(Vol. 77 * No. 1 * Summer 2022)
On Friday, 20 August 1921, 108 Polish Ukrainian Jewish Orphans landed in Quebec, Canada, aboard SS Scandinavia. These were part of a group of 150 children selected and rescued by Harry Hirshman, representative of the Canadian Jewish community.
On the other side of the world almost exactly a month later (21 September), 177 Ukrainian War and Pogrom Orphans landed in Cape Town, South Africa, aboard the Edinburgh Castle. This group, now called The Ochberg Orphans, were selected and brought out by Isaac Ochberg the representative of the South African Jewish Community. Half of these children were placed in the care of the South African Jewish Orphanage, now called Arcadia Children’s Home, in Johannesburg and the other in the Cape Town Jewish Orphanage, now called Oranjia (Sources: The Ochberg Orphans and the horrors from whence they came and The Pinsker Orphans, both compiled by David Solly Sandler, sedsand@iinet.net.au).
The Canadian and South African governments had both agreed to allow in up to 200 orphans, subject to many conditions, including that the children be healthy. Ochberg selected healthy children from orphanages that had been established by The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC). The children destined for Canada were selected from the Rovno area. Over 8000 children were examined but only about 150 sufficiently healthy ones could be found and there were only a handful of children under the age of 6 who were sought by prospective adoptees. Hunger was everywhere and some children were crippled from the effects of pogroms.
The Pogroms in the Ukraine, 1918-1919
In January 1921, British Chief Rabbi Dr Hertz declared that “1000 000 human beings [had been] butchered” and that for three years 3000 000 persons in the Ukraine had been made “to pass through the horrors of hell”. He continued that there were some 600 000 homeless children, 150 000 orphans and 35 000 double orphans in the Ukraine who would “die from cold, hunger, or disease unless Jewish hearts remained human and came to their rescue.”
In 1920 a detailed report on the Ukrainian Pogroms detailing the massacre of Jews in more than 400 pogroms was submitted to the League of Nations. The following is a description of a typical pogrom:
The pogroms in the Ukraine perpetrated mainly by the soldiers of Ukrainian leader Symon Petlura were in fact only part of the horrors. This is apparent when one looks at the causes of death of the parents of the orphans that landed up in South Africa.
The horrors commenced with the outbreak of World War I in 1914 and the ensuing forced relocation into Russia of Lithuanian and Latvian Jews by the Russian Tzar’s uncle. In the fighting between the Germans and Russians, many townsfolk were killed and left homeless as front-line towns were attacked and destroyed. Jews fought in both the German and Russian armies.
WWI led directly to the 1917 Russian Revolution. It was immediately followed by the Spanish Influenza pandemic of 1918-1919; the Polish fight for independence; wholesale pogroms perpetrated by the troops of White Russian General Denikin, Ukrainian ‘hero’ Symon Petlura and Belarusian short time president Stanisław Bułak-Bałachowicz and the 1921 man-made famine in the Ukraine. With this came devastation, crop failure, starvation and the diseases that accompany hunger and cold, all adding to the extremely harsh living conditions that continued well into the 1920s.
Jewish communities around the world were shocked by the news of the horrors of war and the pogroms, starvation and disease suffered by their Jewish relatives in the Pale of Settlement. Especially horrific, were accounts of wholesale rape, extortion and slaughter of their brethren by Polish, Ukrainian and Belarus nationalistic armies and the Red and White (Cossack) Russian troops.
The Jewish communities around the world heard the cries of their brethren whom they helped in many ways:
– The American Jewish Joint distribution Committee (JDC) entered into an agreement with the American Relief Administration and with their feeding programs fed almost two million Ukrainians on a non-sectarian basis. The JDC also supported many Jewish communities in the Pale.
– Canada rescued 150 orphans, mainly from the Rovno area. They examined over 8,000 to find healthy ones that were transported to Toronto for adoption.
– South Africa sent funds and supplies to Poland and the Ukraine, transported children to Kfar Yeladim in Israel and supported them there. They also rescued the 177 “Ochberg Orphans”, collecting them mainly from orphanages supported by the JDC.
Pinsker Orphans rescued and the role of the JDC
During WWI Pinsk was on the front line in the fighting between the Germans and the Russians and the city was frequently bombarded, resulting in much loss of life and destruction of property. Three Pinsker Orphanages were established by locals Alter Bobrow, Elijohu Holtzman and Ze’ev Lev, with the help of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee to house the many children left without parents.
The JDC supported not only the Pinsk Jewish community, including the three Pinsker Orphanages, but also many hundreds of Jewish communities throughout the Pale of Settlement,with their orphanages, hospitals, schools, old age homes, soup kitchens and agricultural development and other programs.
Alter Bobrow helped save the children and he, together with his comrades, looked after them and helped establish the three orphanages in Pinsk in 1917. In 1921 he accompanied Isaac Ochberg with the 177 Ochberg Orphans, selected from orphanages in the Pale, including 44 from the Pinsk orphanages, to South Africa. The Pinsker Orphans Relief Fund of London supported the Pinsker Orphanages and brought out to London for adoption a group of 19 children in 1924 and a further group of 34 in 1926.
This horrors suffered by the Jews of Eastern Europe in the later years of World War I and in the period immediately following it is a forgotten part of Jewish history. It is completely overshadowed by the Holocaust and has been called the holocaust before the Holocaust. Much of its details were covered up by the Soviets and remain little known even today, so it is important to capture this history.
APPENDIX
ITEMS FROM THE HEBREW STANDARD (AUSTRALIA), courtesy Brian Fine.
HORROR UPON HORROR!! Friday, July 28 1922
THE UKRAINE GEHENNA
Help! Help! Help!
If there are any of our readers who have not been touched by the various articles that have from time to time appeared in our columns describing the almost indescribable hardships and cruelties that our unfortunate brethren in Eastern Europe have suffered during the last few years, surely the illustrations that appear in this issue must at least move them. So heartrending, so gruesome were the pictures received of which the pictures reproduced are but a sample, that one could but recoil in horror that such happenings were possible in this so-called civilised age.
The cry of distress has reached all quarters of the globe, and the response has exceeded by far that of any other appeal that has been made to our people. Although every section of Jewry in every country of the world has given, and given, in most cases, as it has never given before, the amount of suffering, misery and starvation is so great that the funds spent so far have but touched the fringe of relief, and unless more and still more is obtained, but little can be done to save the hundreds of thousands of our brethren.
The Sydney Committee of the Relief Fund are working hard that the response to the appeal in this city may not be behind that of others, but there is still too much apathy in this matter, and there are still too many in this city who do not realise that they must do more and still more, for their starving brethren.
‘ORPHANS FOR AUSTRALIA (PERTH)’, The Hebrew Standard
Some time ago the Perth (Western Australia) Jewish Community unanimously decided to adopt 30 orphans from the pogrom areas and funds were raised for this purpose. The committee appointed to deal with the matter chose families of high standing as foster parents for the children. Negotiations have been proceeding for official permission for the entry of these children into Australia. The Federation has now been informed by the Migration and Settlement Office of the Government of Australia that official permission has been given. Steps are now being taken by the Federation to send a special representative to Eastern Europe to select these orphans and bring them to London. They will be the guests of the Federation before embarking for Fremantle.
One can only conclude that the attempt to bring out the children to Perth (Western Australian) was unsuccessful.
