Lutowiska

Lutowiska is an extensive village located in the Bieszczady county by the route of the Large Bieszczady Ring Road (Duża Obwodnica Bieszczadzka). The name comes from the Ukrainian word litowyszcze, which means the place of grazing livestock in the forest.

The village was established under Wallachian law in 1580 in the land belonging to the Kmita family. Lutowiska was an important place as the trade routes intersected there, one led from Sanok to Transylvania and the other one from Przemyśl to Użgorod. In 1939 Lutowiska was occupied by the Soviets, and in 1941 Germans entered to the village. On 22^nd of June 1942, 650 Jews from Lutowiska and nearby area were murdered near the church, today a monument is in that place. The remnants of Jewish population are the ruins of the synagogue and the Jewish cemetery, where about 1000 matzevahs (Jewish tombstones) have survived. After the World War II, Lutowiska came to USSR territory and changed its name to Szewczenkowo. This named functioned until 1957. In 1951, the village returned to Poland as part of the border alignment and the previous name of the village was also restored. The Orthodox church from 1898 was in Lutowiska, but it was transferred to Dwernik as a building material for the church. Only the cross and the trees remained.

Lutowiska is currently the seat of the least populated and one of the largest commune in Poland.