"Rare Color Footage Depicting Jewish Life in the Shtetl Before the Holocaust"
In 1921, 550 Jews lived in the town of Wielopole Skrzyńskie,
constituting about half of the local population. At that time, some 20
small Jewish factories were in operation there. David Teitelbaum (1891-1972), an amateur filmmaker who was born in
Wielopole, emigrated to the United States in the early 1900s and became a
successful businessman. He would return to his hometown almost every
year to visit his family, and in 1938, he filmed his trip. In June or
July 1939 he traveled to Wielopole again, but only stayed for a short
time, fearing that war was imminent. It is possible that some sections
of the film were filmed on that last visit. The film features members of
the Teitelbaum, Rappaport and Sartoria families, their neighbors and
acquaintances.
