1) This is the view from Bilske street.
It is through this street that the Germans entered town in June
of 1941. On the right you can see two homes that were built after
the war on the property of the former Bilske Street Bet Ha Midrash
(prayer house), and Rabbi's house. In the distance you can see
the Russian Orthodox church on the right, and the Catholic church
in the far distance on the left.
2) This is a barn built on the
property of the former Bilske Street Bet Ha Misrash. It was in
this Bet Ha Midrash which survived the burning of the town that
about 600 Jewish residents sought refuge. They were kept there
for several months by the Germans under very bad conditions until
they were removed to an official ghetto at the site of the leather
factories. I was able to take videotaped eyewitness testimony
with simultaneous English translation from a Polish women who
saw this as a child.
3) I thought that this building
was the former Blacksmith shop owned by my great grandparents,
then my great uncle Birshe
Bartnovski. However, on this trip I was able to establish
that this is not so. This was the site of a blacksmtih shop owned
by Baron and then bought in 1938 by Jospeh Koklinski.
4) This is the apartment house
where my friend Mariusz lives. He is the veterinarian in Zabludow.
5) This is some ruins of the
foundation of the tannery owned by the Miller family. It was
in this area of the tanneries that the Germans established the
Jewish Ghetto where 1,400 Zabludow Jews were held for many months.
6) This also is some of the same
ruins.
7) This is the Zabludow Town
Hall.
8) This is part of a historical
exhibition of old zabludow photos organized by Jan Leonczuk a
former Mayor of Zabludow, and now Director of a library in Bialystok.
He is also well known as a historian of the area. I had a chance
to meet with him on my trip.
9) These are some of the very
few ruins of Zabludow before the war.
10) This is the Elementary School
building in Zabludow. I met the Assistant Principal and the English
teacher there. The building is quite poor, as are the facilities.
They hope to get internet access for the kids this coming year.
