Alternate names: Kupel' and Купель [Rus], Kupil' and Купіль [Ukr], Kupil [Yid], Kupiel [Pol]. 49°36' N, 26°31' E, 16 miles ENE of Volochisk, 25 miles WNW of Khmelnytskyy (Proskurov), 33 miles WSW of Starokostyantyniv. [Not to be confused with Kapyl, Belarus]. !900 Jewish population: 2,727.
Kopyl, Belarus 53°09' N, 27°05' E
Kowal, Poland 52°32' N, 19°10' E
Kovel, Ukraine 51°13' N, 24°43' E
- Encyclopedia of Jewish Life (2001), p. 690: "Kupel".
- Shtetl Finder (1980), p. 45: "Kupil".
- Słownik Geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego (1880-1902), IV, pp. 885-886: "Kupiel".
- JewishGen Ukraine SIG
- Facebook page. [Apr 2013]
- ShtetLink [Apr 2013]
- Jewish history. [Apr 2013]
At one end of the shtetl were three cemeteries; Orthodox Christian, Catholic, and Jewish. Next to the Jewish cemetery was a flourmill. In the Jewish cemetery of Kupel are two mass graves as well as individual graves of Jews who were murdered or died of starvation during WWII. In 1948, a few days before Yom Kippur, I visited a friend in Proskurov hoping to arrive in Kupel to visit my parents' graves, but my friend told me that it is impossible since the population was hostile towards Jews. The only way to get to Kupel was with police escort. Since exactly 2 days before, "a big group of Jews went there, there isn't going to be another opportunity soon". All the Jewish houses were replaced by a big yard. On Tuesdays they had a big market there. In 1966, a former resident, during his visit to Russia, was unable to visit Kupel (forbidden to visit Kupel). Source: Tova Perlshtein's Memoirs of Kupel, Ukraine: translated by: Ophira Oruch, Oakland, Ca. 2/96. Document was retyped and scanned by Lawrence J. Korman 11/23/97 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.