Tag #153931 - Interview #78048 (lev mistetskiy)

There were cheders, Jewish schools and a yeshivah in the town before the Revolution, but after 1917 the cheders and the yeshivah were closed while two seven-year Jewish schools operated almost until the Great Patriotic War 4. There was a shochet in each synagogue. There was a big Jewish community in Zhytomyr that organized charity and provided assistance to the needy. There was a Jewish children's home, an old-age home and a Jewish hospital in town. During the Civil War 5 there were Jewish pogroms 6 in Zhytomyr made by gangs 7 or Denikin troops 8. Jewish families often found shelter in Polish and Ukrainian homes. Mama told me about the pogroms, but I don't remember any details. The local population had a positive attitude towards Jews. All townspeople could speak Yiddish, Polish and Ukrainian.