Dmitriy Babichenko

Menu

Skip to content

In Search of My Grandfather


In search of my grandfather - Abram Shimonovich Payes was born in Poland in 1915, immigrated to Argentina, came back to Poland in 1939 right before World War II, served in the Polish army, was captured and spent a year in a German prison camp in Königsberg, escaped, was arrested and sentenced on a bogus charge under article 58 of the Soviet Criminal Code (counter-revolutionary activity) and spent 1 year in Karlag (Karaganda Gulag) and 10 years in Varlag (Vorkuta GULAG).
grandfather.jpg

In search of my grandfather

Abram Shimonovich Payes was born in Poland in 1915, immigrated to Argentina, came back to Poland in 1939 right before World War II, served in the Polish army, was captured and spent a year in a German prison camp in Königsberg, escaped, was arrested and sentenced on a bogus charge under article 58 of the Soviet Criminal Code (counter-revolutionary activity) and spent 1 year in Karlag (Karaganda Gulag) and 10 years in Varlag (Vorkuta GULAG).

My grandfather was a very private person and never talked to anyone about his life.  After he passed away in 1998, I was going through his papers and found a number of documents that dealt with his arrest, time in GULAG, work records, prison release and “rehabilitation” paperwork.  I started interviewing all of our family members and recording their stories. I poured through photo albums, disintegrating envelopes full of photographs of long dead family members and friends.  The more stories I heard and the more photos I saw, I realized that many family friends that I grew up seeing at our dinner table were former prisoners of Varlag.  I began tracking my grandfather’s friends and people whom he knew in Varlag. Many responded with stories of their own, sending me handwritten manuscripts, photographs, and even book chapters.  At this point I have collected dozens of hours of audio interviews, close to a hundred photographs, and more connections than I ever expected.  

I am currently trying to raise funds to travel to the following places:

  • Grodno, Belarus.  The city of Grodno (sometimes written as Hrodna) used to belong to Poland and became part of the Soviet Union at the end of the World War II.  My grandfather was born in Grodno and lived their until his immigration to Argentina around 1935-1937.  I contacted the National Archives of Belarus and they have information on my grandfather’s family and the property they owned in Grodno.  The Great Synagogue of Grodno also has birth and marriage records that will hopefully help me shed some light on my family history.
  • Verkhnyaya Salda, Russia. Verkhnyaya Salda (Верхняя Салда) is a town in Russia where my grandfather was arrested and sentenced to death.  He was transported to a GULAG camp in Karaganda (Karlag – Karaganda Corrective Labor Camp) to await execution
  • Karaganda. Karlag (Karaganda Corrective Labor Camp) was one of the largest Gulag labor camps, located in  Karaganda Region, Kazakhstan.  My grandfather spent a year in that camp awaiting execution.
  • Vorkuta. Vorkuta is a coal-mining town in the Komi Republic, Russia, located north of the Arctic Circle.  My grandfather spent 10 years (from 1943 through 1953) in Varlag (Vorkuta Corrective Labor Camp), after his death sentence was replaced with 10 years of corrective labor.  After his release in 1953, my grandfather met my grandmother Olga Marchevskaya, who was evacuated to Vorkuta during WWII.  My mom, Irina Payes (Babichenko) was born in Vorkuta in 1955.

I already contacted many of these places, archives, and governmental organizations in Russia, Kazakhstan, and Belarus.  My plan is to re-trace my grandfather’s path through the war and through labor camps, find documents,  photos, and stories.  I also hope to meet in person with a number of people who knew my grandfather and who are willing to share their stories.  My hope is to put together a book of photographs, documents, and narrative telling the story of my grandfather’s life and my own search for his story.

Galleries:

  • Connected by Vorkuta GULAG
  • Documents

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook

Like this:

Like Loading...
Widgets

Recent Posts

  • Pelmeni in the time of COVID-19
  • Jaclyn Ramsey – dressmaker and cosplayer extraordinaire | Pittsburgh Communities Project
  • Chernobyl: 20 years after the catastrophe
  • Night Sky Over Playa Del Carmen
  • Henry’s Bar Mitzvah

Recent Comments

Runxiang on AlienBees Vagabond Mini Batter…
Jenny on Christie + Dan Wedding

Archives

  • April 2020
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • August 2018
  • June 2018
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • December 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • August 2010
  • July 2010
  • June 2010
  • May 2010
  • April 2010
  • March 2010
  • January 2010
  • December 2009
  • November 2009
  • October 2009
  • September 2009
  • August 2009
  • July 2009
  • June 2009
  • May 2009
  • April 2009
  • March 2009
  • February 2009
  • January 2009
  • December 2008

Categories

  • Bar Mitzvahs
  • Bat Mitzvahs
  • Biking
  • Books
  • Charity
  • children
  • Commecial
  • communities
  • Conference
  • DIY
  • Documentary
  • Engagements
  • Family
  • Film Photography
  • Hacks
  • Housekeeping
  • Independent Study Projects
  • Inspiration
  • Open Source
  • Personal
  • photogrpahy
  • Portraits
  • Product Reviews
  • Projects
  • Rants
  • Research
  • Reviews
  • Seminars
  • senior photos
  • senior pictures
  • Software
  • Teaching
  • Technology
  • Travel
  • Tutorials
  • Uncategorized
  • vacation
  • Weddings

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com

Recent Posts

  • Pelmeni in the time of COVID-19
  • Jaclyn Ramsey – dressmaker and cosplayer extraordinaire | Pittsburgh Communities Project
  • Chernobyl: 20 years after the catastrophe
  • Night Sky Over Playa Del Carmen
  • Henry’s Bar Mitzvah

Recent Comments

Runxiang on AlienBees Vagabond Mini Batter…
Jenny on Christie + Dan Wedding

Archives

  • April 2020
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • August 2018
  • June 2018
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • December 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • August 2010
  • July 2010
  • June 2010
  • May 2010
  • April 2010
  • March 2010
  • January 2010
  • December 2009
  • November 2009
  • October 2009
  • September 2009
  • August 2009
  • July 2009
  • June 2009
  • May 2009
  • April 2009
  • March 2009
  • February 2009
  • January 2009
  • December 2008

Categories

  • Bar Mitzvahs
  • Bat Mitzvahs
  • Biking
  • Books
  • Charity
  • children
  • Commecial
  • communities
  • Conference
  • DIY
  • Documentary
  • Engagements
  • Family
  • Film Photography
  • Hacks
  • Housekeeping
  • Independent Study Projects
  • Inspiration
  • Open Source
  • Personal
  • photogrpahy
  • Portraits
  • Product Reviews
  • Projects
  • Rants
  • Research
  • Reviews
  • Seminars
  • senior photos
  • senior pictures
  • Software
  • Teaching
  • Technology
  • Travel
  • Tutorials
  • Uncategorized
  • vacation
  • Weddings

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com
Blog at WordPress.com.
Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
%d bloggers like this: