Alfred Blay
Abram Hersz aka Alfred Blay was born on May 30, 1876 in Płock. His father Natan (1839-1915) came from Kalisz. His mother was Estera née Landau (1845-1928), daughter of Icek Tobiasz and Małka. Alfred Blay had three siblings: brother Szmul Tobiasz (1868-1899) and sisters Hinda Małka (born 1870) and Sura Liba (born 1872).
Blay was a well-known merchant and social activist in Płock: co-founder of the University for All, member of the Płock department of the Polish Culture Society, the Committee for Providing Aid to Jews in Płock, the Association of Jewish Merchants and the Jewish Charity Society. In 1916, he was elected to the board of the Jewish community in Płock. He also served as a lay judge in the Municipal Office. In the interwar period he ran a fabric shop at 11 Grodzka Street. During the German occupation he was arrested by the Gestapo, after being released from prison he was hiding in Warsaw. In 1946 he became the chairman of the Jewish Committee in Płock.
