Mordekhai Horowitz
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Second Polish Republic
Markus Horowitz | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1895[1][2] |
| Died | 25 October 1942 (aged 47) |
| Citizenship | Austria-Hungary Second Polish Republic |
| Occupations | Co-founder of curtain factory, philanthropist, head of Judenrat |
| Years active | 1924-1939 (as entrepreneur) 1942 (as a chairman of Judenrat) |
| Spouse | Bianca Horowitz (1900-1941) |
| Parent | Leibish Horowitz (father) |
Markus Horowitz, known as Mordekhai Horowitz[3] (1895 – 25 October 1942) was the Polish-Jewish entrepreneur, co-founder of the curtain factory in Kolomyia and philanthropist. He is widely known as a chairman of Judenrat in 1942 during the German occupation of Kolomyia.[4]
Markus (Mordekhai) Horowitz was born in 1895 to Leibish Horowitz, a descendant of the illustrious Horowitz family of Stanislau.[5][2] He was a grandson of the respected rabbi Meshulam Horowitz of Stanislau (now Ivano-Frankivsk).[3] His mother died in March 1927.[6]
In the interwar period, he became a co-owner of his sister Maria Horowitz's curtain factory together with his brother-in-law Józef Horowitz.[7] As of April 1934, he was a member of the board of the Municipal Communal Savings Bank, and the Property Owners' Association.[8][9][10] In June 1936, he became a member of the civic committee for the construction of a building for educational institutions of the Jewish Society of Primary and Secondary Schools.[11] Also, according to the memoirs of Jewish inhabitants of Kolomyia, representatives of the Jewish community wanted to elect him head of the community and for city council, but Markus Horowitz refused.[12]
Along with his public and political activities, Marcus Horowitz was also involved in charity: at the end of February 1927, Horowitz allocated 15 zlotys to the Jewish People's Fund on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of its activity.[13] He also donated to the Jewish National Kitchen during 1920s and 1930s.[6][14][15] In April 1929, he donated 25 zlotys to the disposition fund of the Ministry of War Affairs.[16] In March 1930, he joined in collecting funds (20 zlotys) to support "small traders struggling with difficulties".[17]