Do you know that Pustelnik was once a village near Marki? Before World War II, Pustelnik and Marki coexisted. They shared a close connection. The Jewish communities in both villages considered themselves one. They lived along the Radzymin-Warsaw road. It was about 12 kilometers from Warsaw.
Marki was the heart of their community. It was the older settlement. The rabbi had his seat there. In 1921, Marki had 156 Jewish residents. Its total population was 2,529. Pustelnik had 368 Jewish residents. Its total population was 1,956.
In 1939, the Germans occupied Marki. They established a labor conscription system. Local Jews had to do forced labor three days a week. Berek Jarzembski was from Pustelnik. He said Germans took men for labor. Otherwise, they didn’t bother the village Jews much.
The Judenrat and its self-help committee were in Pustelnik. The committee asked Warsaw for help. They reported many firms liquidated. Factories were immobilized. Until June 1940, the self-help committee operated a soup kitchen. The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee assisted them. They also provided medical help.
The Pustelnik ghetto was established at the end of 1940. It was for all Jews of the Marki gmina. It was likely established in December. The ghetto was on Duża Street. It was 2 to 4 kilometers from Pustelnik. Barbed wire surrounded it but it remained unguarded. The Germans didn’t create a Jewish police force. The Judenrat maintained order.
In January 1941, the self-help committee described the situation. Ghettos had been established. Initially, Jews could still leave the ghetto. Szlama Kutnowski was 12 then. He went to Marki to work. Near the ghetto fence was a forest. It was about 60 meters away. Jews picked blueberries. They gathered wood for heating. Housing was appalling. Kutnowski’s family lived in a garage. The floor was brick. They made a roof out of planks.
By April 1941, the ghetto closed. The self-help committee reported the local population was on the edge of destruction. By May 1941, 850 Jews lived in the ghetto. 598 were refugees. Jews in ceramic works earned 3 to 4 złoty per day. The committee cited rumors of resettlement to Warsaw. Pustelnik’s Jews sold their belongings.
The ghetto was liquidated on March 26, 1942. Inhabitants were deported to the Warsaw ghetto. Berek Jarzembski said they could only take personal baggage. They were deported on wagons and trucks. Kutnowski returned from smuggling to find everyone gone. The barracks were razed. Many people had been killed. Gazeta Żydowska reported the deportees arrived in the Warsaw ghetto in late March. They were quarantined at 109 Leszno Street.
Pinkas ha-kehilot says the ghetto was liquidated on April 6, 1942. The SS riddled Torah scrolls with bullets. They threw them into a fire. 170 people tried to save them. They were shot, including Rabbi Mendelsohn.
Today, Pustelnik is a suburb of Marki. It stands as a reminder of a painful past. It is a place to remember the community.