Bodrogkeresztúr, Hungary - '45 Aid Society

Members of the Boys were born in Bodrogkeresztúr, Hungary.

The Boys were teenage and child-Holocaust survivors, who were brought to the UK after the war for rest and rehabilitation.

Members of the Boys were held in Nazi labour and concentration camps and used as slave labourers. They had also survived World War II in hiding or as lone children.

^{View of Bodrogkeresztúr.}

Bodrogkeresztúr is a village in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén county. For more about the region click here. The village is in the Tokaj District, in the northeast of the country. Nestled among vineyards, Bodrogkeresztur was once home to a large orthodox Jewish community.

Photograph of Erno Klein in Kloster Indersdorf, Germany in 1945.

^{Erno Klein was born in Bodrogkeresztúr.}

The Jewish population of Bodrogkeresztúr was 20% of the town’s total in 1930, with 535 members of the community.

After the German occupation of Hungary on 19 March 1944, the Jews were rounded up on 16-17 April. They were first concentrated in a local ghetto, and then transferred to the ghetto of Satoraljauhely, from where they were deported to Auschwitz II-Birkenau concentration and extermination camp. To find out more about Auschwitz click here.

Thirty-seven members of the village’s original Jewish community survived the Holocaust, none remain in Bodrogkeresztúr.

Visiting Bodrogkeresztúr

Getting there Bodrogkeresztúr is located about 8km from the town of Tokaj. There is a direct train from Budapest.

What to see

Bodrogkeresztúr (or Kerestir in Yiddish), Hungary, is a significant Hasidic pilgrimage site, drawing tens of thousands annually to the grave of Rabbi Yeshaya Steiner (1851–1925), known for miracles. The town of just 1,000 people has seen up to 55,000 visitors a year, mostly on the anniversary of his death in April. Visitors have caused reported tensions in the village.

In recent decades, family members have worked to build up a Jewish infrastructure in Kerestir. They purchased the family’s home (65 Kossuth Lajos Street) which is a reception centre. They have erected a permanent tent over Reb Shayele’s grave, then bought the building next door to serve as a guesthouse (Sipos köz 3).

Synagogue

The former synagogue is now the tourist information centre.

Cemetery (Bodrogkeresztúr, Kossuth u.) Rabbi Shayeleh Kerestirer is buried in the cemetery.

Present day Country:

Hungary

Associated Boys:

Sandor Klein
Erno Klein

Map:

Gallery:

Photograph of Sandor Klein in Kloster Indersdorf, Germany in 1945.