April 19, 2020 marks the 77th anniversary of the outbreak of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. In connection with the anniversary, we present two people from the Płock region, whose activities were related to the Warsaw ghetto. Bronek (Boruch) Szpigel from Wyszogród (1919–2013, pictured on the […]
Dawid (Devi) Tuszyński – a painter and master of miniatures, was born in Brzeziny on September 17, 1914 (according to the entries in the registry books for the town of Brzeziny), as a son of Icek Tuszyński (born in 1879) and Sura nee Bajbok (born […]
Under the contract concluded on June 1, 1824 with the Municipal Office of the Town of Płock, the merchant Jakub Lewin Szenwic (born in 1789) received a perpetual lease of the square located at Nowa Street at that time (property 258 E) for an annual rent of 10 PLN. On this square, before 1827, he erected a brick house with one floor and a basement, covered with Dutch tiles. After his death, the property was inherited by his son Chaskiel Szenwic (1817-1889). By virtue of an official will of October 18/30, 1864, and following a request of September 20 / October 2, 1867 and 7/19 January 1870, he was registered as its owner. Before 1871, Chaskiel Szenwic erected a new brick front house: partly half-timbered, tiled, with two stories and a residential attic.
Since 1880, at the Chaskiel Szenwic house operated the Optician and Jewelery Company of Moritz Szenwic, who advertised it in the pages of “Korespondent Płocki”:
I hereby inform the Dear Audience that since January 1 this year. I have set up a repair workshop for watches, where I perform all repairs very quickly, at very affordable prices, and I have various new wall clocks to sell. I perform optical and all jewelery works 25% cheaper than larger jewelry workshops in Płock…
The next owner of the property was Tauba Itta Szenwic née Borensztejn, who purchased it from Chaskiel Szenwic for the amount of 12,000 rubles and by virtue of the act of September 29 / October 11, 1882 and the application of April 29, 1891 was registered as its owner. Tauba Itta, daughter of Hersz and Sura née Zdugman, was the daughter-in-law of Chaskiel Szenwic, wife of his son Manchajm (born in 1845) – a trader, owner of coal and wood store. At the beginning of 1893, Manchajm Szenwic opened a cooling drink manufacture at Szeroka Street.
In 1907, Manchajm and Tauba Itta Szenwic née Borensztejn bought a neighboring property at Tumska Street, mortgage number 258, for the sum of 598 rubles and 75 kopecks.
In 1909, at 1 Szeroka Street, the Russian authorities legalized the Bieker Chajlim Jewish Funeral Association, the founders of which were Jakub Szenwic, Izydor Wasserman, Chaskiel Perelgryc, Abram Fiszman, Manchajm Szenwic, Mordka Dancygier and Kalman Frenkiel.
After the death of Tauba Itta Szenwic, half of the property was acquired by Manchajm Szenwic, by virtue of pre-marriage intercourse of July 29, 1873, and the other half, in equal parts, became the property of Pessa Pelagia née Szenwice Rajcher (b. 1876), Ryfka Regina née Szenwice Wolman (b. 1886), Sura Stefania Szenwic (born in 1896), Hersz Herman Szenwic (born in 1877), Lejzor Eleazar vel Ludwik Louis Szenwic (born in 1888), Icek Izaak Jerzy Szenwic (born in 1879) and Chaja Fajga Helena Szenwic (born in 1881). The above-mentioned were registered as its owners pursuant to the protocol of closing the inheritance proceedings of October 8, 1920 and the application of May 27, 1921.
The property of the Szenwic family, including the property at Tumska St., was later purchased by Jan Trojanowski for the amount of 7,000,000 marks and, pursuant to the act of 16 August and the application of 17 August 1921, he was registered as its owner.
The list of sign boards prepared for 1929 lists 10 companies at 1 Szeroka Street: “Bar Europejski”, haberdashery shop of Stanisław Ciesielski, seed shop of Natan Graubard, the Schicht company, haberdashery shop of B. Rozental, clothes shop of L. Lichtman, engraving factory of L. Ejchelt, “Czesława” haberdashery company, haberdashery shop of J. Zelkowicz and smoked meat store of Jan Trojanowski, the property owner. According to data from 1937, this address included Jakub Purzycki’s hairdresser business, Konstanty Kowalewski’s restaurant and Chaskiel Kohn’s bookbinding workshop.
According to data from 1931, 76 people lived at 1 Szeroka Street. In the outbuilding, in which there were 6 apartments, the following people lived together with their families: Zofia Dybicz, Ludwika Dydecka, Jan Trojanowski, Hugon Gross, Blima Gruszka, Juda Głowiński, Moszek Magnes and Adam Kowalski; in the front house with 10 apartments: Sender Chmiel, Konstanty Kowalewski, Izrael Klinger, Pessa Krasiewicz, Henryk Siedliński, Luzer Lichtman, Chaim Kon, Lejzer Kugel, Pinkus Neuman, Paulin Więcławski and Izrael Finkelsztejn.
At the end of August 1939, just before the outbreak of World War II, 25 families lived at this address, including the family of Izrael Klinger, Juda Tyber, Luzer Lichtman, Chilel Kon, Luzer Kugel, Lejb Gruszka, Abram Cymbler, Izrael Kwiat, Szmul Kiper and Chaskiel Kon.
The property at 1 Kwiatka Street still belongs to the descendants of Jan Trojanowski.
Our branch of the Szeraszew family comes from Radziłów and thanks to the documents stored in the Łomża department of the State Archives in Białystok it is known, that there were many members of the Szeraszew family in Radziłów and the local area. Joszka Szeraszew […]
Fiszel Zylberberg (1909-1942), graphic artist and painter, was the son of the trader Wolf Zelig and Hena Ruchla nee Nordenberg. At the age of 16 he went to Warsaw, where he studied drawing during private lessons. Since 1930 he studied as a free student of […]
Nusen aka Natan Korzeń was born on April 17, 1895 in Płock, as the son of Szlama Majer and Ruchla Łaja nee Szczawińska. Natan Korzeń, a member of a young group of Polish painters, was considered one of the most important Jewish artists in Poland. Members of his family in Płock were involved in various arts and crafts, and little Natan loved to watch the work of his uncles who were goldsmiths. His grandfather and father had a workshop producing copper items, including those used in Jewish rituals. In order to take formal education in the field of art, Natan left his family home and went to Warsaw. He graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts under the supervision of professors Stanisław Lentz and Tadeusz Pruszkowski. Still as a student, Korzeń exhibited his works in a Jewish gallery in Warsaw. After graduating, he quickly became one of the best portraitists in Poland. Many notable people employed him for portraits. He was also associated with the Theater School in Warsaw operating since 1929, where he lectured on art history. In addition to portraits, he also painted landscapes and whenever he visited Płock, he left the town in order to paint rural landscapes near it. According to art critic Yehiel Aronson, Korzeń was not influenced by the school of surreal post-impressionism because he had the talent to convey his own longings to the canvas in a realistic way. Korzeń had its own painting workshops in Warsaw and Kazimierz nad Wisłą. His works were exhibited, among other places, in Paris and Warsaw. He had two individual exhibitions in Płock and took part in several group exhibitions. In February 1932, at the exhibition in the Hotel Polski in Płock at 9 Tumska Street, the Art Club of Płock opened the 1st Płock Art Exhibition, which showed two oil works by Korzeń – ‘Portrait of a Boy’ and ‘Houses in Kazimierz’.
During the outbreak of the war, Natan Korzeń settled in Vilnius, because he thought that from there it would be easier for him to escape to the West. In Vilnius, he worked as a stage designer at the Jewish National Theater. His hopes for escape proved to be deceptive, as he ended up in the ghetto, where he took an active part in the cultural life of the Jews living there. The Nazis burned most of his paintings. He was murdered in 1941, probably in Ponary near Vilnius.
An extraordinary 1937 film by Józef Herman Keller and his son Norton has been just published on JewishPlock.eu. The Nobiscum Foundation received the film courtesy of Susan Keller Mouckley, Sandra Brygart Rodriguez and Arieh Bomzon. The film was digitized by the Yad Vashem Institute at […]
On the night of February 20-21, 1941, the Germans began to deport Jews from Płock. On the morning of February 21, the Jewish population was concentrated on Kwiatka Street and between the synagogue and Bielska Street: “… since 4 in the morning, there was light […]
The Arbajter family lived in Płock at 3 Kwiatka Street in the tenement house of Mendel Jakub Perelgryc and his wife Hinda Małka nee Radzik. Hersz Icek Arbajter (1889-1942), son of Mordka and Chaja Hinda nee Żwirek, was a tailor by profession. His wife was Hugra Maleńka (1892-1942), daughter of Chaim Mordka (1856-1933) and Szajna nee Lis (1850-1928). Hugra had two sisters – Estera and Hendel and a brother Izydor who emigrated to the United States. Hersz Icek and Hugra Arbajter had five sons: Eliasz Mendel (born in 1919), Mordka (born in 1922), Izrael Beer (born in 1925), Uren (born in 1927) and Józef (born in 1929).
During World War II, the eldest of the brothers, Eliasz Mendel fled to the Soviet Union. Initially, he worked as a teacher, then joined the army. He was killed near the Polish-German border. The Arbajter family was deported from the Płock ghetto (established on September 1, 1940) to the transit camp in Działdowo, then to Bodzentyn, and finally to the ghetto in Starachowice, which was founded in February 1941. On October 27, 1942, the Germans liquidated the ghetto – Józef Arbajter with his parents Hersz Icek and Hugra were deported to the Treblinka extermination camp. Mordka, Izrael Beer and Uren remained in Starachowice. They worked in an ammunition factory, which was controlled by the Herman Göring Werke group. In July 1944, the Germans began the liquidation of the labor camp. 1,500 prisoners, including the Arbajter brothers, were deported to Auschwitz.
After the war, Mordka, Izrael Beer and Uren Arbajter emigrated to the United States.
Sunday, March 1, 2020, marks the 79th anniversary of the last deportation of Jews from the Płock ghetto. On this day, the Nobiscum Foundation invites you to the Art Gallery of Płock for the premiere of its third publication – the book entitled “Tema. Memories […]
