Bershad is a settlement in the Vinnytsia region of Ukraine. Since 1966 - a city. Founded in 1459 as a fortress on the southern border of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. In 1617, at the request of the Turks, the fortress was burned down, and the population was resettled to the other side of the Dohna River. There a new place appeared, in which Jews also settled.

The Bershad community suffered during the Khmelnytsky Uprising. It is mentioned in the martyrology "Titus Gayaven". In addition, the mention of the dead is found in the epitaph from the tombstone of a mass grave, which was investigated in the 19th century.

In 1765, only 438 Jews lived in the town. 80 years later, in 1847, there were already 3.3 thousand of them. According to the data of 1838, out of 10 Bershad merchants, six were Jews. The majority of the Jewish population were bourgeois. In the 1850s, only 12 of the city's artisans were Christians and 163 Jews. By this time, 2.9 thousand Jews lived in Bershad, there was a synagogue and four prayer houses. By 1889, local Jews had eight synagogues and seven houses of worship. By the end of the century, Jews in Bershad made up 74.3% of the population. 6.6 thousand people lived here.

Bershad Jews were Hasidim. Most of them were supporters of Rabbi Raphael, a student of Pinchas from Korets. He created a separate movement, which received the name "Bershad Hasidism".

Unlike other Hasidim, Bershad did not express emotions violently during prayers. Rabbi Raphael taught them to be extremely honest, which became a reason for jokes. According to legend, Raphael was supposed to testify in court against one Jew. The rabbi knew for sure about his fellow tribesman's guilt, but did not want to testify. Therefore, he begged God for death before the court, because he could not lie. And he died in the morning before the meeting.

In addition, Raphael paid particular attention to wearing tzitzit. Therefore, Bershad became famous as an all-Ukrainian center for the production of tsitzit and tallit.

During the events of the 1917-1920s, local Jews created a self-defense unit that could resist the pogromists as best they could. Nevertheless, the Bershad Jews suffered from a change of government in the country and were subjected to pogroms by the Whites, Reds and the Directory troops.

In 1939, Jews made up 74% of the city's population. During World War II, Bershad ended up in the Romanian occupation zone. Not only Bershad Jews got into the local ghetto, but also those brought from other lands controlled by the Romanian troops. Most of the prisoners survived.

In the 1970s, Jews made up 15% of the local population. By the end of the decade, their share had dropped to 11%. Moreover, in the 21st century, just over 60 Jews remained in the city.