Kaluszyn

KALUSZYN, town in Warszawa province, E. central Poland. Jews lived there almost from the date of its foundation and always formed the majority of the population. There was an organized Jewish community from the beginning of the 17^th century which established educational and cultural institutions. The most notable rabbi of the community was Meir Shalom Rabinowicz (1896–1902). Mordecai Mottel Mikhelson, one of the wealthiest merchants of the town during the 19^th century, assumed the role of shtadlan. The community numbered 1,455 (80% of the total population) in 1827; 6,419 (76%) in 1897; 5,033 (82%) in 1921; 7,256 (82%) in 1931; and approximately 6,500 on the eve of the Holocaust. Jewish economic activity included industrial enterprises, such as pottery, flour mills, the weaving of prayer shawls, the fur trade which employed many Jewish workers, and crafts, notably tailoring and carpentry. The community administration elected in 1924 was composed of six members for *Agudat Israel, five for *Mizrachi, and one Zionist.

Sources: Encyclopaedia Judaica. © 2007 The Gale Group. All Rights Reserved.