MMWS

Mazheik Memorial Website

The Memorial Website to the Destroyed Shtetl of Mazeikiai

מאזייק
(Mazheik / Mozheik)
(in Yiddish)

Mažeikiai
(in Lithuanian)

מז'ייק
(in Hebrew)

Telšiai County, North-Western Lithuania, coordinates: 56.20°N 22.20°E

Main Changes and Updates to the Website

2023

• Addition of YIVO Archival Material for the Mazheik Jewish Community Council
• Addition of Translation and Review of JDC Questionnaire to the Jewish Community Council
  of Mazheik (Mazeikiai) in Lithuania in July 1921
• Addition of photographs from Ella Yariv April 2023 Mazheik Roots Trip
• Addition of Račkauskas Gymnasium Commemorates Former Students & Teachers
• Addition of Mažeikiai Jewish Holocaust Victims List 3
• Addition of Memorial Ceremonies at the Mažeikiai Mass Murder Site
• Additions to the Literature List
• Additions to the Links Page

The webmasters would like to express their deep appreciation to
Barbara Ellman z"l (1951-2023) & Susana Leistner Bloch,
of JewishGen Kehilalinks,
and to volunteer richie baum, for their guidance and support.

Eighty Years since the Massacre of Mazheik Jewry
1941 - 2021

We honour their memory.
Their memory lives on.
Their souls are eternal.
May they rest in peace.

Geography:

Mazeikiai is located on the Venta River, in the north-western part of Lithuania, approximately 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) from the Latvian border.

Mazeikiai is situated at the junction of the Libau (Liepaja) - Romny and Riga-Oriol train lines.

More:

Town History:

The town of Mazeikiai was founded by the Duke of Zemaiciai Mazeika.

Until the 2^nd half of the 19^th century, Mazeikiai was a small village or hamlet, with a population of some tens of inhabitants, mostly farmers.

The settlement grew with the laying of the Libau (Liepaja)  - Romny rail line in 1868 and the Mazeikiai – Riga line in 1872/4.

One of the railway stops was located at the crossing of three roads from Vieksniai, Leckava and Tirksliai, and it was named after a small farm whose master was Mazeika. This was the way how Mazeikiai was named.

More:

Morawjewo (Mazeikiai)
Railway Station
before 1918

Jewish Community History:

Settlement of Jews in Mazeikiai began during the 1870’s, simultaneously with the flourishing development of transportation and commerce… 

During World War I (1915), Mazeikiai Jews, together with most of the Jews of Lithuania and Courland, were exiled to inner Russia and the Ukraine. Most of the town was set on fire and destroyed.

Following the end of World War I, Jewish community life began to return and develop, resulting in the establishment of various community organizations.

During the era of Independent Lithuania, the Jewish community of Mazeikiai enjoyed relative autonomy, under the supervision of the Office for Jewish Affairs of the Lithuanian Government…

More:

Rare Old Wooden Structure
the former Jewish School
building
(picture : courtesy Benzi Kahana)

The Holocaust:

Following the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact, the Soviets invaded Lithuania in 1940.

The Germans entered the town on Wednesday, June 25, 1941.

Jewish life in Mazeikiai came to an end with the mass killings of the men on Sunday, August 3rd 1941 - 10th of Av 5701 (actual day of 9th Av fast, delayed from Shabbat to Sunday) and the women on Saturday, August 9th 1941 - 16th of Av 5701.

(See The Holocaust and The Martyrs of Mazeikiai)

Rock with memorial plaque
in front of the Old
Mazeikiai Cemetery
(picture: courtesy Gilda and Bob Kurtzman)

Holocaust Memorial
& mass grave
next to the old
Mazeikiai Cemetery
(courtesy Gilda and Bob Kurtzman)

The site of the mass killing at Mazeikiai
(picture: courtesy Benzi Kahana)

rock with memorial plaque
old Mazeikiai Cemetery
visible behind the fence
(picture: courtesy Stan Ravinsky)

This site is dedicated to the Jewish Life that Mazeikiai was once home to. From eye-witness reports, we know that ~ save a handful of old wooden houses ~ nothing is left of what once was a vibrant hub of Jewish life in the shtetl. There are reported to have been 1,000 Jewish souls in Mazeikiai prior to the fateful days of July and August 1941. Today, on the outskirts of the town, there is a road-sign near a path leading into the thick woods. It states "ZYDU GENOCIDO AUKU VIETA". Though in the Lithuanian language, this hardly requires translation.

It is universally clear that this site bears witness to the unbearable fate of our beloved families.
Continued...

Research:

This website includes material collected over the years from different internet sources (mostly JewishGen, YIVO Archives, and LitvakSig), different archives, literature, and eyewitness accounts.
List of links to external sites

Most information relating to Mazheik's Jewish families (including detailed name lists) is included on the following pages:

• History of the Jewish Community
• The Holocaust
• Memoirs&Stories
• Family Research

Click the button to show all entries in the
JewishGen Lithuanian Database for Mažeikiai

Webmaster and contact person:
Raymond Ravinsky: rrrainbows1111@gmail.com

Ilan Ganot  ilang12350@gmail.com

In Memory of Benzi Kahana z"l (1944 - 2019)