Krosno Józef Koffler

Railway station in Krosno, view from the town side, photo by Michał Piekarski

Krosno

(railway station and surrounding area)

During the interwar period, Krosno was an important urban center in the Second Polish Republic, located in the western part of Lwów Voivodeship, 180 km from Lwów and 155 km from Kraków. Before 1939, it had a population of about 18,000. After Germany invaded Poland, Krosno was incorporated into the General Government as part of Distrikt Krakau and remained under German occupation from 1939 to 1944.

Krosno and Iwonicz on a pre-war map of the Republic of Poland (Polona)

Krosno, railway station, present-day view, photo by Michał Piekarski

Józef Koffler visited the Krosno area at least twice before 1939, spending time at the nearby spa town of Iwonicz, just 15 kilometers away. However, during the German occupation, Koffler's connection to Krosno became more significant, as he likely resided there from 1942 to 1943, possibly until 1944.

During this period, Gizela Hercholorfer (née Roth), Koffler's sister-in-law, also lived in Krosno. She met him by chance at the town's railway station in 1942. The composer had found shelter in the suburbs of Krosno, where he stayed probably from 1942 until 1943 or 1944. He reportedly attended services at St. Martin's Church in the suburban Krościenko Wyżne.

Gizela Hercholorfer survived the Holocaust and later recalled:

Krosno, suburbs and panorama of the town circa 1939 (NAC, National Digital Archives)

I accidentally met my brother-in-law at the [railway] station in Krosno in 1942, and from then on we would see each other in town. He still maintained hope throughout 1943, saying 'that it would not last much longer'

(Życie Warszawy 1987, no. 151).

While the Krosno area is most likely where Józef Koffler and his family were murdered by German Nazis, the location of their burial remains unknown and unmarked to this day.