Guide to the Records of the Ostrowo Jewish Community Council RG 13

Processed by Steven M. Lowenstein, 1970s. Edited by Rivka Schiller, 2006 with the assistance of a grant from the Gruss Lipper Family Foundation. Additionally processed and prepared for digitization by Violet Lutz in 2016 as part of the Edward Blank YIVO Vilna Collections Project, with the assistance of a grant from the Conference of Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, New York, with additional funding from the Kronhill Pletka Foundation, and The Ruth and David Levine Charitable Fund, 2015.

Note to researchers: This collection is currently closed in preparation for the Edward Blank YIVO Vilna Collections Project.

YIVO Institute for Jewish Research
15 West 16th Street
New York, NY 10011
Email: archives@yivo.cjh.org
URL: http://www.yivo.org

Electronic finding aid was converted to EAD version 2002 by Yakov Sklyar in December 2006. EAD finding aid customized in ARCHON in 2012. Description is in English.

Collection Overview

Title: Guide to the Records of the Ostrowo Jewish Community Council RG 13

ID: RG 13 FA

Extent: 10.0 Linear Feet

Arrangement:

This collection was part of the YIVO Archives in Vilna before the Second World War. The records were arranged, numbered and described in Vilna. A part of the original catalog survives and is included with the collection (folder A). The arrangement used here relies on the Vilna catalog.

The main body of the collection is arranged in 184 numbered folders. Some files which were in the original collection catalog in the prewar period when the collection was in Vilna were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947. These files are indicated in the body of the folder listing. Some folders titles were not in the original catalog and were added to the catalog in New York. his has been indicated by the addition of the letter A. As a supplement to the collection’s main body, there is a section of financial volumes that has been arranged at the end of the collection. The folders contained within this latter section have been numbered F1 to F12.

The records contained within the collection are those of the Jewish communal administration of Ostrowo. Also included here are some materials from other Jewish agencies in the town.

Abstract

The Jewish community of Ostrowo, which dates back to 1724, became thoroughly Germanized in time. During the period leading up to World War I, Ostrowo’s Jewish population began a downward decline, which lasted beyond 1918. The depletion of the Jewish population was due to the steady stream of emigration to countries including Germany, the United States, and Palestine. In early October 1939 the Nazi Reich annexed the western part of Poland, including the province of Poznan. By this time, the Jewish community of Ostrowo had dwindled to 17 members. According to Pinkas Hakehilot, in December 1939 these last remaining Jews fled to some unknown destination site. The collection is only a fragment of the original Ostrowo Jewish community’s archives. The records of the Ostrowo Jewish community cover the German period. The vast majority of the material focuses on the years 1834-1919, although a few documents are older.

Scope and Contents of the Materials

The following categories provide a general overview of the documents contained within the collection:

Government, Legal, and Miscellaneous Finance Records: Government-issued certificates of toleration, orders, annual lists of tolerated Jews, correspondence re: individual and public concerns, 1835-1848, synagogue mortgage, court cases concerning communal property, 1824-1858, wills, probate court documents, 1828-1875, lists of debtors, balance sheets, audits, legal proceedings to collect debts, 1880-1902, amortization, legal discussions, bank correspondence, inheritance, wills, legal rules, endowments, government correspondence, 1878-1903, bills, income, expenses, receipts, pay orders, communal tax lists, expense vouchers, ledger of revenue, 1851-1905.

Communal Aid and Welfare Societies: Individual petitions for aid and corresponding decisions of aid commission, lists of recipients; includes society to aid poor gymnasium students, 1856-1884, communal meetings to discuss welfare aid, pleas from organizations, 1867-1891, material pertaining to Passover flour for poor, 1835-1845, communal aid for insufficiently clothed school children, 1834, 1842-1846, 1865, collections for hospital, 1886-1893, material pertaining to various societies to aid poor women, society to provide soup to poor: lists of members, bills for soup distribution, 1842-1880.

Religious and Education Records: Material pertaining to the hiring and financial support of synagogue rabbis and their immediate families, 1823-1907, kosher meat tax, 1845-1901, registry of slaughterhouse, 1838, ritual bath, 1865-1900, Jewish burial society, 1872, 1907-1909, Ner Tomid Society, 1834-1897, lawsuit with church, communal meetings, appeals, court decisions, 1836-1858, synagogue mortgages, 1878-1903, fees for religious ceremonies, petitions concerning anti-shekhite (ritual slaughter) proposals, ritual objects belonging to synagogue, synagogue budgets, expenses pertaining to upkeep of Jewish cemetery, 1891-1911.

Administrative Officers and Community Council Records: Materials on elections of communal officers, rabbis, cantors, ritual slaughterers, sextons, synagogue, communal decisions and protests, rolls of community members listing profession and citizenship status, birth records and registries for Ostrowo and nearby Adelnau Kreis, 1847-1874, lists of community members with professions and citizenship status, list of villages, legal regulations, correspondence concerning Jewish civil rights, 1833-1837, correspondence with Government, statutes of community, government orders, 1834-1845, election meetings; minutes of representative meetings; correspondence with government, 1834-1846.

Historical Note

The first mention of Ostrowo, a private town that originally belonged to the Polish aristocracy in the region of Kalisz, dates back to the year 1404. During the 17th century, Ostrowo was afflicted by a series of wars and plagues, prompting Poland’s then Minister of Finance, who was also a resident of the town, to invite outside parties to come settle in Ostrowo, with hopes that this would help remedy the city’s economic difficulties and the problems associated with its declining population.

In 1724 King Augustus II the Strong granted 12 Jews the right to settle in Ostrowo. These Jews were allowed to reside in homes located on side streets—not in the city’s center—and to rent to other Jews. With this newly augmented population, the city began to grow both economically and demographically. In 1793, when the second partition of Poland took place, Ostrowo’s total population numbered 2,541.

From a legal perspective, the Jewish residents of Ostrowo were not privy to the same rights as other Ostrowo residents. Nonetheless, they were not required to pay the standard compulsory army tax, which other residents were required to pay. By the latter part of the 18th century, Ostrowo’s Jews saw a greatly improved economic situation, and the Jewish community began to develop. The Jewish community of Ostrowo was granted the right to build a synagogue, to open a kheyder for its children, and to established a cemetery on land that was bequeathed to it by the city’s leaders. In 1773 there was no more remaining room in the first Jewish cemetery, so the Jewish community established a second one on the outskirts of the city, on additional land that it acquired.

The majority of Ostrowo’s Jewish community earned its livelihood from merchandise and petty trade. In 1770 there were 9 merchants, 9 tailors, 3 furriers and in addition, 2 physicians. By 1794 the number of tailors had increased to 31, the number of merchants remained the same, and the number of furriers had increased to 8. In 1835 the Ostrowo Jewish community established an elementary school of two classes, which was recognized by and received the financial support of the German government. At the time of the school’s founding, there was a student body of 136 children. The teachers were all government-licensed educators. In 1860, a Talmud-Torah was also established, which the Jewish community funded. During the first year of its existence, the school had a student body totaling 362. In 1866 Ostrowo’s two gymnasiums had a student body totaling 367, of which 77 were Jews.

In 1871 Ostrowo’s Jewish population numbered 1, 982 out of the total of ca. 7,000. During the course of the 19th century, the Ostrowo Jewish community became increasingly established and Jews played an especially prominent role in the city’s clothing and fur trades. However, by the close of the 19th century, Ostrowo witnessed the same overall tendencies of other cities in this region: The younger generation of Ostrowo Jews began to gravitate toward larger German cities. In particular, they tended to settle in areas where maskilim and professionals already resided.

With the growth of Ostrowo’s Jewish community, a new synagogue was established in the Moorish style. The synagogue’s cornerstone laying ceremony was held in April 1857. Within a few years, the Jewish community also built a new beys-medresh and a ritual bath. In 1905 a branch of the Zionist movement was established, which provided great support to the Zionist Congress of 1911.

During World War I many young Jewish males were drafted into the German army. After World War I, when Ostrowo was returned to Poland, the city’s Jewish population began a rapid and steady decline. Most Jews leaving Ostrowo moved to larger cities in Germany, or emigrated to the United States or Palestine.

In the beginning of September 1939, when Nazi Germany conquered Ostrowo, only 17 Jews remained in the city. In December 1939, when the last remaining Jews of Ostrowo learned of the fate of Jews from nearby towns, they all fled to unknown destinations. The Germans destroyed both the synagogue and cemetery of the Ostrowo Jewish community.

A Centrum Judaicum catalogue was published in 2001 and contains references to 34 files dating 1798-1912.

Administrative Information

Access Restrictions: Open to researchers by appointment. For more information, contact: Chief Archivist, YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, 15 West 16th Street, New York, NY 10011; email: archives@yivo.cjh.org

Related Materials: At the present time, the Ostrowo communal records can be found in several locations. Part of the communal archives was sent about 1910 to the Gesamtarchiv der Deutschen Juden in Berlin. Materials were later dispersed among several archival repositories around the world. A portion of the materials spanning the years 1724-1875 found its way to the Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People in Jerusalem. Another portion was taken over by the East German state archives and ultimately returned to the German Jewish community. Today these materials can be found in the “Centrum Judaicum,” which is a museum and archives located on Oranienburger Strasse, at the site of the recently reconsecrated Neue Synagoge in Berlin. Yet another portion is located at the Jewish Historical Institute (ŻIH) in Warsaw. Finally, fragments of the Ostrowo records are located in Moscow, at the former “Osobyi” (Special) archives, a repository for records confiscated by the Red Army from Germany and other countries during World War II.

Preferred Citation: Published citations should read as follows: Identification of item, date (if known); YIVO Archives; Records of the Ostrowo Jewish Community Council; RG 13; folder number.

Box and Folder Listing

Browse by Series:

Series 1: Series I: General Files, 1824-1915,
Series 2: Series II: Financial Documents, 1851-1915,
All

Series I: General Files 1824-1915

Folder 1: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 1 A: Geschaeftsfuehrung, Bestimmungen, Etc. (Miscellaneous) 1834-1845: Records of Reprasentanten Versammlung. Correspondence with Government; statutes of community; government orders
Folder 2: Die Wahl Und Anstellung Der Korporations-Beamten 1834-1846: Records of Reprasentanten Versammlung. Election meetings; minutes of representative meetings; government correspondence
Folder 3: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947. undated
Folder 4: Die Fuehrung Der Personen Standes Register (Miscellaneous) 1834-1847: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Government regulations and correspondence concerning keeping of vital statistics
Folder 5: Kassen Und Rechungs Sachen (Miscellaneous) 1842-1870: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Government regulations. Internal administrative rules
Folder 6: Die Buergerlichen Und Kommunal-Verhaeltnisse, Naturalisirung (Miscellaneous) 1834-1845: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Government correspondence, decrees, citizenship oaths
Folder 7: Die Umzuege Der Korporations Mitglieder Und Abloesung Derselben (Miscellaneous) 1840-1870: Regulations, government correspondence. Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten
Folder 8: Die Auffuehren Der Inventarienstuecke Der Gemeinde 1865-1893: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Inventories; communal meetings authorizing purchases and sales of property; auctions; communal documents and books
Folder 9: Die Organisirung Der Korporation-Vervaltung, Wahle Der Verwaltungs- Und Repraesentanten Sowie Der Einzelnen Verwaltungs-Kommissione 1862-1866: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Communal decisions, announcements of elections, lists of eligible voters, government documents, elections at various levels, closing an account on change of officeholder
Folder 10: Die Wahlen Der Gemeindebehoerden Und Die Bildung Von Verwaltungs- Kommissionen 1906-1916: Communal meetings, government correspondence, lists of eligible voters, newspaper announcements, petitions and litigation against results, membership dues, death of communal officers, death notices in newspaper, commissions
Folder 11: Die Wahlen Der Gemein-Behoerden Und Der Bildung Von Verwaltungs- Kommissionen 1866-1867: Communal meetings, regulations, elections, announcements, petition. Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten
Folder 12: Ordnungs-Und Polizeistrafen. Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten 1834-1886: Fines ordered by community (for non- attendance at meetings, etc.); communal decisions, correspondence with government and others
Folder 12 A: Privilegien Und DocumenteRecords of Verwaltungs-Beamten. 1824-1858: Copies, mortgage, court cases concerning communal property, communal decisions, communal debts, communal buildings
Folder 13: Vermaechtnisse Und Geschenke (pages numbered 11-117 & blanks) 1828-1875: Rules concerning specific endowments; wills, probate court documents, correspondence; letters concerning gifts
Folder 14: Die Buergerlichen Und Kommunal-Verhaeltnisse 1833-1837: Records of Reprasentanten-Versammlung. Copy of royal decree, lists of community members with professions and citizenship status, legal regulations, correspondence concerning Jewish civil rights; list of villages
Folder 15: Die Anstellung Des Rabbiners Auerbach Und Pensionierung Der Wittwe DesselbenRecords of Reprasentanten-Versammlung 1823-1865: Communal decisions and protests as well as other materials concerning fees for rabbi; rabbi’s contract; correspondence, etc. concerning rabbi’s death in 1848; material concerning his widow and orphans
Folder 16: Die Anstellung Eines Rabbiners Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten 1848-1871: Correspondence; pay order; petitions; communal decisions; announcements of election; letters of application; announcements of meetings; lists of members; extention of rabbi’s contract; salary; government correspondence; correspondence with Rabbi Stoessel; litigation between rabbi and community; contract; list of attendance at communal meetings; lists of fees to rabbi; Rabbi Stoessel’s death in 1861; letters of recommendation; doctoral thesis; aid to widow
Folder 17: Anstellung Des Rabbiners Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten 1864-1868: Excerpt from communal rules; announcement of election; communal decisions; choice of election officials; letters of application; curriculum vitaes; recommendations; telegrams; list of eligible voters with their votes. Election of Rabbi Duschak; not hired and post kept vacant
Folder 18: Die Anstellung Des Rabbiners 1869-1871: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. List of applicants, petition, letters of application, references; communal meetings; curriculum vitaes; telegrams; election meeting; list of eligible voters, etc. Election of Rabbi Freimann
Folder 19: Die Anstellung Und Dienstfuehrung Der Rabbinats-Assessoren Und Schlaechter Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten 1860-1874: Vacancy for rabbi’s post. Letters of application; communal decisions; announcement of meetings; correspondence concerning salary, conditions and functions; various official business handled by temporary rabbis; announcements, petitions; government correspondence and announcements
Folder 20: Die Wahl, Anstellung Und Amtsfuehrung Des Rabbiners Dr. Freimann 1871-1885: Communal board meetings, election meeting, list of eligible voters and their choices, congratulations, Dr. Freimann’s letters of application and recommendation, inauguration ceremonies and invitations, his contract, apartment, raises, telegrams, etc. concerning his death in 1884; burial; widow and children
Folder 20 A: Untitled 1902: Communal decisions and correspondence concerning illness and gravestone for Mrs. Freimann, widow of ex-rabbi
Folder 21: Wahl Eines Rabbiners, Aufstellung Des Rabbi, Dr. Freund 1898-1907: Newspaper announcements and advertisements, letters of application and recommendation; material concerning rabbi’s marriage in 1900 and his resignation in 1907
Folder 22: Die Wahl Und Aufstellung Eines Rabbiners/Dr. Plessner 1885-1898: Letters of application, newspaper announcements, contract, renewals, correspondence, communal decisions, government correspondence; Dr. Plessner’s death in 1898, telegrams, pension for his widow
Folder 23: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947
Folder 24: Die Aufstellung Eines/Haft Und Schaechters 1860-1865: Newspaper announcements, letters of application, communal decisions, Letters of recommendation, hiring of Cantor Haft, his contract, election, List of voters, vacations; hiring of a (ritual slaughterer)
Folder 25: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947
Folder 26: Die Wahl Und Austellung Der Kantoren Und Schaechter 1883-1889: Lists of applications, communal decisions, government correspondence, order to fire foreign cantor and; list of eligible voters; letters of application, newspaper announcements, letters of recommendation, tests and auditions; election hiring of Cantor Senior, contract, firing of cantor, new applications, rehiring of cantor, along with assistant
Folder 27: Die Anstellung Und Dienstfuehrung Des Korporations-Schreibers Und Rendanten (?) 1841-1892: Petitions, communal decisions, government correspondence
Folder 28: Anstellung Und Dienstfuehrung Der Korporations-Und Synagogendiener 1836-1907: Communal decisions; complaints against synagogue caretaker, investigations, correspondence, correspondence with government
Folder 29: Untitled 1905: Letters of application and recommendation for job of assistant cantor in Ostrowo for High Holidays
Folder 30: Die Annahme Eines Hilfvorbeters Zu Den Hohen Festtagen 1907-1908: Applications, recommendations
Folder 30 A: Die Neubesetzung Der Vakanten Synagogendienerstelle/Schmuckler 1908-1913: Letters of application and recommendation from various places
Folder 31: Der Verein Zur Pflece Der Kranken Und Beerdigung Der Leichen 1835-1841: Records of Reprasentanten Versammlung. Concerning Hevra Kadisha, correspondence with government, community committee meetings, government regulations and fines
Folder 32: Die Umzuege Der Korporations-Mitglieder Und Abfindung Derselben 1824-1845: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Communal decisions in individual cases; correspondence, petitions, attestations of permission to move
Folder 33: Umzuege Und Ablosung Der Korporations-Mitglieder 1848-1856: Jews moving to other towns: specific cases, petitions, communal and governmental decisions, sums of amounts owed, jurisdictional disputes between communities
Folder 34: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 35: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 36: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 37: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 38: Die Verzeichnisse Der Maennlichen Geburten 1847-1874: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Copies of official birth records for 1847-1850; registry of all male Jewish births in Adelnau Kreis, 1851-1859; registry of all male Jewish births in Ostrowo, 1859-1874
Folder 39: Die Abschliessung Von Vertraegen Ueber Den Verkauf Der Synagogen Sitzstellen 1858: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Collection of contracts for individual synagogue seats issued before notary public
Folder 40: Die Abschliessung Von Vertraegen Ueber Den Verkauf Der Synagogen- Sitzstellen 1858: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten; continuation of above. Collection of contracts for individual synagogue seats
Folder 41: Die Naturalisirung Der Korporations Mitglieder 1834-1845: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Summons to meetings, petitions, lists of individuals, government correspondence and orders, name changes, detailed forms concerning individuals, communal decisions
Folder 42: Die Geduldeten Korporationsmitglieder Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. 1835-1848: Concerning Jews merely tolerated, but without citizenship. Government-issued certificates of toleration. Government orders, annual lists of tolerated Jews, government correspondence concerning individuals and general matters
Folder 43: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 44: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 45: Etats Und Repartitionen 1843-1862: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Government orders, communal decisions, budgets, communal tax rolls (not completely chronological)
Folder 46: Die Feststellung Des Klassifikations Tarifs Zur Veranlagung Der Gemeinde Steuern 1857-1871: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Communal meetings on changing assessment systems; proposed systems of assessment, government order regulations
Folder 47: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 48: Die Veranlagung Der Korporations-Beitraege 1860-1870: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Communal tax rolls, petitions government orders (c. 220 heads of family)
Folder 49: Die Repartition Der Corporationsbeitraege 1891-1904: Mostly assessment lists; communal deliberations, adjustments, government correspondence
Folder 50: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 51: Reclamationen Wegen Korporations-Beitraegen 1835-1861: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Requests for reductions, communal meetings, government regulations
Folder 52: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 53: Kassen Und Rechnungs-Sachen 1834-1846: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. (Some in Yiddish script). Correspondence, choice of finance committee, government orders, lists of amounts owed, communal decisions, bills, audits, correspondence within communal administration, notices of amounts due, notes on budget items
Folder 54: Kassen Und Rechnungs-Sachen 1844-1886: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Government regulations, audits, bills, communal meetings, correspondence, balance sheets, accounts
Folder 55: Die Revision Der Korporations-Kasse 1836-1892: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Periodic (sometimes monthly) reports of expenses, income and cash on hand by commission (some reports missing), bond posted for auditors, choice of auditors, government orders
Folder 56: Korporations-Kassen Rechnungen Pro 1863 Und 1864 1862-1867.: Records of Vorstand. Correspondence, regulations, lawsuit
Folder 57: Einziehung Rueckstaend, Beitraege Und Korpor. Kassen-Rechnung 1880-1902: Lists of debtors, general revenue and expenses, balance sheets, government correspondence, audits, communal decisions, legal proceedings to collect debts, individual petitions and communal decisions
Folder 58: Die Jahresberechnungen Der Korporations-Kasse 1913-1915: Correspondence, accounts for 1910-1911, balance sheet of Legatenfond (endowment fund), communal decisions
Folder 59: Die Krupken-Abgabe, Verpachtung Der Diesfaelligen Revenue 1845-1860: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Tax on kosher meat: rules concerning collection, auctions, announcements (some in Yiddish script). Correspondence, communal decisions, contract with collector, government correspondence, income
Folder 60: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 61: Die Feststellung Und Erhebung Der Krupkensteuer Und Schlachtgebuehren, 1876-1901: Communal debates and orders concerning fees and tickets, bids for tax farm, petitions for tax reductions, concerning הטיחש; correspondence, auction of collection rights, rules, meeting announcements. (Includes some loose pages)
Folder 62: Corporation Wider Tauchenpaechter Mueller 1847-1848: Court case; correspondence with government; court documents, communal decisions; also includes case vs. Korn
Folder 63: Materials concerning mikve (ritual bath) in Ostrowo 1865-1900: Communal decisions, contracts with mikve renters, correspondence, rules of mikves in other towns, petitions, government correspondence, bills, inventories
Folder 64: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 65: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 66: Die Veranlagung Zur Fleischerei Berufsgenossenschaft 1902-1906: Statutes of national guild; correspondence
Folder 67: Die Berichtgung Der Forderung Des Provinzial Schul-Fonds 1833-1846, 1869: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Mainly correspondence with government; also official documents, court documents
Folder 68: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 69: Die Abloesung Des An Die Katholische Kirche Hierselbst Zu Liefernden Shiesspulver Und Talg 1836-1858: Law suit with church; communal meetings, appeals, court decisions, agreement, further suits
Folder 70: Die Forderung Des Kreis-Physikus Dr. Koschny An Die Hiesige Juedische Korporation 1843-1850: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Court case concerning debt, communal decisions, court documents
Folder 71: Die Entnahme Des Darlehens Aus Dem Legatenfonds 1878-1903: Synagogue mortgages, amortization, communal decisions, legal discussions, bank correspondence, inheritances, wills, legal rules, endowments, government correspondence
Folder 72: Die Aufnahme Eines Darlehens Bei Der Chevra Kadischa Und Der Preuss. Cent. Boden Credit Akt. Gesellschaft? Berlin 1872, 1907-1909: 8,000 mark loan; bank correspondence, government permission, government correspondence, conditions of loan, communal decisions, communal property, excerpts from government documents
Folder 73: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 74: Die Unterstuetzung Der Armen Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten 1847-1864: Court case, petitions requesting help from individuals, especially in 1848 (includes victims of pogroms in region), petitions from congregations and other institutions, list of poor, 1847, receipts, reports of epidemics
Folder 75: Die Unterstuetzung Der Armen 1856-1884: Communal meetings and orders, regulations, pleas for aid by individuals, decisions of aid commission in individual cases, pay orders for aid, lists of recipients; includes society to aid poor gymnasium students
Folder 76: Die Armenpflege 1867-1891: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Petitions for aid by individuals, communal decisions, meeting of united khevres concerning poor: announcement, attendance, correspondence, pleas from organizations, correspondence concerning accounts of poor administration
Folder 77: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 78: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 79: Armenunterstuetzung Und Beihilfe Zu Wohltaetigkeitszwecken 1895-1902: Receipts, requests for help from institutions and individuals
Folder 80: Die Verabreichung Des Ostermehls An Armen 1835-1845: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Passover flour for poor: lists of recipients, communal meetings, regulations, correspondence, announcements
Folder 81: Die Armenunterstuetzung 1834-1839: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Petitions for aid, vouchers for aid expenditures, correspondence, including one Yiddish letter
Folder 82: Die Bekleidung Armer Schulkinder 1834, 1842-1846, 1865: Poor children sent home from school for insufficient clothes, communal purchases of clothes, statements of parents, communal decisions, bills
Folder 83: Collecten Und Milde Beitraege 1886-1893: Collection for hospital, etc.; list of contributors, correspondence, etc., appeals for aid from various organizations
Folder 84: Aid to the Poor 1881-1915: Appeals from organizations and individuals; communal decisions
Folder 85: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 86: Der Frauen-Verein, Unterstuetzung Duerftiger Frauen Und Jungfrauen 1842-1880: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Correspondence between community and the society, etc.; balance sheets of women’s society, statutes of various societies to aid poor women, government correspondence, minutes, announcements of meetings, society to provide soup to poor: lists of members, bills for soup delivered
Folder 87: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 88: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 89: Die Aus Der Schule Entlassenen Knaben Sowie Unterbringung Und Beaufsichtigung Derselben 1834-1847: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Communal decisions in individual cases; government correspondence; requests and declarations by individuals; lists of children over 14 years old with professions they are learning; apprenticeship contract; requests for apprentices, school reports
Folder 90: Die Organisirung Der Schule, Beschaffung Und Unterhalt Der Unterrichtslocalien 1835-1857: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Proposals for building a schoolhouse and mikve, plans, cost estimates (1840); sale of old elementary school (1835), rented building, correspondence, government correspondence, communal decisions
Folder 91: Schul-Sachen, Anstellung Der Lehrer Und Unterrichts-Sachen 1834-1859: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Government orders, lists of all school- age children, correspondence, truancy, school materials, appointment and recommendation of teachers, communal decisions
Folder 92: Der Privat “Schul” Unterricht Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten 1835-1841: Orders against such instruction, threats of punishment, passing on of government decrees against khedorim, certificates for Jewish teachers
Folder 93: Gehalt Quittungen concerning assistant teacher, Callomon 1844
Folder 94: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 95: Die Errichtung Und Verwaltung Der Gemeinde-Religionsschule 1897-1912: Statutes of school with amendments, communal decisions, nomination of administrators, correspondence, invitation, hiring teacher, list of students, curricular plan for 1912, minutes of education committee
Folder 96: Schulbesuchs-Liste Der Religions-Schule Zu Ostrowo 1912-1913: Attendance book
Folder 97: Kultus Angelegenheiten Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten 1834-1897: Ritual objects belonging to synagogue, synagogue budgets, Ner Tomid Society, fees for religious ceremonies, questionnaires, communal decisions, government approval and others, petitions concerning anti-shekhite proposals, list of voting members, mikve, Austritt, etc.
Folder 98: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 99: Untitled 1907-1913: Correspondence concerning cemetery plots and care, communal decisions
Folder 100: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 101: Der Neubau Der Synagoge Und Deren Documente 1855-1862: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Communal meetings, purchase of land, etc., budget, contracts, official record, inauguration
Folder 102: Der Neubau Einer Leichenhalle, Umbau Des Hauses No. 57, Die Errichtungen Von Umwaehrmungen, Etc. 1872-1885: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Sketches, communal meetings, expense estimates for various projects, correspondence, rabbi’s residence, additional expenses, cemetery ownership
Folder 103: Umbau Des Treppenaufganges In Der Synagoge Und Deren Umgebens 1890-1895: Correspondence, communal decisions, plans and blueprints, estimated costs, permits
Folder 104: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 105: Verkauf Eines Teilgrundstueckes An Epstein 1911-1912: Correspondence, communal decisions, meeting, copy of agreement concerning building and sale, lawyers’ correspondence, government permission
Folder 106: Die Renovation Und Verwaltung Der Tauche (Radeanstalt) 1891-1911: Plan, government correspondence, communal decisions, bills, cost estimates, correspondence, communal meetings, public announcements, letters from other communities asking advice, government inspections, firing of superintendent of mikve, applications for post of cemetery caretaker, contract of superintendent, income and expenses of mikve
Folder 107: Der Neubau Und Unterhaltung Der Tauche Und Des Schulgebaeudes 1835-1852: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Communal decisions, conditions for building, public announcements, government correspondence, contract for land, cost estimates, bills, tax to pay for building, list of payers, contract, plans, correspondence
Folder 108: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 109: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 110: Korrespondenzen Gemischten Inhalts; Gesuche, Reschwerden, Etc. 1838- 1855: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten
Folder 111: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 112: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 113: Fuehrungsattestn 1834-1894: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Petitions, certificates of good behavior and recommendation, issued by the Ostrowo community
Folder 114: Verschiedene Publicanda 1834-1867: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Government and individual requests for community to make public announcements, includes some of the actual announcements
Folder 115: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 116: Verlassen Und Vormundschafts-Sachen 1835-1873: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Birth and death certificates for government cases, government correspondence
Folder 117: Die Collonisation Der Juden Im Grossherzogthum Posen 1846: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Creation of Jewish colonization organization, correspondence, applications of prospective colonists
Folder 118: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 119: Verschiedene Currenden An Die Verwaltungs-Beistaende, Veranlagungs- Commission Und Einschaetzungs-Commission 1847-1881: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Several hundred circulars announcing meetings
Folder 119 A: Circulars summoning meetings of Jewish communal board, commission and khevres of Ostrowo 1888-1891
Folder 120: Patriotische Kundgebungen Und Andachtsuebuncen 1866-1897: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Prayers for government, government orders, special prayers and celebrations, announcements of parliamentary elections, meetings, etc., king’s birthday, end of war, official days of prayer, aid for war wounded, etc., communal decisions
Folder 121: Die Am Vorafende Des Versoehnungsfeste 5633/am 11. Oktober 1672 In Der Synagoge Zu Ostrowo Stattgehabte Unglueckliche Katastrophe 1872-1875: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Fatal accident: correspondence, letters of condolences, expenses, newspaper announcements, communal meeting, statutes of orphans’ home in Schwerin a. W., pleas for aid, donations
Folder 122: Verzeichniss Der Zu Naturalisirenden Mitglieder Der Israelitischen Corporation Zu Ostrowo 1844: Petitions, information on several individual cases
Folder 123: Record of Jewish weddings at Ostrowo 1836-1844: (Cover missing)
Folder 124: (Untitled) Case of Berliner vs. Jewish community of Ostrowo concerning pillar in front of synagogue seat 1865: Court announcements, copy of accusation and of synagogue seat contract, correspondence, legal documents, decision
Folder 125: Nachweis Der Synagogenplaetze 1913-1916: Synagogue seat rentals, list
Folder 126: Das Angebot Der Israelitischen Heiraten 1834-1839: Records of Verwaltungs-Beamten. Rules, permission to marry, petitions
Folder 127: Repartitionen Und Etat 1844: Communal tax list and budget with government approval; listed among general contents: Grundriss Des Unteren Raumes Der Synagoge Zu Ostrowo (missing)
Folder 128: Nachweis Der Synagogensitzplaetze 1909-1910: List of seat owners
Folder 129: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 130: Rechnung Der Israelitischen Corporations-Kasse Zu Ostrowo Fuer Den Jahrgang 1839: Accounts
Folder 131: Umlegung Der Rekrutensteuer 1837-1845: (Records of Repraesentanten-Versammlung). Government correspondence, communal decisions and announcements, amounts paid
Folder 132: Die Untersuchung Wider Beiden Repraesentanten Baruch Krotoszyner Und Aron ZellnerRecords of Verwaltungs-Beamten 1834-1836: Investigation of two officials for for insubordination and revealing secrets, regulations, minutes of investigation, including depositions
Folder 133: (Untitled) Accompanying Finance Documents 1839: Expense orders, communal decisions, applications, Recrutensteuer, bills, concerning aid to poor
Folder 134: Etat 1842: Includes outstanding debts for 1840 and 1841; budget; communal tax list, expense vouchers
Folder 135: Einnahme Quittungen of Verein Zur Heranbildung Juedischer Handwerker in Ostrowo 1849-1853: Society for training Jewish artisans; lists of receipts for dues
Folder 136: Belaege Der Ausgaben 1862: (Poor fund?) Pleas for aid by individuals; orders for payment
Folder 137: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 138: Ausgabe Belaege Der Armen-Casse 1865: Pay orders
Folder 139: Ausgabe Belaege Zur Rechnung 1867: List of expenses by category, bills, expense vouchers and pay orders
Folder 140: Einnahme Belaege Zur Rechnung 1867: Overview of income, etc., communal decisions, Einnahme Anweisungen (orders to register income)
Folder 141: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947
Folder 142: Ausgabe Belaege Zur Rechnung 1871: Bills, receipts, pay orders
Folder 143: Einnahme Belaege Zur Rechnung 1873: Communal decisions, Einnahme Anweisungen, lists of various types of income
Folder 144: Belaege Zur Jahres-Rechnung 1895-1896: Bills, pay orders, Einnahme Anweisungen, communal decisions, etc., receipts; both income and expenditures
Folder 145: Ausgabe Belaege 1894-1895: Mostly bills, pay orders
Folder 146: Ausgabe Journal 1895-1896: Ledger
Folder 147: Ausgabe Belaege 1885-1886: Government and communal decisions concerning owed dues, bills, pay orders, receipts for aid, etc.
Folder 148: Ausgabe Belaege 1889-1890: Bills, pay orders
Folder 149: Einnahme Belaege 1882-1883: Receipts, accounts, lists of contributions, Einnahme Anweisungen, synagogue seats
Folder 150: Ausgabe Belaege 1882-1883: Bills, pay orders, receipts, etc.
Folder 151: Ausgabe Journal 1881-1882: Ledger
Folder 152: Ausgabe Belaege/Armen-Verwaltung undated: Almost exclusively pay orders for aid to individuals
Folder 153: Ausgabe Belaege 1900-1901: Mostly bills, etc.
Folder 154: Die Rauchfangs-Steuer Der Hiesigen Corporations 1834-1836: Chimney tax: government letters, list of papers, communal decision, government announcement
Folder 155: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 156: Einnahme Belaege 1880-1881: Income lists; Einnahme Anweisungen
Folder 157: Ausgabe Belaege 1899-1900: Receipts, bills, lists of expenses, pay orders
Folder 158: Einnahme Belaege 1884-1885: Lists of various kinds of income, Einnahme Anweisungen, receipts
Folder 159: Ausgabe Belaege 1902-1903: Bills, pay orders
Folder 160: Ausgabe Belaege 1898-1899: Bills, lists of expenses, pay orders
Folder 161: Saemmtlichen Den Jugendverein Betreffenden Angelegenheiten 1845-1847: Statutes of youth organization, apprenticeship contract, contributions, apprenticeship questions
Folder 162: Untitled 1911-1913: Accompanying documents for budget of Eger Lodge (Jewish lodge) in Ostrowo (mostly bills)
Folder 163: Akten Des Vereins Malbisch Arumim of Ostrowo 1885-1887: Membership meetings, lists of children needing clothes, budget
Folder 164: Adhirenda in case of Przygodzic vs. Ostrowo 1823-1836: Suit between Jewish community and domain of Przygodzic in court of Krotoszyn concerning quit-rents for various properties (Dominial Entschaedigungs Ansprueche). Various court documents
Folder 165: Untitled 1827-1828: Expenses in court case of Zukerman, et. al. vs. Jewish community of Ostrowo, in Friedensgericht case involving communal dues: correspondence, accounts, communal tax to pay courtroom expenses, court documents, receipts
Folder 166: Receipts, expense orders 1844
Folder 167: Acta Manualia Des Koenigl. Justiz-Commisarius Mittelstaedt in case of Lissner vs. Ostrowo 1842-1844: Suit by Moses Lissner of Pless O/S against Jewish community; court costs
Folder 168: Acta Manualia Des Landsgerichts-Raths Springer in case of Probst Kramarkiewicz vs. Synagoge Ostrowo 1827-1828: Concerning a debt: government correspondence, court papers, inquest, court correspondence
Folder 169: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 170: Jewish communal tax lists (lists of payment), fragmentary 1896-1899
Folder 171: Registry of slaughterhouse, Ostrowo 1838
Folder 171 A: Registry of slaughterhouse, Ostrowo? 1892-1893
Folder 172: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 173: According to the prewar catalog to this collection, this folder originally held documents which, due to the circumstances of the war, were not transferred to YIVO in New York in 1947 undated
Folder 174: Armenpflege 1918-1919: List of people to be aided, receipts from organizations
Folder 175: Einnahme 1836: Manual Income ledger
Folder 176: Auszug Aus Dem Gemeinde-Citzstellenarchiv 1908: List of synagogue seat owners
Folder 177: (Untitled) Accompanying documents for expenses of Eger Lodge in Ostrowo 1917-1919: Bills, receipts, pleas for aid from organizations
Folder 178: Case of Krauskopf vs. community 1866: Concerning Krupka (meat tax) collection: summonses to hearings, lawyer’s bills, promissory notes
Folder 179: (Untitled) Documents concerning two synagogue seats 1857-1865: Contracts, payments
Folder 180: Untitled 1858-1876: Contracts and documents concerning a small number of specific seats in the synagogue of Ostrowo
Folder 181: Imtitled 1840: List of debtors who owe communal taxes
Folder 182: Untitled 1911: Correspondence concerning purchase of Kopfhalter for slaughterhouse in Ostrowo
Folder 183: Miscellaneous undated, 1824, 1841-1843: Announcements by Jewish community, 1841-1843. Tax classification list, no amounts, n.d. Yiddish list of taxes paid, n.d. List of contributors for Passover flour 1824.
Folder 184: Miscellaneous 1838, 1890s, 1910-1915: Communal and government decisions concerning a gravestone, 1838. Receipts for dues – Holzverein in Ostrowo, 1890’s. Letter concerning matzohs from Rabbi Neuhaus, 1915. First page of communal tax list, 1890. Letter concerning repairs of synagogue roof, 1912 and of clock, 1913. Repair of hearse, 1913; slaughtering fees, 1909; communal decision to raise teacher’s salary, 1894; correspondence concerning a member’s 50th anniversary; letter of condolence to Rabbi Freund, 1910; etc.

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Series 1: Series I: General Files, 1824-1915,
Series 2: Series II: Financial Documents, 1851-1915,
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