Żuromin is located about 70 miles northwest of Warsaw. To see Żuromin on a map of Poland, as well as distances to nearby towns and other information, click here.
Brief history of Zuromin
Jews began to settle down in Żuromin in the early 19th century. From the 1820s they made efforts to become independent of the Synagogue District (kahal) in Kuczbork. The final independence was gained by the Jewish community on 2 July 1843.
The first kehilla board was headed by: Abraham Moltzman, Litman Rozensztein, Chaim Wesoły. A wooden synagogue erected on a foundation of 4-inch logs originated in that period. It was designed with a vestibule and a floor for women. It was 54 feet long, 28 feet wide, and 15 feet high. It was erected on a rectangular plan. It had 4 windows in the longitudinal part, 2 windows in the eastern part and two entrance doors. The synagogue was used by 645 people, excluding Hassidim and girls praying at home. In total, 109 people prayed outside the synagogue . Most probably in about the mid-19th century also a cemetery was created. In 1857, efforts were made to surround it with a fence.
One of the first rabbis was Mojsze Ciechanower, who held his office in 1880-1912. His successor was Meir Ciechanower (he died in 1925). Towards the end of the 19th century and at the beginning of the 20th century, leftist and national ideology followers appeared. However the actual development of the Jewish political life is connected with the inter-war period (1918-1939). In addition to local divisions of the largest Jewish parties (Agudas Isroel, Mizrachi, Bund, General Zionists, Poalej Syjon) a number of other organizations were formed, for instance: Grosser Library. Society for Combating Illiteracy, I. L. Perec Library, B. Borochow Library, Bank Ludowy (People’s Bank) (1926-1935), Bank Kupiecki (Merchants’ Bank) (1929-1939), or Social Self-Aid Fund.
The greatest influence was enjoyed by orthodoxy followers, who were dominant in the kehilla’s authorities. The 1930s saw an increase in the support for “Bund”, whose representative sat at the board in 1936, and for Zionist circles. The office of the rabbi between 1925 and 1935 was held by Bencjon Abram Blumberg.
On 8 November 1939, Jews were displaced from Żuromin. At dawn, upon the sound of the fire horn, everybody was to leave their flats within 10 minutes. The exile was accompanied by a military orchestra. They were directed to Nowy Dwór, and later to Warsaw. Some of them were sent to Pomiechówek, from where they got to various towns located in the General Government (Jadowo, Legionowo, Łomaz, Warsaw). Another group, in addition to Jews, among others from Sierpc, Rypin, Raciąż, Bieżuń, and Dobrzyń, appeared in Szreńsk in 1940.
As of spring 1941, the authorities in the District of Ciechanów ceased deporting to the General Government. They started to concentrate the Jewish population in several large ghettos. Jews from Żuronim were mainly placed in the ghetto in Ciechanów and Mława. In November 1942, their inhabitants got to the extermination camp in Treblinka and Auschwitz [1.1].
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