Krakenowo - The story of a world that has passed: Our town In Lithuania

This book records some of the Jewish history of Krakenowo, a small town in Lithuania, where Jewish life came to an abrupt end with the Holocaust in 1941 On the occasion of its Diamond Jubilee, in 1961, the Krakenowo Sick Benefit and Benevolent Society felt that it would be appropriate to have a record on paper of available information and knowledge of our forlorn old town, and if possible, one which would trace its story. It was quite surprising how many people had photographs, information and other material referring to the community in the little Lithuanian town. Some of these are first hand memories. Others are recollections gathered from relatives and friends. All together make a picture which is perhaps unique and is certainly valuable as a personal memento and as a historical record. The Jewish community of Krakenowo was massacred by the Nazis. By September 1941, there were no Jews left in the town. One or two who escaped are still living in Lithuania but not in Krakenowo, one such family of survivors are settled in Rhodesia. Even the appearance of the place has changed radically. The townspeople of Krakenowo are spread all over the world. Many of them live in South Africa, where "pioneers" and their descendants number about 400 today. The U.S.A. has a Krakenowo society similar to ours here. There are some Jews from Krakenowo also in Argentine, Brazil, Canada, England, Israel, Rhodesia and Cuba. Many of the Jews of Krakenowo have become distinguished in commerce, industry, mining and culture in various parts of the world. The reminiscences in this brochure are therefore the only record, perhaps the last possible record of Jewish life in this typical East European town. It was no easy matter to get together this material and to try and assemble a souvenir worthy of the long and commendable working not only of a society but of a community. I know you will appreciate the difficult task encountered in the compilation of the valuable material contained in this Brochure, and I therefore ask you to accept in good spirit any expressions or statements with which you may not agree, omissions, or errors in the spelling of names and places. On behalf of the society, I should like to thank all the contributors of articles and photographs, and all those others who have helped financially to make this celebration a success. Special thanks must go to the advertisers without whose assistance this publication would not have been possible. My cordial gratitude goes also to Mrs. Dora Sowden for her help in proofreading the articles. Sydney Seeff Hon. Treasurer 1961 Reprinted in 2017 by David Solly Sandler sedsand@iinet.net.au