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Krugerdorf Cemetery

It is said that one of the first communal obligations is to provide for the dead. In the case of the settlers of Chamberlain Township, the establishment of their cemetery took on a certain urgency as tragedy befell the settlement early.
The Jewish settlement in Chamberlain Township was established in 1905 and continued to grow throughout that year. In 1906, relatives of one of the first settlers, Mr. Perkus, arrived in northern Ontario from the Russian Pale, now part of modern day Romania. The group included Mr. Perkus' father, mother and sisters, all of whom had traveled from Romania to Canada, then by train to Mattawa, Ontario and, finally, by boat to Tomstown, Ontario. At Tomstown, Mr. Perkus met them, and together they traveled the remaining leg of the journey by canoe along the Blanche River to Chamberlain Township.

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Tragically, the canoe overturned in the treacherous water of the Blanche River and Mr. Perkus, his father, and one other person were drowned.
When the bodies were recovered some time later, they were interred in a section of farmer Simon Henerofsky's property. This property was deeded in 1910 to the Hebrew congregation in Englehart to be used as a cemetery.

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Perkus Family Tragedy
3 July 2003
Krugerdorf cemetery, Krugerdorf, Ontario, Canada

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There were two gentlemen who were working on the railway. One was Morris Breland and the other was Jack Kussner. They were approached by another gentleman working on the railway at the time, this takes place around 1914, I would say between 1912 and 1914. I don't have the dates exactly but anyway, they were approached by a Mr. Perkus, also working, they were just working as roustabouts on the railway carrying ties and rails and working hard, and he approached them and said that he had a family in Romania. He had a father and mother there and two daughters. He said, "The two daughters would make wonderful wives for you." They were at the right age and of course in those days weddings were arranged and this was not unusual. He said, "You know, if you like the girls they would make wonderful wives for you. If you will help me to bring them over from Romania, if you will give me enough money to send them tickets, they will come over here and maybe something - maybe weddings will happen, you know." So anyway, Jacob Kussner and Morris Breland agreed to supply him with the money to bring his family over. They were some place in Romania, in the Russian Pale of Settlement into Romania. And they did come over. They came over and came all the way to North Bay and in North Bay they went to . . . What's that point in the southern end of the lake? Mattawa. And in Mattawa they got on a boat and came all the way up Lake Temiskaming by boat.

In those days, that's the way people came north. The boat in those days used to go as far as Tomstown. Now, Tomstown was about twenty miles, I think, from Krugerdorf by river. They decided to finish the rest of the trip and to join Mr. Kussner and to join Mr. Breland at Tomstown. They would come by boat. Now, I don't really know what kind of a boat it was but whatever it was it was overloaded. That's a long paddle from Tomstown down the Blanche River to Krugerdorf, and on the way they tipped the boat. Mr. Perkus, who was bringing his mother and father and the two daughters, was drowned and his father was drowned but his mother was saved and she eventually lived in Kirkland Lake for many years until she died. She was later buried in Krugerdorf. Morris Breland and Jacob Kussner married the two Perkus daughters. They were beautiful girls. I met them both. More or less I knew them all of my life. They treated me as if I was a part of the family. Wonderful people. They married and raised families.

Morris Breland and Jacob Kussner formed a company, a partnership, and they named it Perkus Limited in honour of their father-in-law.

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New Liskeard Speaker articles relating to Blanche River accident, 1906
June 22-29 1906

The audio recordings and transcripts relating to the drowning of three men in the Blanche River (also known as the "White River" at the time of the accident) were from second hand accounts.

Articles from the New Liskeard Speaker newspaper at the time provided information that differed slightly from what was provided in the audio recordings and transcripts. The articles about the accident are included below, and contain the spelling from the original documents.

New Liskeard Speaker, pg. 5 - Friday June 22, 1906

Triple Drowning - Early last week five young men living in the vicinity of the second crossing of the White River were reported to have been upset out of a canoe at the rapids, and three of the five are said to have been drowned. Up to time of going to press we have not been able to learn whether any of the bodies were recovered.

New Liskeard Speaker, pg. 8 - Friday June 29, 1906

Englehart - The Bodies of the Russian immigrants drowned in the White River on the 13th of June, have been recovered and interred. Their names were Benj. Perkins, aged 44; Moses Perkins, his son, aged 22; and Samuel Hoffman, aged 18. The latter had been living in Toronto, and was drowned the day he reached Englehart. No inquest, but Mr. Hugh, J.P., reported the facts to Coroner Field.

Credits:
New Liskeard Speaker
Cathy Blackburn

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Starting of the Krugerdorf Cemetery
11 July 1980
Krugerdorf cemetery, Krugerdorf, Ontario, Canada

Credits:
Courtesy of the Ontario Jewish Archives

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The cemetery came about as a result of the first Mrs. Gurevitch's passing or the unfortunate canoe accident.

The Perkus'

Yes, supposedly in that canoe was a Mr. Perkus, Mr. . . .his Son plus an English Jew supposedly working on the railroad was probably in this canoe.

And the beautiful story, that Edith Atkinson- its Edith Atkinson - told us about how the cemetery was given by Henerofsky. . .

I believe it was a corner of his farm.

It was a corner of his farm and apparently he just brought his wife from Europe. That week! And he gave and when these people were drowned - they laid out the bodies on her kitchen table. And she was saying she never forgave him she almost left right then and there, but it was a corner of his farm.

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"The cemetery was for everyone"
26 September 2003
Krugerdorf cemetery, Krugerdorf, Ontario, Canada

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Well I guess in this particular case - Why Timmins didn't have a Jewish cemetery? Why didn't Rouyn have a Jewish Cemetery? All communities were sort of interlocked with each other. OK? And I guess at one time it was decided ?.that they, to maintain it, the Jewish Cemetery they would need support of the various communities.

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Open to everyone
26 September 2003
Krugerdorf cemetery, Krugerdorf, Ontario, Canada

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Because there was a family like the Kormans. The Korman family -They, I think there were four boys and a girl or four girls and a boy, or whatever . . . so one went to Englehart, one went to Kirkland Lake, one went to Timmins, one went to Noranda. So there was this kind of interplay with a nucleus, the cemetery was a nucleus, and there were fingers, in all of these communities, of people who knew that there was a cemetery there.

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Map of Chamberlain Township indicating the location of Krugerdorf cemetery
2 February 2005
Krugerdorf cemetery, Krugerdorf, Ontario, Canada

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Krugerdorf Cemetery continues today with support from Jewish communities throughout northeastern Ontario and northwestern Quebec, as well as from the descendants of those buried in the cemetery.

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Cemetery
23 October 2004
Krugerdorf cemetery, Krugerdorf, Ontario, Canada

Credits:
Museum of Northern History Collection