-129 Subject files 1896-1981
A catalogue of the papers of Aaron Rapoport Rollin
for more pictures go to;
http://data.avotaynu.com/wconnect/wc.dll?jg~jgsys~avotaynupc_pb~Druja1
A list of Jewish Belarusan
victims of Stalin's purges------Alterman Neukh Zalmanov- Shlemov 1868
Druya----
Vejtser Izrail Yakovlevich 1889 Druya-----
Sirkina Vera Yakovlevna 1900 Druya-----
Trivosh Simon Bentsianovich 1901 Druya-----
Rapoport, Joe Echoes of Druya : a Short History of the Rapoport Family
and the Vabel Family, and the Town of Druya, Where They Lived [G R 18231]
A Selected Bibliography for Eastern European Research in The NYG&B
Library Compiled by Catherine M. Ellard, Assistant Librarian
GINSBURG / GINSBERG, ZACK, UTCOVITZ / COVITT, DEITCH / DEUTCH,
COHEN, RUDOFSKY / ROOTSKY / ROOT, RATZ / RACS - Druya, Belarus
Renee Gottesman "Mr. Dorn stressed that the JRA was trying to assist
Belarusian medical institutions on a regular basis. Not long ago, according
to him, a sizable shipment of disposable syringes was sent to a hospital
located in the settlement of Druya in the Braslav district. More medical
beds will soon arrive." " 'We consider it our duty to do what
we can to provide international assistance to older residents of Belarus
belonging to different nationalities,' stressed Mr. Dorn. He expressed
gratitude to the Ministry of Health for assistance in arranging the
delivery of humanitarian aid shipments in Belarus."
Publications mentioned for Breslev:
Darkness & Desolation - memorial volume published in 1986 by the
Association of Breslev survivors Book also mentions other places near
Barovke:
Druya Dubene
Okmienitz
Opsa
Rezekne
Tartak
Vidz Title Genesis - A Latvian ChildhoodÂ
Author Chaim Bermant, 1998
Publisher Robson Books, LondonÂ
Price 16.95 pounds
Comments Memoir recalling childhood spent in the Latvian shtetl of Barovke
in 1932-1938. The author was born in Breslev, but moved to Barovke
at a young age.
Information mentioned about
Barovke (Borovka)
It was near Dvinsk and Tolk and has now been absorbed by the present
day village of Skrudaliena
Jewish surnames mentioned for Barovke
Ber
Bermant
Birman
Ellerin
Fleischman
Frankel
Frost
Gandler
Goren
Grossman
Heller
Hurwitz
Kastrel
Kit
Krochmal
Lapinski
Leibowitz
Lynn
Mendel
Munitz
Panz
Pinchashovitz
Pinkashovitz
Pinzov
Ratz
Ritz
Rosin
Sandler
Schlossberg
Segal
Shluper
Shmushkevitz
Sholem
Steiman
Trupin
Tzeitlin
Yam
Yudeh
Zack
Zeitlin
Zilberman
Zmuskevitz
Zmuzkevitz
Zubovitz
Zubovitch
Zussman
Kalman Taicz wrote on Friday, June 15, 2007;
On the list of families of Druja i found missing the Rivosh name
a brother of this Rivosh lived in Dagda, in latvia, then in Riga b.1904
still
living in Israel. ...
From Yad Vashm
Riwosz Zalman
Zalman Riwosz was born in Dagda, Latvia in 1876 to Yosel Israel. He
was married to Rivka nee Baskin. Prior to WWII he lived in Druja,
Poland. During the war was in Braslaw, Poland. Zalman perished in
Braslaw ghetto, Poland. This information is based on a Page of
Testimony (displayed to the left) submitted by his son Joseph Riwash
from Canada
Ribash Rivka
Rivka Ribash nee Baskin was born in Russia (USSR) in 1886. She was
married to Zalman. Prior to WWII she lived in Wilno, Poland. During
the war was in Braslaw, Poland. Rivka perished in 1942 in Braslaw,
Poland at the age of 56. This information is based on a Page of
Testimony (displayed to the left) submitted by her son Joseph Riwash
from Canada
Osaia Riwash was born in Riga, Latvia in 1913 to Rachel and Nachum. He
was single. Prior to WWII he lived in Wilno, Poland. During the war
was in Grenoble, France. He perished in the Shoah. This information is
based on a Page of Testimony (displayed to the left) submitted by his
cousin from Canada
Riwosz Nachum
Nachum Riwosz was born in Druja, Poland in 1879. He was a merchant
and married to Rakhel nee Shenker. Prior to WWII he lived in Wilno,
Poland. Nachum perished in 1942 in Wilno. This information is based on
a Page of Testimony (displayed to the left) submitted on 10/04/1957 by
his daughter Luba KURTZVEIL
of Bat Yam
Chaia Rivosh nee Tzlaf was born in Druya, Poland in 1881 to Abram.
She was married. Prior to WWII she lived in Riga, Latvia. During the
war was in Riga. she perished in 1941 in Rumbula, Latvia. This
information is based on a Page of Testimony (displayed to the left)
submitted on 12/09/1995 by her sister-in-law TZLAF KHANNA
in Beer Sheva
Tzlaf Reveka
Reveka Tzlaf was born in Druya, Poland in 1886 to Abram. She was
single. Prior to WWII she lived in Riga, Latvia. During the war was in
Riga. Reveka perished in 1941 in Rumbuli, Latvia. This information is
based on a Page of Testimony (displayed to the left) submitted on
12/09/1957 by her sister-in-law TZLAF KHANNA in Beer Sheva
Rajvisz David
David Rajvisz was born in Druja, Poland in 1914 to Zalman and Dvora.
He was single. Prior to WWII he lived in Druja, Poland. During the war
was in Druja, Poland. David perished in 1941 in Majdanek. This
information is based on a Page of Testimony (displayed to the left)
submitted on 14/05/1957 by his relative Chana Ilish, a Shoah survivor
from Kiryat Gat
Smuel Rojwisz was born in Druja, Poland in 1916 to Zalman and Dvora.
He was single. Prior to WWII he lived in Druja, Poland. During the war
was in Druja, Poland. Smuel perished in 1941 in Majdanek. This
information is based on a Page of Testimony (displayed to the left)
submitted on 14/05/1957 by Khana Ilish, a Shoah survivor
Rejwisz Itla
Itla Rejwisz was born in Druja, Poland in 1918 to Zalman and Dvora.
She was single. Prior to WWII she lived in Druja, Poland. During the
war was in Druja, Poland. Itla perished in 1941 in Majdanek. This
information is based on a Page of Testimony (displayed to the left)
submitted on 14/05/1957 by her relative, a Shoah survivor
Rajvisz David
David Rajvisz was born in Druja, Poland in 1914 to Zalman and Dvora.
He was single. Prior to WWII he lived in Druja, Poland. During the war
was in Druja, Poland. David perished in 1941 in Majdanek. This
information is based on a Page of Testimony (displayed to the left)
submitted on 14/05/1957 by his relative, a Shoah survivor
>
> Everybody, who is receiving this letter, should have
> ancestors from shtetl Druya, which is located at the
> border zone between Belorussia and Lithuania, on
> Belarusian side.
> Recently with the help of Druya descendants who
> currently live in US and Israel, 17th century Jewish
> cemetery was restored. Also at the place of execution
> Druya's Jewish residents during the WW2, new Holocaust
> memorial was constructed. Although currently there is
> no Jewish population in Druya, local authorities and
> students are taking care of restored Jewish heritage
> objects.
> In Druya there is a 19th century building of former
> synagogue, which survived WW2. After the war the
> synagogue's building was converted into a bath-house.
> For the past 9 years the building is abandoned. Time
> and lack of maintenance did the job. Today this
> building in the center of Druya is crying for help.
> In June, when I was visiting Druya, I had a meeting
> with Mr. Alexander Belun- Mayer of this town. He told
> me that prime-minister of Belarus is scheduled to
> visit Druya in the summer of 2008. By that time all
> towns' buildings need to be restored and painted, or
> demolished. It means that we can lose a part of our
> heritage, which connects us with previous generations,
> who used to live in Druya more than for 400 years.
> Local administration is asking for $7,000 to repair
> the front of the building and the roof.
> Our Jewish Heritage Research group is ready to
> coordinate and supervise the project, which will begin
> in the spring of 2008.
> We urge you not to pass on the opportunity to preserve
> the 19th century building of synagogue in Druya, which
> serves us as a reminder of our Jewish heritage.
> For American residents all contributions are tax
> deductible.
> Best regards,
>
> Yuri Dorn
> Coordinator of Jewish Heritage
> Research Group in Belarus
> 220002 Minsk
> 13B Daumana St.
> tel/375-173-345612
> fax/375-173-343360
> www.jhrgbelarus.org
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