3 Killing site(s)
Halina M., born in 1932: "The Jews were forced to sit along a pit that had been dug in front of the town hall. Later, they were executed. They were all men. The pit ran alongside the town hall, and they sat in a row, one after another. I think there were about 30 of them. I saw it as I happened to pass by on my way to a Jewish store, but I didn’t want to look. Each person was shot individually, one by one, and then buried in the pit, which had been dug specifically for the execution.” (Testimony N°YIU665P, interviewed in Ostrów Mazowiecka, on June 01, 2017)
"The execution began with the shooting of the men. They were shot at the pit closest to the road. We were arranged in rows and shot on the officer’s command. [...] I remember very clearly the panic that overtook us after the first two or three shots—after having executed three groups of Jewish men. We lost our composure at the sight of the first victims.
Moreover, the Jewish victims did not wait passively at the edge of the pit. Some tried to run away, and we had to catch them and bring them back to the pit. There were also those who were only wounded by the bullets. While some of us were busy at the edge of the pit, the shooters continued firing, creating chaos. It’s a miracle we didn’t end up shooting each other.
Once the shooting of the men was over, the women and children were brought to the edge of the second pit. If I recall correctly, the whole commando was involved in their execution, just as we had been for the men. The men shot earlier were mainly elderly, destitute, and dressed in rags—the poorest of the poor. Among the women were some who wore better clothing.
The women and children were transported by omnibus, which stopped further up the road. They had to get off and were escorted under guard to the pit. From their behavior, it was clear they knew what awaited them. Terrible scenes unfolded—scenes I will never forget for the rest of my life.
After getting off the omnibus, the women were forced to deposit their valuables in a designated spot near the road before being taken to the pit to be executed. [...]"
[Preparatory file for the trial of the members of Pol. Batl. 91 concerning the mass shootings in Ostrow [Ostrów Mazowiecka] / Distrikt Warschau [Warsaw]; Interrogation of Gustav T***, born in Saarland in 1911, given in Dudweiler on November 9, 1961; BA-L, B162/4854, p.67 / AR-Z 350/59]
"Around 400 Jews shot on 11.11.1939." [Court Inquiries about executions and mass graves in districts, provinces, camps and ghettos=Ankieta Sadow Grodzkich, 1945 Reel 13 FILE 43]
Ostrów Mazowiecka, located in the Mazovian Voivodeship, serves as the seat of Ostrów County and the rural commune of Ostrów Mazowiecka. Situated approximately 100 km (62 miles) northeast of Warsaw, the town traces its origins to the medieval period, evolving into a center of trade and local governance over the centuries.
Jewish settlement in Ostrów Mazowiecka began in the 18th century, following the lifting of restrictions that had previously prohibited Jews from residing in the town. By 1765, 20 Jewish families lived there, and the Jewish population steadily grew, reaching 135 individuals in 1792, out of a total population of 867. Jewish residents primarily engaged in trade, crafts, and lease holding.
The 19th century brought a significant increase in the Jewish population, fueled in part by policies of the Congress Kingdom of Poland that encouraged the relocation of Jews from rural areas to towns. By 1808, Jews constituted 34% of Ostrów Mazowiecka’s population, rising to 809 individuals by 1827. By 1857, Jews formed the majority of the town’s population, numbering over 2,000, or 61% of the total residents. During this period, economic activities included small-scale trade, tailoring, and transport, while wealthier Jewish families participated in the grain and timber trade.
By the late 19th century, the Jewish community continued to expand. In 1897, 5,910 Jews were recorded as living in Ostrów Mazowiecka, making up around 60% of the total population. This period saw the establishment of key institutions such as a synagogue, a Jewish cemetery, and charitable organizations like Hachnasat Orchim and Bikur Cholim, which demonstrated the community’s development and self-sufficiency. Religious and cultural diversity flourished, though tensions occasionally arose between Hasidim and more traditional Lithuanian Jews. The town also became home to prominent religious figures, including the Hasidic leader Bencjon Rabinowicz.
In 1921, Jews numbered 6,812, representing just over 50% of the town’s population. During the interwar period, the Jewish community remained active, supporting schools, religious institutions, and political organizations despite growing challenges from rising antisemitic sentiment and economic difficulties.
The exact number of Jews remaining in Ostrów Mazowiecka on the eve of the war is unknown. However, local witnesses confirmed that a significant Jewish population still resided in the town at the time.
Ostrów Mazowiecka was occupied by German forces on September 8, 1939. Upon arrival, the Germans established a Gestapo office in the brewery building known as the "Browar" and occupied the "Czerwoniak" near the town hall. The Jewish community was immediately subjected to violence and humiliation.
On September 10, all Jewish men aged 15 and older were ordered to gather in the market square. They were detained until curfew, at which point they were accused of violating it—an accusation fabricated by the Germans to justify their actions. Approximately 30 men were executed (although some sources estimate as many as 300). After October 1939, many Jews fled to Soviet-occupied territories, settling in cities like Białystok and Słonim, where they later perished during the German occupation in 1941.
On November 9, 1939, a fire broke out near the town hall. The Germans blamed the Jews for the fire and used this as a pretext to round them up, imprisoning them in the cellars of the town hall. In the days following the fire, the Germans set the entire city center ablaze, destroying many Jewish-owned buildings. On November 11, 1939, the detained Jews—both locals and refugees—were transferred from the town hall to the brewery. The Germans used these events to justify condemning the Jews to death.
Jewish men were marched to a killing site on the town’s outskirts, while women and children were transported there in trucks or buses. At the site, Jewish men were executed in groups of 10 at the edge of a pit that had been dug in advance near the road. The women and children were shot at a second pit, located approximately 400 meters from the first and dug in a garden. The executions were carried out by an East Prussian Police unit, assisted by Wehrmacht patrols and SD personnel. After the shootings, a flammable liquid was poured into the pits—where some victims were still alive—and set alight. The pits were later covered by requisitioned Poles.
Sources provide varying estimates of the number of victims. German archives record 364 victims—156 men and 208 women and children—while Polish sources estimate between 400 and 500 victims. The monument commemorating these atrocities is dedicated to 500 Jewish residents of Ostrów Mazowiecka.
Toward the end of the war, as part of Operation 1005, the Germans ordered Poles to exhume the bodies of Jewish victims. The remains were transported to an unknown location to conceal the crime.
In 1941, following the German invasion of the Soviet Union, camps for Soviet POWs were established near Ostrów Mazowiecka. Over 80,000 POWs are estimated to have perished in these camps due to inhumane conditions and executions.
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