Shtetlinks
Images of Shumsk Today
Since World War II, development in Shumsk has been concentrated in an area away from the old, predominantly Jewish center of town.  Most of the old buildings housing Jews and their institutions and businesses are gone, but some remain. If anybody can identify them (or has additional pictures to share on this site), please let me know.  Great thanks to Mel Werbach, Ann Roman, and Arkadyy Boyarskyy for allowing their photographs to be used on this site. More of Ann's photographs can be seen in this album documenting her 2009 visit.

Shumsk entrance
Ann Roman and family at outskirts of the town, 2009

Shumsk sign
Mel Werbach at the entrance to the town, 2007


The following images of buildings in the old section of Shumsk were taken in 2007 by Mel Werbach:

Shumsk
The former synagogue above is now an evangelical church.

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Shumsk

Shumsk

Shumsk

The following images of buildings in the old section of Shumsk were taken in May 2009 by Ann Roman (for more of her pictures, go to shumsk.shutterfly.com):

Shumsk buildingShumsk building
Both sides of a former flour mill, built in 1914.

Shumsk building
Both sides of the above building (with Magen David) can be seen below:
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Shumsk building

Shumsk building
The above house has been decorated recently with traditional Ukrainian patterns.
Shumsk building

Shumsk building

Shumsk building

Shumsk building

Shumsk building

Shumsk building

Shumsk building

Shumsk building


Shumsk building
The above building, once a Jewish bakery, now houses Shumsk's museum of town history. There is little mention of Shumsk's Jewish heritage in the museum's exhibit.
Shumsk building

Shumsk building

market square
The area above was once the old market square.
Shumsk building

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The Sosna Flour Mill
(photo courtesy of Mel Werbach)
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Horse-drawn carts are still a common sight on the streets of Shumsk in the 21st century.
(photo courtesy of Mel Werbach)

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Mel and Gail Werbach with Albert Shafir, 2007.  Mr. Shafir's late father, having survived the Holocaust by joining the Soviet Army prior to the Nazi occupation of the town, was the sole Jew to settle permanently in Shumsk after World War II.  Mr. Shafir, born in 1946, still resides there. (photo courtesy of Mel Werbach)

The following photographs were taken by Arkadyy Boyarskyy, a very talented photographer who lives in Shumsk. We are grateful to him for giving permission to use his photographs. You can see many more of his photos by following this link.

Shumsk houses

Shumsk house

Shumsk scene

Shumsk scene

Shumsk scene

Shumsk scene

Industrial building

Shumsk scene

Shumsk street

Shumsk house


Shumsk street

Shumsk scene


Shumsk scene


Shumsk scene

These following images are of typical older houses and streets that remain in the old Jewish district of Shumsk as taken by Howard Freedman in 1999:

  Shumsk house

The houses above had been abandoned for some time when photographed in 1999, and may no longer exist (photos courtesy of Howard Freedman).

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Click here for images of buildings in Shumsk today from the National Library of Israel


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