Prior to WW II and Hitler’s systematic annihilation of Jews, many Jewish families lived in Teofipol (often referred to by the Jews as “Tschon”, “Chan”, etc.).
An old Jewish cemetery lies on the slope by the pond reminding us of those times. There you will find many ancient gravestones with Hebrew inscriptions in memory of the deceased.
Several years ago, the late Louis Horowitz, a U.S. citizen of Jewish origin whose parents and other ancestors once lived in Teofipol, came forward with an initiative to put the cemetery in order, and sponsored part of the work. Some gravestones which had fallen over were raised and secured, while many others still lie under a thick layer of soil and grass waiting to be discovered.
Lou also enlisted the help of a local historian in order to research the district archives and recover as much as possible of the history of Teofipol’s former Jewish population — a tribute which now lives on in a wealth of material gathered by Lou and passed on to fellow researcher Scott Becker, who can be reached via jewishgen.org (see the ShtetLinks project there).
