Kraslava file / תיק קהילה

✡️ The history of Rabbi Yaakov Kopel Klatzkin and the Kraslovka community

The source collection presents Historical and documentary review A large part of the Jewish community in the town Kraslava (Kraslava) in Latvia over the years. The documents include Personal testimonies detailing religious and social life, alongside Press reports and lists of donors from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. A significant portion of the material is devoted to During the Holocaust, which contains testimonies about the Nazi occupation, the murder of the town's Jews, and extraordinary rescue stories. In addition, the sources deal with In prominent figures in the community and in preserving the memory of those who fell in war through memorials and memorial lists. This review combines Jewish way of life The lively and the tragic destruction that the war brought with it on the Jewry of the region.

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History of the Jewish Community inKraslava (Kraslava), also known in sources asKraslevka or Kraslau, intertwined with the history of a district Latgale (Latgale) on the banks of the riverDaugavaThe settlement passed into the hands of the noble family in 1729. Flutter (Plater), who built the family palace there and invited Jews to settle there in order to accelerate economic and commercial development. The community was officially organized in 1764, and in 1766 it numbered about 840 people. Throughout the 19th century, the community grew rapidly, and in the 1897 census, the city had 4,051 Jews, who constituted over 51% of the total population.

The economic basis of the community was initially based on traditional crafts such as Tailoring andshoemaking, as well as on the timber trade and river transport. Towards the end of the 19th century, the town became a prominent industrial center thanks to the bristle factory established by Yehuda Leib Aronson andHaim Korin, which employed hundreds of Jewish workers and was known for its high-quality products throughout the Baltic Sea region. Alongside the industry, the city also had economic institutions such as the "Credit and Savings Bank" founded in 1901, and a survey by the YKA From 1887, it lists hundreds of Jewish craftsmen in various fields. A handwritten note on the original states that after World War I, in 1920, theJoint In the reconstruction of 75 Jewish houses damaged in the fighting.

The religious and spiritual life of the city was rich and included rabbis of high stature and extensive charitable institutions. The Rabbi Zalman Kharif He was one of the founders of the community, and was followed by figures such as the rabbi Moshe David again And the rabbi Yaakov Kopel Klatzkin, who served as the rabbi of the Hasidim. Four synagogues operated in the city, including the "Great Synagogue" (Malvanib) and the "Beit Midrash" (Ma'atz), both of which burned down in the great fire of 1893. Community institutions included the "Visiting the sick", "Acts of kindness"And a women's organization called"Damen Parain" who provided aid to the poor. In the field of education, a Yiddish elementary school was established in 1915, and in 1930 a "Hebrew" school and a Hebrew kindergarten were founded.

The political arena was very active, with the **"Bund"** and the "Brush Workers' Organization"Dee Bershter"(Die Bershter) were the leading forces in the workers' struggles and led violent strikes and demonstrations, especially in 1905. A particularly prominent figure was Eliyahu Drori (Alchik), a member of the "Bund" who was arrested and sentenced to death for his revolutionary activities, but his sentence was commuted to life imprisonment and he was finally released in 1917. Alongside the workers' movements, Zionist activity flourished with branches of the "Zion Youth", "east", "Gordonia"And"The Young Guard"The community has produced famous figures such as the sculptor Nahum Aronson, the painter But Penn, the poet Binoche Steinmann And the renowned doctor Miron Websey.

The destruction of the community came with the German occupation in July 1941. A local police unit under the command of Briadis (Briedis) began murdering and abusing the town's Jews. On July 28, the Jews were ordered to gather in synagogues, and the next day they were taken by foot and wagon convoy to the ghetto. Daugavpils, where most of them were murdered in the death pits inPogolianka During August 1941. A small group of craftsmen remaining in the city were murdered in September 1941 in the forest. AugustowkaAfter the war, about 40 families returned and established a memorial in memory of the murdered, but over the following decades most of them immigrated to Israel or moved to Riga, and only a few Jews remained in the city.

Terms and explanations

• The Bershter: A trade union of brush workers that was the main political force in the town.
• Korovka: A tax imposed on kosher meat and used to finance the religious and welfare needs of the community.
• Audience: The Jewish Community Committee, which managed the administrative and religious affairs of the Jews.
• Maot Chittim: A fundraiser aimed at providing matzah and food supplies to the poor in preparation for Passover.
• Pogulianka: A forest near Daugavpils that served as the site of the mass murder of the region's Jews, including the Kraslavs.

List of sources

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• C107-1f – A comprehensive historical overview in Hebrew of Kraslava from its beginnings, political activity, and destruction.
• C107-2f – An excerpt from a Latvian statistical publication (1936) that includes demographic and economic data on Kraslava.
• C107-3f – A comprehensive historical overview in Hebrew from the "Community Register" on Kraslav Jewry.
• C107-4f – A historical overview in English of the community, its institutions, its economy, and its destruction in the Holocaust.
• C107-5f – An article in Hebrew by M. Buba in the journal "Ha'abar" about personalities and the history of Kraslava.
• C107-6f – An excerpt from the Latvian Encyclopedia (1953) that includes geographical and demographic data about the town.
• C107-7f – An English entry from the encyclopedia "Judaica" summarizing the history of the Jews of Kraslava.
• C107-8f – A collection of stories and memoirs "Heroes of Krislevka" about exemplary figures and everyday life in the community.
• C107-9f – Research pages and handwritten drafts that include historical data, rabbis, and demographics about the town.
• C107-10f – An article from "The Past" about Dr. Jacob Eliyahu Frank and his plan to improve the situation of the Jews (1800).
• C107-11f – Biographical record and birth details of the community's rabbis Yosef Rabinson and A. Y. Luria (1914).
• C107-12f – A biographical overview of Rabbi Yaakov Kopel Klatzkin and a description of the founding of the town by Graf Platter.
• C107-13f – A photographed historical summary page that includes photographs of synagogues, rabbis, and general population data.
• C107-14f – List of "Franumeranten" (signatories to a book) from the residents of Kraslava (1873).
• C107-15f – A detailed transcript of testimony in Hebrew about the history of the community, economic life, educational institutions, and society.
• C107-16f – The testimony of Eliyahu Drori (Alchik) and Meir Drori about the events of the Holocaust and the destruction of the community (1980).
• C107-17f – Transcript of an interview with Avraham Itzai and Koppel Scope on the Zionist movements and welfare institutions (1967).
• C107-18f – A document in Russian that includes a letter to Senator Derzhavin and a memorandum by Dr. Frank on religious reform (1800).
• C107-19f – A handwritten Semitic list of those murdered in the community during the Holocaust and the places of the murders.
• C107-20f – Another handwritten Semitic list of Holocaust victims from the town.
• C107-21f – Original handwritten documents and records in Yiddish and Hebrew that include data on residents and organizations.
• C107-22f – A detailed handwritten letter or testimony in Yiddish that includes a description of events from 1930.
• C107-23f – A handwritten document in Yiddish/Hebrew dealing with community affairs or personal correspondence from the town.
• C107-24f – A handwritten page in Hebrew that includes historical details about the town's rabbis and events (1915/1975).
• C107-25f – A correspondence in Russian from Batya (Zina) Zin about the destruction of the community and the fate of her family members (1946).
• C107–26f – A postcard and a letter in Russian regarding the "Hechaluts" organization in Kraslav (1921).
• C107–27f – Excerpts from a Yiddish literary lexicon that include a biographical entry on the poet Binoche Shteiman (1929).
• C107–28f – Statistical data in Russian on crafts and brush production in the Vitebsk province and Kraslav (1904).
• C107-29-1f – News in "HaMelitz" (1883) about the state of the community, rabbis and educational institutions in the town.
• C107-29-2f – An article in "HaMelitz" (1885) describing the damage caused by the great fire that struck the town.
• C107-29-3f – An article in "HaMelitz" (1886) dealing with internal conflicts in the community surrounding religious matters and appointments.
• C107-29-4f – An article in "HaTsafira" (1886) on the aliyah movement to the Land of Israel and the migration of the community's youth.
• C107-29-5f – A statistical table from "HaMelitz" (1887) detailing all the crafts of the town's Jews.
• C107-29-6f – Reports in "HaMelitz" (1890) about religious celebrations, the completion of the writing of Torah scrolls, and community events.
• C107-29-7f – An article in "HaMelitz" (1892) about the local hospital and the needs of the poor in the community.
• C107-29-8f – Description of the great fire in Kraslava in "The Recommendation" (1893) and its impact on the community.
• C107-29-9f – News in "Hamelitz" (1893) about the aid efforts and donations for the victims of the fire from all over Russia.
• C107-29-10f – An excerpt from the newspaper "HaMelitz" (1893) dealing with community events and fundraisers.
• C107-29-11f – An article in "HaMelitz" (1893) about assistance to fire victims and the activities of the community committee for the needy.
• C107-29-12f – An article in the newspaper "HaTsafira" (1894) dealing with Jewish education, schools and language learning.
• C107-29-13f – News reports in "Hamelitz" (1894) about Kraslava and nearby towns in the Latgale region.
• C107-29-14f – A Yiddish newspaper clipping (1920) describing the life of the community and its reconstruction after the war.
• C107-29-15f – A brief news item in Yiddish about the establishment of a memorial in memory of those murdered in the Holocaust in Kraslava and nearby towns.
• C107-29-16f – An article in Russian by Batya Tzin, "To Live to Repeat," about her memories and life in the town (1996).
• C107-29-17f – A page from the newspaper "Our Jewish World" (1997) which includes the section "Kraslava Remembers" and memorial ceremonies.
• C107-29-19f – An article in memory of Batya Tzin and a review of her book dealing with her experiences in the camps and ghettos.
• C107-30f – "Latvia SIG" newsletter (1997) dedicated to the history of Kraslava, the Aronoff family, and a list of those murdered.
• C107-31f – Letter in Russian from Vladimir Rabin (2006) about his family history and his connection to the sculptor Nachum Aronson.
• C107-32f – A letter in Russian from Vladimir Rabin (2004) dealing with the character of the young hero Hirsch Plakhin.
• C107-33f – Biographies of Jewish mathematicians from Latvia
• C107-34f – An article in the War Disabled newspaper detailing a list of 52 Jewish casualties from the town.
• C107-35f – A biographical entry in Russian about Dr. Miron (Meir) Websi and his medical work in the Soviet Union.
• C107-36f – An extended article about Dr. Websey and the "Doctors' Trial" affair during the Stalin era.

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