Meilach Lubocki memoir

Copyright Holder: Charles Lubock Meilach Lubocki was living with his family in Kovno (Kaunas) Lithuania when the Germans invaded in 1941. He lived with his wife Esther, two children Vova and Rina, parents Joseph and Rivka, and his three brothers. During the initial weeks of the occupation, Meilach and his family hid in their house, waiting out the partisan violence that began to take place. They stayed in their home several weeks until they were discovered and forced into labor. Eventually, the Lubocki family was forced to live in the Kovno ghetto, and continued to work hard labor. In 1943, the ghetto was cleared out, and the Lubockis were separated and put onto different transport train cars. Meilach was able to stay with his brothers, Chaim, Morris, and Zalman. The Lubocki brothers arrived in Port Kunda, Estonia, without the rest of their family. The brothers worked in a factory and other hard labor until August 1944, when they were sent to Stutthof. They worked hard labor for two months before being sent to Magdeburg, where they worked in an ammunitions factory. The brothers stayed there until April, 1945. As the Soviet army closed in on the area, troops began to flee. The Lubocki brothers escaped, staying in a barn and later a German civilian’s home for several weeks. After the liberation and the end of the war, Meilach traveled to Prague, before settling in Landsberg, Germany. His wife, parents, and children had perished. The memoir of Meilach Luboski of Kaunas, Lithuania describes his memory of the German invasion, life in the Kaunas (Kovno) ghetto, and his time in the Stutthof concentration camp. Included in this collection is the original copy of Meilach's memoir, written in Yiddish during the period when Lubocki was living in a displaced persons camp in Landsberg am Lech, Germany (circa 1945). Also included is a translation written by his brother, Charles Lubock, dating from the mid-1990s, and edited by Charles' son Paul Lubock.