Lohamei Ha'getaot
An impressive aqueduct greets
visitors at the entrance to Kibbutz Lohamei
Ha'geta'ot, located in the western Galilee between) Acre
(Akko) and Nahariya.
The kibbutz was founded in 1949 by Holocaust
survivors from Poland and Lithuania.
Here the fighters from the Warsaw
Ghetto Uprising joined together with
partisans and prisoners who had evaded the Nazis,
and named their new home in memory of the
fighters in the ghettos, the forests and
the armies, and put their efforts into living
in the here and now.
The ceremony for the laying
of the cornerstone of the kibbutz also marked
the beginning of the museum for documenting
the Holocaust.
Today the Ghetto Fighters' House built on
a hill in the southern part of the kibbutz,
encompasses the aqueduct, an amphitheater
and to museums.
The aqueduct was built
in the Ottoman period,
in 1815, and is the most important engineering
project undertaken by the Turks during their
rule in this country. The aqueduct brings
water from the Kabri springs (to the north)
to the regional capital, Acre (to
the south). This beautiful aqueduct was built
with stone arches and in some places rests
on pillars 10 meters high. Near the aqueduct
is an amphitheater, where memorial ceremonies
are held on Holocaust
Remembrance Day.
Beside the amphitheater
are a research center and two museums: the
Museum of the Holocaust and Resistance, named
after Yitzhak Katzenelson, a poet and founder
of the museum, which serves as a testimony
to the stories of the survivors and an expression
of the resurrection of the Jewish people
in its land; and the Yad
Layeled Children’s Museum, commemorating
the one and a half million Jewish children
murdered in the Holocaust. This museum
houses the stories and testimonies of children
and an exhibit on Dr. Yanush Korczak, a
doctor, author and educator who devoted
his life to children.
During its early years,
the kibbutz’s economy
was based on various branches of agriculture. Today
the Tivol factory, which manufactures vegetarian meat
substitute products, is the mainstay of the kibbutz’ economy.
Near the factory is the Bayit
ve-Kayit guesthouse compound that has
beautiful guest rooms and a rustic restaurant
that serves a special, rich breakfast to
visitors from near and far.
In addition to these attractions,
there is also the exhibition gallery displaying
the artworks of Moshe Kupferman, winner
of the Israel Prize for outstanding visual
art. Other nearby sites include the water
site at Moshav Regba, which demonstrates
how water was drawn in ancient times, the Baha’i
Gardens in Acre (Akko), and the beach,
where flocks of migrating birds can be
seen in spring and fall.
Sources: GoIsrael |