Wielopole during the holocaust

Wielopole during the holocaust

By Virginia Szeszko Hotchkiss

In 1939 there were 735 Jewish people in Wielopole.
There were no farmers in this group--they were shop keepers.

There were 60 stores from selling clothes or fabric and groceries to shoe repair
and tailors

The majority of the people were poor and were good neighbors. They
migrated from the Western side of Poland trying to get away from Nazi
movement

There was a stone Synagogue in the S.W. side of town.

Kacpra Maciejowskiego (on land given to him by the King)(he took care
of the King's horses and then retired) build the castle in or around
1550-he had a chapel and hospital on the grounds for the people in the
village.

In 1903, Lord Ludwik Debicki bought the castle but it was not in good
shape, so he sold it to the bank in 1906. A Jew bought it (no name
given) and razed it in 1907

The Nazi held 2000 Jews in Wielopole from surrounding
areas----some were killed or sent to camps
30 sick and old were killed in the Synagogue
50 were drowned in a swamp

They killed at random and did whatever they pleased by burning
and destroying. 40 at a time dug their own graves.
People were shot and buried

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