The Germans
converted the ancient synagogue of Tykocin to a storehouse for the household
goods taken away from the local Jews. They also destroyed the Jewish
cemetery, and took its headstones and stone fence for road construction,
completing the destruction of Jewish Tykocin. Only seventeen of the Jews
from Tykocin survived the destruction of the Jews of Tykocin, but they ended
up moving away from Tykocin.
Here is how the Encyclopedia Judaica describes the
destruction of the Jews of Tykocin:
"During the first days of the occupation, a pogrom was
conducted by the Poles (with the encouragement of the Germans), and Jewish
property was looted. The Jews were drafted for forced labor and freedom of
movement was limited. On August 25, 1941, the Jews of the town were called
to assemble in the market square. After a Selektion, about 1,400 people were
transported to large pits that had been prepared near the city and were
murdered. Some of the Jews succeeded in hiding, but the next day they were
caught and executed by the Polish police. About 150 people found temporary
shelter in the Bialystok ghetto and in the surrounding townlets, later
perishing together with the members of those communities. After the war a
few of the survivors returned to Tykocin, but they were subject to attacks
by gangs of Polish nationalists that were active in the area; as a result,
they left the city."
Many of the Jews in Tykocin were starved and
of course any contact with the Polish citizens was forbid by the Polish
police. If seen by a German troop that the Polish Police wasn’t doing his
proper job then he would be murdered at the spot. On August 16, 1941 five
German gendarmes arrived in Tykocin pretending they are there to protect
Jewish abandoned property from different robbers. They even forced people to
return stolen property. These 5 members secretly forced the Polish police to
order citizens of Lopuchowo (a town near by 7 km away) to dig 3 pits in the
forest of Lopuchowo. On August 24, 1941, the German troops announced that on
the spot of the date August 25, 1941 at 6:00AM all of The Jewish citizens
were to meet in the square market, the Jews were told that they are being
transferred to a ghetto in Bialystok and they are allowed to take 25kg
package of belongings.
On August 25, 1941 four trucks loaded with
German troops arrived early in the morning before 6:00 AM. When the Jews
were at the square market they were escorted by foot to a nearby town,
Zawady past Lopuchowo (about 17km from Tykocin). All of these Jewish people
were locked up in a school. This included women, children and men of all
ages. Later on in the day all of these people were transported by trucks to
the forest of Lopuchowo. These people were just dumped in the pits and were
murdered right about in an instance. The following day, the German troops
rounded of that 700 of Jews had not reported to the market square as
ordered, including the elderly and sick, and took them to Lupochowo and
murdered them there. About 150 Jews did escape the second massacre of August
16, 1941 but soon were caught and given to the German troops where later
they have been killed. Only seventeen of the Jews of Tykocin survived the
Shoah.
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
