Skvira

Skver, Skvir, Skwere (Yiddish Transliteration), Skwira (Polish), Сквира – Skvira (Russian), Сквира – Skvyra (Ukrainian), סקווירא (Yiddish)

Skvyra is a town in the Kiev Oblast (province) of central Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Skvyrskyi Raion (district), and is currently a municipality of raion subordinance.

The ancient town of Skvyra was completely destroyed at the end of the 16th century. In 1736, Skvyra was mentioned as a village (selo) leased by a Jewish lessee. According to the census of 1765, there were 124 houses in Skvyra, 51 of which belonged to Jews. In 1775, 116 Jews lived in Skvyra, in 1784 there were 204, and in 1787, 144.

 After Skvyra was included in the Pale of Settlement the town’s Jewish community increased. Its Jewish population was 2,184 in 1847 and grew to 8,910 in 1897 — 49.5% of the general population. At the end of the 19th century Skvyra had seven synagogues, a parochial school, a hospital, a pharmacist and a district doctor. Many Jews were engaged in grain and timber export.

By 1910 the town had a Talmud Torah, a Jewish private boys’ school and two private girls’ schools. In 1913 Rabbi was Yampolskiy Usher Genzelevich.

There were two pogroms in the town in 1917 and a wave of six pogroms in 1919, some of which lasted for several weeks. There were rapes, houses were burnt down, and Jewish property was seized and destroyed or sold to local peasants. 191 people were killed and hundreds injured. After the pogroms an epidemic in the town killed up to 30 people a day. The Jewish population fled to Kiev, Odessa and Belaya Tserkov.

I find this report on JDC Archiv website, it gave wide description of Skvira Jewish community state in beginning of 1920′s:

Under the Soviet Union the religious and communal life of the Jews of Skvyra was dissolved.

The town’s Jewish population fell to 4,681 by 1926 (about 33.6% of the population) and 2,243 by 1939, but even so it remained among the biggest Jewish communities of Ukraine at that time.

In World War II German forces occupied the town at July 13, 1941. In July 15, 1941 Jews were ordered to ware David star and used to forced labor. In 2 weeks after occupation were killed 10 communists, among them were Jews. Judenrat was created for contribution gathering and exact Jews count. After complete of this task all members of Judenrat were killed.

During August-September 1941 the Einsatzgruppen 5 headquarters was in Skvyra ( head is Standartenfuhrer SS Schultz).  At the morning September 20, 1941 ( from another sources September 21, 1941) Jews were gathered near school on Bogachevskogo Street and shot in 3 pits on Jewish Cemetery. At that day were killed approximately 850 Jews. Building was constructed on mass grave. Second “action” took place at October 17, 1941 – 170 Jews were killed near stable of Raipotrebsouz. Last mass killings took place at November 19, 1941 and December 20, 1941.

Skvira was liberated by Soviet Army at December 29, 1943. During Holocaust there were killed 1230 Jews.

According to the head of Skvyra’s Jewish community, there were mass shootings of Jews in the area of the market, the secondary school and in Bannaya Street.

Skyvra’s remaining Jewish population was about 1,000 after the War and fell to about 500 by 1960. It has continued to decline, and in 2009 numbered 128.

Persons

 

Rabbi Itzhak of Skver, Menahem Nohum Tversky’s grandson (1812, Chernobyl – 1895, Skvyra), the founder of the Hasidic dynasty in Skvyra.

The Hasidic court of the Chernobyl dynasty was established in Skvyra at the beginning of the 1840s by Rabbi Itshak of Skver (1812-1885), one of the younger sons of Rabbi Motele Twersky (1770-1838). After Rabbi Itshak’s death, the court was headed by his son, Rabbi Avraam Yegoshua Geshel of Skver (1826-1886), and then by Rabbi Avraam’s son, Rabbi Moshe Dan of Skver (? – Kiev, 1920) and by his son, Rabbi Itshak of Skver (Skvyra, 1886 – Tel-Aviv, 1986). In the 1920s, after the pogroms, many Skver Hasids left Skvyra. The Skver Hasidic dynasty has continued to exist and grow in number in the United States, notably in the New Square (anglicisation of New Skvir) township in Rockland County, New York. After 1991, many Skver Hasids returned to Skvyra; in 2004 the synagogue and the tzaddik’s court were restored; there is now a hotel for Hasidic visitors in the tzaddik’s former residents.

Ahad ha-Am, writer and publicist (pen-name meaning “one of the people”; real name Asher Hirsh Gintsberg) (1856, Skvyra – 1927, Tel Aviv).

Yosef Shapiro, Yiddish writer, the author of “Skvirer hurbn” (“Skvyra catastrophe”, 1924), “Vergangenheit” (“The Past”, short stories about the Jewish pogroms in Ukraine, 1925), “Moschichische Personlichkeiten” (“Messianic Personalities”, 1931) (1902, Skvyra – 1978, Tel Aviv).

David Lvovich Margulis, Hero of the Soviet Union (Skvyra, 1914 – 1993, St. Petersburg).

 

Genealogy

Places

Synagogue was rennovated due to help of Skvira Hasidim from USA in 2000′s.

Information about cemeteries was taken from Lo-Tishkah Cemetery project web site.

 

 

 

 

Old Jewish cemetery

The cemetery was founded at the time of the establishment of the community. It was demolished during World War II; after the war, local people used the gravestones for construction. As the brickyard adjacent to the site was expanded, the remaining gravestones were removed and taken to the area by the river bank.

The cemetery site is located next to the River Skvyra, on a hill. The ohel is located at the foot of the hill, next to a water pipeline belonging to the neighbouring brickyard which owns the cemetery land. The site is also adjacent to private dwellings.

Location: North-west area of the city, close to 32 Dzerzhinskogo street. There is an ohel at the site.

The cemetery site is undemarcated and (apart from the ohel) unmarked. It is not possible to ascertain its boundaries. It is not known whether the burial index for this cemetery is still in existence.

The cemetery site is located on the territory of the local brick factory. It is unmarked and undemarcated and there are no remaining gravestones at the site. Two gravestones can be found close to the site by the bank of the river and are at risk from vegetation and water damage and weather erosion.

Three burial places were restored in the ohel; there are no epitaphs on them. According to local residents, the central burial place is that of Rabbi Itshak Tversky of Skvyra (1812-1885), the founder of the Skver dynasty; the burial places of his sons (presumably Rabbi Avraam Yehoshua Geshel and Rabbi Israel) are situated on either side. In addition, two gravestones can be found on the river bank.

They were previously used by local people and were bought back by the Chairman of the Skvyra Jewish community Yefim Davidovich Shvartsburd.

Inscription on the oldest gravestone:

פ איש נ
חשוב מ נחמיה
בר אפרים נפ ז
אלול תרנה תנ
צבה האמערע[ז]

(Trans. Here lies an important man, Mister Nehemiya, the son of Efraim. Died on 7 Elul 5655. May his soul be tied in the knot of life. Gomere [z]).

New Jewish Cemetery

Cemetery was established in late 19th/early 20th century

The cemetery is adjacent to residential property, gardens and a football field. It is very close to Skvyra Old Jewish Cemetery and Skvyra Mass Grave (see IDs 10144 and 11813 respectively).

The cemetery is surrounded by a concrete wall, with a large iron gate at the entrance. The gate features a Star of David and two menorahs. The cemetery area is approximately 165m x 105m.
The cemetery is identifed, securely demarcated and generally well-maintained. However, there are some problems with weather erosion and excessive vegetation in the older section.
Date Of The Oldest Known Gravestone: 1880 – Khaya Feyga

The cemetery’s gravestones are well-maintained; none are broken or damaged. Inscriptions are in Russian, Hebrew and Yiddish. Gravestones are tablet-shaped and made from granite, sandstone and marble. A number have portraits.

Cemetery history: It is thought that the oldest section of the cemetery belongs to the pre-war period (1920s – 1930s). The tombstones in this section were destroyed during the war and later looted by local people. This land, on which no gravestones remain, is still part of the cemetery. A new section (near the entrance) was opened in 1945. Two old tombstones dating from 1880 and 1913 have been preserved in the old section (perhaps brought from the old cemetery).

 

 

Holocaust Mass graves

I find photo of 2 Holocoust Mass graves in Internet and plane to get more information about this in future.