The first mention of Rogachev (in Belarussian
- Ragachou) in written sources (Ipat`euskaya letapis) is 1142. In
1142 Kiev duke Vsevolod Olgovich presented Ragachou to his brother Igor.
This time, Ragachou was in the squad of Chernigov Duchy.
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The results of the famous Russian census of 1897 for Ragachou uezd were:
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In 1897 Ragachou uezd had 224.000 inhabitants ( 21.880 of them - jews)
The main occupations of Ragachou jewry
were leather, rope-cord and brick industry.
In 1880 Ragachou had a rope (in the
beginning of 20th century - 6), beer, soap, two brick plants, water and
wind mills,a wharf on the Priapiat. Shtetl had a great trade. And, of course,
jewish community of Ragachou took an active part in it. Famous Ragachou
fairs (three big fairs per year). The tradesmen from the all parts
of Magileu gubernia visited Ragachou fairs. One of the most famous
Ragachou inhabitants was a tradesman (his specialization was a timber
industry) of the second gildiya Tumarkin. He had 50.000 rubles per
year as an income.
In the end of 19th century were built
a wooden bridge across the Drut` and the timber and cardboard plants.
A great impuls for the shtetl economy was a building of Magileu-Zhlobin
railway in 1902.
Famous russian geographer V.P. Semionov
wrote in his "Rossija Polnoe geographiceskoe opisanie nashego Otechestva.
- Russia. Full geographical description of our Motherland, Sankt-Petersburg,
1905): Ragachou is quite clear miastechka (Yiddish - shtetl)
with two orthdox churches, catholic church, seven jewish prayer houses,
36 industry plants witt 173 workers. Shtetl has 11.800 inhabitants (7.140
of them - jews). Ragachou income is 27.750 russian rubles per
year". In the beginning of 20th century in Ragachou was opened a
cinema "Modern".
In 1910 Ragachou jewry had Talmud-Torah
and private female jewish school. I must add, that Ragachou
Chasidim community was on of the earliest in Rech Paspalitaya.
After the World War I, February and
Bolshevik revolutions Polish troops occupied Ragachou from the 13th till
30th of January, 1918, german troops - from February till the 22th
of November, 1918.
Since May, 1919, Ragachou was a part
of Russian Soviet Socialist Republic, since 1924 - Ragachou was in
squad of Bobruisk (Belarussian - Babruisk) akruga in Belarussian Soviet
Socialist Republic, 1928 - of Gomel region. The population
of Ragachout in 1928 was 11.000 people. 11 years later - 15.200 people.
On the 22nd of June, 1941 Nazi Germany
invaded Soivet Union. Ragachou was occupied in the beginning of July. On
the 13th of July, 1941 Soviet troops of L.R. Piatrouski liberated
Ragachou, but in August, 1941, German army occupied it. The germans
organized a ghetto in Ragachou. In the report of Gomel region comission
about the crimes and brutality of german fascists on occupied
territory of region in 1941-44 (the 9th of June, 1945) we can see an information
about more then 3.500 Ragachou jews, killed in March of 1942. Red
Army liberated Ragachou on the 24th of February, 1944.