Vapniarka (), also known as Vapniarca, Vapnyarka, Wapnjarka or Wapniarka, is a

rural settlement The definition of a rural settlement depends on the country, in some countries, a rural settlement is any settlement in the areas defined as rural by a governmental office, e.g., by the national census bureau. This may include even rural towns. ...

Tulchyn Raion Tulchyn Raion () is one of the six raions (districts) of Vinnytsia Oblast, located in southwestern Ukraine. The administrative center of the raion is the town of Tulchyn. Population: On 18 July 2020, as part of the administrative reform of Ukra ...

Vinnytsia Oblast Vinnytsia Oblast (, ), also referred to as Vinnychchyna (), is an oblasts of Ukraine, oblast in central Ukraine. Its capital city, administrative center is Vinnytsia. The oblast has a population of History Vinnytsia Oblast, first established on ...

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

, known since 1870 as a railroad station. Its name from the

Ukrainian language Ukrainian (, ) is an East Slavic languages, East Slavic language, spoken primarily in Ukraine. It is the first language, first (native) language of a large majority of Ukrainians. Written Ukrainian uses the Ukrainian alphabet, a variant of t ...

translates as a

lime Lime most commonly refers to: * Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit * Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide * Lime (color), a color between yellow and green Lime may also refer to: Bo ...

(

gypsum Gypsum is a soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate Hydrate, dihydrate, with the chemical formula . It is widely mined and is used as a fertilizer and as the main constituent in many forms of plaster, drywall and blackboard or sidewalk ...

) settlement. As of January 2022 Vapniarka's population was approximately

History

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, following the start of

Operation Barbarossa Operation Barbarossa was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and several of its European Axis allies starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during World War II. More than 3.8 million Axis troops invaded the western Soviet Union along ...

, Vapniarka was administered by

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

. From October 22, 1941, to March 1944, it was included in the region of

Transnistria Transnistria, officially known as the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic and locally as Pridnestrovie, is a Landlocked country, landlocked Transnistria conflict#International recognition of Transnistria, breakaway state internationally recogn ...

and became the site for a

concentration camp A concentration camp is a prison or other facility used for the internment of political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or ethnic minority groups, on the grounds of national security, or for exploitati ...

for members of the Romanian Jewish community. This succession of events formed a part of

The Holocaust in Romania The Holocaust saw the genocide of Jews in the Kingdom of Romania and in Romanian-controlled territories of the Soviet Union between 1940 and 1944. While historically part of The Holocaust, these actions were mostly independent from the similar a ...

. Today, Vapniarka serves as the final train destination for visitors traveling to villages in Tomashpilskyi and Yampilskyi

Raion A raion (also spelt rayon) is a type of administrative unit of several post-Soviet states. The term is used for both a type of subnational entity and a division of a city. The word is from the French (meaning 'honeycomb, department'), and is c ...

. From here, buses or private transportation are used to get to villages like Busha,

Dzyhivka Dzygivka (), formerly known as Dzyhivka (), is one of the oldest villages in central Ukraine, of Mohyliv-Podilskyi Raion, Vinnytsia Oblast. It is located in the historical region of Podolia, on the Korytna Stream that flows into the Rusava River ...

, Olhopil,

Tomashpil Tomashpil (, ) is a rural settlement in the eastern Podolia, specifically in Tulchyn Raion of Vinnytsia Oblast in central Ukraine. Tomashpil is situated on the banks of the Rusava River. Tomashpil is the administrative district of Tomashpil Rai ...

, and Sobolivka. Until 26 January 2024, Vapniarka was designated

urban-type settlement Urban-type settlement, abbreviated: ; , abbreviated: ; ; ; ; . is an official designation for lesser urbanized settlements, used in several Central and Eastern Europe, Central and Eastern European countries. The term was primarily used in the So ...

. On this day, a new law entered into force which abolished this status, and Vapniarka became a rural settlement.

World War II camp

In October 1941, the Romanians established a detention camp in Vapniarka. One thousand Jews were brought to the site that month, mostly from the city of

Odessa ODESSA is an American codename (from the German language, German: ''Organisation der ehemaligen SS-Angehörigen'', meaning: Organization of Former SS Members) coined in 1946 to cover Ratlines (World War II aftermath), Nazi underground escape-pl ...

. Some 200 died in a

typhus Typhus, also known as typhus fever, is a group of infectious diseases that include epidemic typhus, scrub typhus, and murine typhus. Common symptoms include fever, headache, and a rash. Typically these begin one to two weeks after exposu ...

epidemic; the others were taken out of the camp in two batches, guarded by soldiers of the

Romanian Gendarmerie The ''Jandarmeria Română'' () is the national Gendarmerie force of Romania, tasked with high-risk and specialized law enforcement duties. It is one of the two main police forces in Romania (the other being the Romanian Police - a civilian fo ...

, and shot to death.

References

External links

The Vapniarka camp
The Holocaust in Romania, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung and Elie Wiesel National Institute for Studying the Holocaust in Romania

Tesimony of a camp inmate
Shoah Resource Center - Yad Vashem
Personal artifacts from camp inmates, including Vapniarka *Local site in Ukrainian about modern Vapniark

{{Authority control Rural settlements in Tulchyn Raion Holocaust locations in Ukraine