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Knecht Family History

The Knecht Family History website’s primary goal is to share important historical information about the descendants of Lewek H’Levi (1755-1826).

His known descendants are: Rafael Knecht 1793-1849 (and his wife Chaja Sura (1802 – ?) daughter of Hersz), Wolf son of Lewek abt 1776 – ? (and his wife Laja daughter of Salmon), Faywel Knecht abt 1780 – abt 1846 (and his wives Fayga 1780 – ? and Marya 1795 – 1847) and Aron Knecht 1796 – 1842 (and his wife Hinde).

The top e 2 generations of the Knecht Family Tree. Starts with Lewek H'Levi (his wife is unknown). Next generation his sons, Wolf (his wife Laja), Faywel (his Fayga & Marya), Rafael (his wife Chaja Sura) and Aaron and his wife HInde.

In 2021, Alan K’necht discovered a significant amount of historical documents related to Lewek in the Mszczonów, Poland records database. These documents indicate that Lewek’s grandson Eber Lajb (1796-1823), the son of Wolf, was among the first to adopt the surname KNECHT. We believe that his father Wolf and other males from that region of Poland were probably brothers.

We’ve catalogued over 1200 descendants of Lewek to date. Did Wolf or his father Lewek take on the surname of Knecht? This is a question, we don’t  know the answer to. We do know that three of Lewek’s sons did take on the surname of Knecht. Research on this matter is ongoing.

The currents of history have swept through the Knecht family, shaping and reshaping its narrative. This platform dedicates itself primarily to recounting the saga of Rafael Knecht and his wife Chaja Sura’s descendants. His decendants believe that Rafael moved to  Nowy Dwór Mazowiecki (30 km northwest of Warsaw) after Napoleon invaded the then Russian Empire. This led to the emancipation of the Jewish inhabitants from various regions within Poland. For an in-depth exploration of how history has left indelible marks on the Knecht family, we invite you to delve into a rich history of “Rafel Knecht and his decedents” and to read the publication “Camp 20th Quartal” by Morton Knecht which details his experiences in the early days of the Holocaust. Welcome to our journey of discovery!