Holocaust survivors created over 1000 memorial books to honor destroyed towns and lost families
Scholars report that Holocaust survivors from Eastern Europe created more than 1,000 memorial books known as yizker bikher to document their hometowns and murdered relatives.
Purpose of the memorial volumes
These collaboratively written books served to honor destroyed towns and preserve memories of everyday life before the war. Survivors used these volumes to reclaim their lives after leaving Eastern Europe or following the genocide.
Content inside the scrapbooks
The pages contained varied images, essays by different residents, and lists of survivors alongside records of murdered family members. One specific book documented the life of a grandmother from Kostopol in Ukraine who passed away years earlier.
Scope of the project
Communities of survivors produced these documents to ensure nothing about their lost neighbors was forgotten. The collection represents a significant effort by Jewish groups to maintain historical records of their origins.
Reported by one outlet
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