Israel Bramson was born in Bialystok in 1913.
On the 15th and 16th of August 1943 at 3:00 in the morning, Israel Bramson became aware of the dire state of the ghetto. He went out with his wife and child from #2 Bialystozka Street (his home) onto Lozska Street. There he placed his family in a bunker. He went out to gather the latest news, and he found out that a deportation was soon to take place. His wife decided to leave, (join the deportation?).
He decided to join the remnant of the defenders of the Ghetto. It was clear to him that the defense of the ghetto would be difficult. The underground's collection of weapons was a small number of guns, machine- guns, grenades, and incendiary bombs. The Jews started to throw grenades to help with the escape of the people. After some time, a German tank arrived and the battle took a number of hours. Almost 2,000 people were killed.
Israel Bramson, in order to save himself, decided to escape. He hid for two days under a bed in one of the buildings that was looted by the Gestapo. They used that building as a gathering place for the looted goods which they piled on top of the bed that he was hiding under, and that was the reason why they did not notice him.
Later on, Bramson decided that it was the right time to go out to the street. He helped the Jewish Police gather the bodies of those massacred. The victims of the defense were buried in the Jewish cemetery on Zabia Street in the ghetto. Two pits were dug in the cemetery and one on Kazimerska Street, which bordered the cemetery. At the same time bodies were removed from homes in the Ghetto. These victims had been suffocated and burned. Friedl (Commander of Jewish Section of Bialystok Gestapo) supervised this work.
One day the Germans decided to evacuate the Jewish Hospital. The sick were placed upon 20 wagons. They were taken to Kazimerska Street, and thrown into pits were they were shot by machine guns.
The Germans did not search inside the remaining bunkers, this work was done by the Ukrainians. One day, a bunker was discovered in Chmielna Street. Inside it there were 72 people. They were all taken to a corner of Kupiecka Street and Jaroprecki Street. There they were told to take off their shoes and wait for Friedel. Just before Friedel's arrival, Dybos (it is not clear who he was) pulled out from that group a Jew by the name of Siamianitz who was known as an exceptional cobbler (according to the Bramson he has survived until today). The rest of the 72 were gunned down and their bodies were transferred by 7 wagons to the cemetery. And so, the large Ghetto was liquidated.
The only people left were those with special permits like work managers, specially skilled workers, and 80 ghetto policemen. At this stage there were also people left from the Ghetto Judenrat such as the Chairman Brasz with his wife and son, Subotnik (the Judenrat Finance Minister), Goldberg, and Markus the Commander of Jewish Ghetto Police.
On the 24th of August, when the small ghetto on Fabryczna Street was supposed to be closed, an order was given for all the people with permits to gather. Friedel checked the permits, and he left within the small ghetto only about 400 people. The rest were sent to the transport for deportation. Every day there were wagons that would go out of the small Ghetto with cloth that was made there. Each day two people were hidden in these carts that rode out from the ghetto, and thus 30 people escaped. Israel Bramson was among those who escaped the ghetto in this manner. From these 30 people only few survived. Some were hiding in the cemetery and they were caught there, and some were found elsewhere and shot.
Bramson stayed in the forest, and with a peasant family until the arrival of the Red Army.
Danieluk Family recieves Righteous of Nations Award from Yad Vashem, November 2, 2003 Decision letter from Yad Vashem for Danieluk Family Righteous of Nations, Click to Enlarge Righteous of the Nations Ceremony, Yad Vashem Israel, November 2, 2003 Click photos bellow to Enlarge
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Photo 6The Righteous of the Nations Ceremony at Yad Vashem was a very profound and moving event for all of us. Raisa and her two sons first visited Kibbutz Mizra the home of one of survivor Israel Bramson's daughters. From there they toured the Gallille region. In Jerusalem after the ceremony we gathered at the home of one of my relatives. Hebrew, Polish, and English were flowing freely. People spoke openly about their very emotional feelings about the days events. The following day we accompanied Raisa and her sons on a primarily Christian site tour of the Old City including most of the Stations of the Cross. Finally Raisa, her sons, and the Bramson daughters left Jerusalem, and planned to spend a few days together at a Dead Sea spa.
Raisa spoke of her satisfaction that her families deeds had been recognized in such an honorable and moving fashion. The event received wide coverage in the Israeli TV media and print press. In fact during our tour of Jerusalem several people recognized Raisa and her sons, and spontaneously approached them with congratulations.
The Danieluk family is of the Russian Orthodox faith. They were simple people who were not politically motivated. Raisa told us that the family was not that concerned about the Germans because Solniki is a very small remote crossroads, and the Germans rarely passed through there. What concerned them was that their neighbors would find out that they were hiding Jews, and that one of them would inform the Germans. After the war the four survivors lived openly with the Danieluk family for about four months. She says that during this time it became obvious to the neighbors that the family had rescued Jews. Raisa explained that the attack after the war during Easter 1945 in which her father, sister, one of the survivors and four other were killed was carried out by "The Eagle" from Zabludow Poland. He was likely a leader of a partisan band who after the war was resisting Russian consolidation of control over Poland. She stated that his intention was to "mix the blood of the Orthodox and the Jews". She reported that eventually he was captured and hung.
Bonds have now been formed between the Raisa and her sons, the Bramson and Lopata connected families that will not be broken.
Bramson daughters on previous trip to Auschwitz
Website Introduction Zabludow Synagogue Zabludow Cemeteries Bialystok Ghetto Uprising Maps Town History Zabludow Landsmanshaftn Zabludow Holocaust Page Links Zabludow "Ancient" Pnkas Web: 2003 Tilford Bartman
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