Smoke was visible and moans were heard… The Jedwabne pogrom of July 10, 1941.
Before World War I, Jews constituted the majority of the population of Jedwabne, a town approximately 50 km from Białystok. However, the Great War caused widespread destruction and depopulation of the town. It was rebuilt in independent Poland. In 1927, Jedwabne regained its city rights, and a Pole, Walenty Grądzki, became its mayor, serving until the outbreak of World War II. According to the 1921 census, of the 1222 people living in Jedwabne at the time, 757 were of Jewish origin.