Czernowitz
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Strada Romana
In a 1936 Czernowitz business directory (Source: ehpes.com), Samuel Blei, my great-uncle, is listed as a Frizer (Barber) working at Strada Romana #92. In the Austro-Hungarian period, the street was named “Russische Gasse” and in the Soviet and Ukrainian eras, it… Continue reading
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Strada Dionisie Bejan Nr. 10
On October 11, 1941 the Jews in Czernowitz reported to the city ghetto, from which they would be evacuated to the camps forming in Transnistria. No signs were posted – they are notified orally that they must report to the… Continue reading
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The Yiddishe Plotke Agentur
Recently, when reading some personal histories of life in Romania during the war, I came across several references to “agencies” of gossip or wishes, which turned out to be a sort of inside joke, a humorous expression of the frustration… Continue reading
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Postcard to Sigmund Schmatnik
The origin of this story is an image of a postcard sent to Sigmund Schmatnik in Bershad from Herman Lieb Stummer at return address Avram Iancu Nr 6 – discovered on one of my periodic crawls through the online archives… Continue reading
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Josef Schmatnik and his family: Sadagora to the Struma
Josef Schmatnik was born in 1868. He is my second great uncle. Josef Schmatnik, Tischler A 1898 Czernowitz business directory shows a Josef Schmatnik working from #23 Schulgasse (view in Google maps). His profession was “Tischler” or a carpenter – a… Continue reading
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Sigmund (Asher Selig ben Joil HaLevi) Schmatnik
Sigmund (Asher Zelig) Schmatnik was born in 1908 in Czernowitz to Ioil/Joel ben Schmuel (Proprietor of Galanterie Schmatnik) and Rosa Gittel. 1908 in Czernowitz 1908 was the year of the first Yiddish Language conference in Czernowitz, from 30 August to 3… Continue reading
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Bershad Ghetto Economy
Odesa Oblast Archives The State Archives of Odesa Oblast are located at Zhukovs’koho str. 18, Odessa Ukraine. In 1920, the archives were founded as the Odesa Historical Archives. The earliest documents are dated as early as 1572. A collection specifically covering… Continue reading
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Centrala Evreilor (CE)
Prior to 1942, there were multiple Jewish organizations in Romania. On December 9, 1940, one of these, the Union of Jewish Communities of Romania submitted a twenty-six-page appeal to Marshal Antonescu, summarizing the abuses thirty-nine Jewish communities had experienced during… Continue reading
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Chernivtsi Jewish Cemetery
The Jewish Cemetery on Gorechi Hill, Zelena Street in Chernivtsi originated in 1866 and more than sixty thousand are buried there. An old Orthodox and a Jewish cemetery were united in one historical reserve. In the book “Ghosts of Home” by… Continue reading
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Regina Blei Honigsberg
Regina was born in 1900 or 1899 in Sadagora, and in 1921 married Filip Hoenigsberg. הויניגסברג She had three children with Filip: According to Yad Vashem, Carl was the son of Filip and Regina, born a year before they married. Regina… Continue reading
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Samuel Schmatnik to Samuel AlRoy
Early Life Samuel was born in Sadagora (then in Austria) on 30 May, 1897. His parents’ names were Joel ben Schmuel Schmatnik and Rosa (Gittel) Engler. His siblings were Rifka, Sabine, Sigmund, Jenny, Judah, and Mordechai Aron. Samuel married Etel/Esther Blei/Bley… Continue reading
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Ettel Blei and her Family
My paternal grandmother, Ettel Blei, was born on 15 December 1902 in Sadagora, Bukowina, in what was then the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Her parents were named Gusta Sandberg and Salomon Selig Blei, with siblings (from oldest to youngest) Mina, Regina, Ettel, Samuel,… Continue reading
Schmatnik.com 