Polish activists, Michał Kurtok and Paweł Dobija, were murdered in the Buchenwald and Dachau concentration camps. In January 1945, Poręba was the site of atrocities committed by the Germans during the death march of the prisoners of the Auschwitz concentration camp. There are three memorials commemorating the victims, two mass graves of the murdered prisoners, and the grave of a three-week-old child born by one of the prisoners. 36 escaped prisoners were rescued by various Polish families who hid them and gave them shelter. In February 1945, the village was captured by the Soviets, who often robbed Polish households, and even murdered two inhabitants. Soviet troops left the village in May 1945, and it was restored to Poland, however, the village was still attacked several times by Russian deserters-robbers. Gallery References Villages in Pszczyna County