Alternate names: Skapiškis [Lith], Skopishok [Yid], Skopishki [Rus], Skopiszki [Pol], Shapiskis, Skopishkis, Russian: Скопишки. 55°53' N, 25°12' E, 16 miles WSW of Rokiškis, 10 miles ENE of Kupiškis. 1900 Jewish population: 1,010. ShtetLink. Yizkor: Yisker-bukh fun Rakishok un umgegnt (Johannesburg, 1952). Bellingham, Washington: The roots of Beth Israel congregation trace back to the late 1800s when Jewish immigrants from Skopishok and Rakishok settled there, possibly drawn by the Klondike gold rush. [March 2009]
CEMETERY: Estimated 100 graves, stone fence, no key needed. Source: Linda Cantor: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
UPDATE: We are trying to estimate the cost to build a wall 1.5-m high and 100-m long from native stone in Skapiskis, between Rokiskis and Kupiskis, in NE Lithuania. Source: Tim Baker, Skopishok Research Group, Bellingham WA, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. [July 2002]
UPDATE: Skapiskis Jewish cemetery was in terrible condition and did not appear to have been maintained in any way for over sixty years. The cemetery was overgrown with vegetation and the few remaining headstones were in a state of disrepair. Skapiskis Research Group is working together to restore the cemetery: a web site, a work plan and contact with the local officials in two separate phases. Phase I will clean up the overgrown vegetation, restore and repair the headstones. Phase II will rebuild the cemetery walls. At the entrance of the cemetery, a permanent pavilion will be built. Inscribed in three languages, the pavilion will acknowledge contributors and historical background of the Skapiskis Jewish Community and the Holocaust. To ensure the cemetery's future, a program will integrate the cemetery into the local high-school curriculum. Plan is to celebrate the restoration of the Skapiskis Jewish Cemetery with a dedication ceremony in August of 2006. http://skapiskis.blogspot.com/ has photos, more background, and project plans. Skapiskis Cemetery Restoration Committee, Yehudi Gaffen. Coordinator, Skapiskis Cemetery Restoration Project. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. [August 2005]
UPDATE: Jewish cemetery: Restoration: In September 2001, Yehudi Gaffen visited the site, untouched for 60 years. About 40 Jewish families (215 people) lived there at the onset of World War II. Restoration will include "restoring the gravesites, headstones, pathways, walls and gates of the cemetery, and constructing a memorial detailing a history of Lithuanian Jewry and displaying the names of Jewish families who once called Skapiskis home. ... The plan includes a "dedication ceremony at the restored cemetery on August 28th, 2006, featuring town officials, local school children, media, and members of the Lithuanian government. Further information on the Skapiskis Jewish Cemetery Restoration Project and San Diego Jewish Journal. [October 2005]
MASS GRAVE: Woods of Velniaduobe, 5 km from Rokiskis; 149; pic. # 235- 236. US Commission for the Preservation of America's Heritage Abroad; August 15-16, 1941 (22-23 Av)