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Slonim Coat of Arms Alternate names: Slonim [Rus- Сло́ним, Yid-סלאנים], Słonim [Pol, Bel], Russian: Слоним. Belarusian: Слонім.  סלונים - Yiddish. 53°05' N, 25°19' E, 107.7 miles WSW of Minsk, 74 miles ESE of Hrodna (Grodno), 41 miles SSW of Navahrudak (Nowogródek) in Slonim uezd, Grodno guberniya, now Grodno Oblast. capital of the Slonim district. It is located at the junction of the Shchara and Isa rivers. 2010 population was 49,000. Jewish population: 11,515 out of 15.683 in 1897.

ShtetLink. 73% of population was Jewish before WWII. Town images and links. [March 2009]

Shtetls of Belarus.

Slonim (Hasidic dynasty)

Landsmanschaften:

Anshe Slonim Synagogue. Synagogue: QUOTE: Minsk, 8 January 2001. The East European Jewish Heritage Project announced today that the first steps to assuring the preservation of the historic Slonim Synagogue will be taken next week. The historic building, listed by the World Monument Fund as the most important Jewish structure in East Europe requiring restoration has long been in a state of disrepair and jeopardy. Franklin J. Swartz, Executive Director of the EEJHP, has lobbied for years for support to renew the building. Finally with the support of Samuel Gruber, Director of the International Survey of Jewish Monuments in the United States, the World Monument Fund, also in the U.S., the U.K. based Conference of European Rabbis, the Belarussian Government's Commission for the Preservation of the Nation's Heritage and the Slonim Local Government conservation will move ahead. A WMF conservator and his team have already visited to begin work. 'I am very heartened by this development,' said Mr. Swartz. Sam Gruber's organization and the WMF have an excellent track record. I hope that what they were able to do in Krakow will be duplicated in Slonim.' Located in the city centre the 16th century Synagogue was spared destruction by both the Luftwaffe and the Soviet Air Force because of its utility as a landmark for aerial navigation. After the war it was used as a warehouse and for the past two decades has been empty. 'I was concerned that unless work was begun rapidly we would have nothing to preserve', said Mr. Swartz 'It is a great relief to me that work is finally beginning.'

The entire Jewish population of Slonim, 39,000 people, plus 2,000 Jews from surrounding areas were murdered during the war. 'In many ways this restoration will be a monument to a way of life which largely vanished because of genocide, it is a monument that functions at many levels,' said Mr. Swartz.
The Slonim Local Authority passed the title to the building over to the Union of Religious Jewish Congregations of the Republic of Belarus in November 2000. 'I am especially satisfied with this development', said Mr. Swartz. 'We can be assured that the project will be in safe hands. There has been an unfortunate history in Belarus of old line Soviet apologists in the community misusing funds for memorials for their own benefits. By passing the title to the building over to an organisation run by a new generation in the Jewish community we can assure Western donors of the integrity of the project. 'Mr. Swartz pointed out that former Communist Party Members who had actively supported repressive measures during the Soviet period had attempted to prevent the restoration of the synagogue as recently as last year. 'This was a disturbing development but the failure of these attempts proves that the era of the 'Party Jew' is coming to an end. This is another example of why the Slonim Synagogue is not only a symbol of the past but a beacon of light for a renewed Jewish future in East Europe.'
For more information about the Slonim Synagogue and other restoration projects please contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Executive Director, East European Jewish Heritage Project Ltd (USA), East European Jewish Heritage Project (UK), Jewish Revival Charitable Mission (Republic of Belarus), 13b Dauman Street, Minsk 220002, Belarus. Tel/Fax: +375 17 234 3360.  http://eejhp.tripod.ca [8 January 2001].

CEMETERY:

First cemetery was organized in the 15th century. Jewish population: 1200 by mid-17th century, 1400 by 1797, and 10,000 by the. second half of the 19th century.

[March 2009] Holocaust monument photos and photos:

at the Jewish cemetery where 35,000 Jews of this town were killed during the Holocaust.

at the massacre site of 1,200 Jews of this town on the 7 July 1941.

at the massacre site of 2,000 Jews of this town in 1943.

at the massacre site of 21,000 Jews of this town from the 29 June to 15 July 1942.

at the massacre site of 10,000 Jews of this town on 14 November 1941

at the road to the place of execution of 60 Jews of this town.

Just outside Slonim are two mass burial gravesites where approximately 45,0000 Jews were murdered within a 3-month period in 1942. I did not see or know of any remaining Jewish cemeteries from before the Shoah in Slonim. Visited in 1995; Source: Myrna Siegel: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ';document.getElementById('cloak9723723f47b4396b86111fae641f0cfa').innerHTML += ''+addy_text9723723f47b4396b86111fae641f0cfa+'<\/a>'; [2000]

photos. "The first Jewish cemetery dates back to the 15th century." Source. cemetery pictures and more information [October 2002]

Jewish cemetery gate and photo of ruined cemetery entrance gate. [March 2009]

Gordon photos. [August 2013]

cemetery photos. [August 2013]

Hebrew website with photos [Apr 2014]

MASS GRAVES:

Slonim massacre. [August 2013]