Description
Book SynopsisThe near-annihilation of Europe''s Jews in the Second World War destroyed not only much of their history, but also knowledge of the contributions they made to the regions in which they lived. In The Jewish Oil Magnates of Galicia, Valerie Schatzker rescues the almost-forgotten story of the Jews who became the wildcatters and oil barons in one of the world''s first petroleum industries. Combining a history of Galicia''s petroleum industry with an annotated English translation of Julien Hirszhaut''s Yiddish novel Di yiddishe naftmagnatn (The Jewish Oil Magnates), Schatzker traces the near-century-long boom and bust cycle that took place in the Austro-Hungarian province - from the perilous, back-breaking work of digging for oil by hand, to the introduction of the Canadian drill that increased production. Galician Jews worked in the industry from its beginning to its final days under German occupation. They were pioneers in exploration, refining, and marketing, and in the first part of the
Trade Review"As many of the records have been destroyed, it is a considerable achievement even to describe this history. Both the monograph and the novel afford many valuable glimpses into the Jewish life of a vanished era." John-Paul Himka, University of Alberta
