Podhajce History and
Historical Documents
The history
of
the town
of Podhajce includes shifting national boundaries. In 1795, Poland
temporarily ceased to exist as a country, and Podhajce became part of
the Austria-Hungarian Empire. After WWI, it was once again a part of
Poland until occupied by the U.S.S.R. in the early days of WWII. After
WWII, it became part of the U.S.S.R. It is now in Ukraine and is called
Podgaytsy. Its location is about 101K (60 miles) ESE of Lvov.
The first Jews
settled in Podhajce as far back as the beginning of the
16th century. In the years 1580 to 1620, a great Rabbi there, Benjamin
Aharon Solnik, became famous in the Jewish world because of his essay
"Benjamin's Mess", which is a collection of questions and answers in
matters concerned with "Halacha". (The synagogue in New York of those
originating from Podhajce is call Benjamin's Mess).
Towards the end
of the 17th century, many Jews of Podhajce were
massacred by invading Turks and Tatars.
According to the
census of 1764, there were 1079 Jews in the community.
During the 19th century, the Jewish population increased, and by 1910
numbered about 6000. However, Podhajce's importance declined, and by
1939, 3200 Jews remained out of a total population of 6000. The Jews
were the dynamic elements in the town's economic and cultural life.
When war broke
out between Germany and the U.S.S.R. in 1941, Podhajce
was occupied by the Germans, and the Jews immediately became victims of
attacks by the Ukranian population. They were forced to pay fines,
their movements were restricted, and they were subjected to forced
labor.
In 1942, on Yom
Kippur, the Gestapo and the Ukranian police sent about
1,000 Jewish men and women from Podhajce to the Belzec Death Camp. The
remaining Jews were ordered into a small Ghetto, where many died of
typhus. A month later, 1,500 more people were sent to Belzec. (At
Belzec, more than 95% of the arrivals were killed either immediately or
very soon after their arrival.) On June 6, 1943, the annihilation was
completed when, with few exceptions, remaining members of the community
were shot and dumped into mass graves on the outskirts of the town.
(This was three days before Shavuot, on the third day of the month of
Sivan.) Since there is no way of knowing when specific people perished,
Yahrzeit for all of the Jews of Podhajce is observed on that day.
(Information
for
this article came from the Podhajce Memorial Volume
(Yizkor Book) and the Encyclopaedia Judaica.)
Podhajce
article from Encyclopedia of Jewish Life Before and During the
Holocaust
More History at: Roman Zakherii's
Podhajce
website
A 2013 Blog post concerning the history of Podhajce during WWI (many interesting photos/cards plus discriptions and history -- an excellent read!)
Articles from Die Welt 1898-1902
Newspaper Articles about Podhajce (1898-1915) from Library of Congress Collection
1891
Galicia Business Directory
1929 Podhajce Business Directory
Other business
directories online
List of donors to the Rabbi Meir Baal
Hannnes
Fund
1926 letter of appreciation to the USA from students in Podhajce (33 pages of signatures)
The three
Incorporation documents below were obtained from the American Jewish
Historical Society. They microfilmed the Jewish incorporation records
for New York County for the period 1848-1920. The names and
addresses in these documents should be of interest to some Podhajce
researchers.
1901
Incorporation documents for the 'Podhajcer
Young Men Benevolent
Association'
That's
right 'Young Men', not Young Mens or Young Men's.
1903
Incorporation documents for the 'Podhajcer
Young Mens Benevolent Association'
'Young Mens'
now; some additional officers; and a slight change in 'Purpose'.
1917
Incorporation documents for the 'Podhajcer
Rabbi Schulem Lilienfeld Association'
2019 article from Baltic Worlds entitled In the Footsteps of the Holocaust Death in Pidhaitsi