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Jurbarkas

Community
Jurbarkas
Lithuania
The Jurbarkas synagogue built in 1790 and burned down by the Germans during the first days of occupation
The Jurbarkas synagogue built in 1790 and burned down by the Germans during the first days of occupation
YVA, Photo Collection, 503/11632
Jews began settling in Jurbarkas in the middle of the sixteenth century. According to the first population census of Lithuania in 1923, 1,887 Jews lived in the town, accounting for 43 percent of the local population. In 1940, the town had a population of nearly 2,000 Jews; most of them earned their livelihood in commerce.

In July 1940, following the annexation of Lithuania to the Soviet Union, public and private property was nationalized, along with Jewish educational and cultural institutions.

The German army occupied Jurbarkas on June 22, 1941, and four days later several local Jews were shot, along with some suspected Soviet activists. From July-September 1941, the Einsatzkommando Tilsit, headed by Hans Joachim Boehme, murdered the entire Jewish population of Jurbarkas, assisted by Lithuanian auxiliary police. On September 14, 1941, the last Jews of Jurbarkas were shot in an unknown location.

The Red Army liberated Jurbarkas on October 9, 1944.

Jurbarkas
Raseiniai District
Lithuania
55.083;22.768
The Jurbarkas synagogue built in 1790 and burned down by the Germans during the first days of occupation
YVA, Photo Collection, 503/11632