Fifty years ago, Novi Bečej was the site of one of the terrible crimes of World War II. After five months of imprisonment, the Jewish community, which had existed in our town for more than one hundred and fifty years, disappeared in a single day and forever. Generations after the war could neither learn about nor experience the presence of these people, who were extremely important for the economic and cultural development of our community.

The total length of navigable canals currently amounts to:

• in Banat: 309 km
• in Bačka: 355 km

Šandor Kiš was one of the rare true football stalwarts of his generation. A hardworking and exceptionally combative half-back, he left a strong mark with Turul, and after the Second World War he also played for Zvezda.

"The Formation, Development, and Destruction of the Jewish Community in Novi Bečej" is the title of an extensive work created through the years of effort by Branislav-Bata Kiselički. As he explains in the introductory notes, the author approached this monumental task due to his sense of duty and obligation to his Jewish friends from his youth, and later to their fellow countrymen who lived in Novi Bečej in the near and distant past.

Until 1978, there was only one water management organization operating in this region — the Water Management Organization "Gornji Banat," headquartered in Kikinda. After 1978, a new organization was established: the Water Management Organization "Basic Canal Network" (OKM), based in Novi Sad.

In geographical terms, Banat is a region in the southern part of the vast Pannonian Plain, bordered by the rivers Mureș, Tisza, Danube, and the Transylvanian Alps. A large portion of Banat lies in Romania, a small part in Hungary, while the Yugoslavian section is located along the lower courses of the mentioned rivers.

The first organization of agricultural workers in Kumane was founded in the late 19th century. According to the memories of the oldest residents of Kumane, its first leader was a young wheelwright, Rada Sokolović, who was expelled from Pakrac as a well-known agitator of socialist ideas.

How This Booklet Came to Be

When my article titled “Kumane” appeared in the Yugoslav Daily on August 2, 1931 (issue no. 202), my parishioners received it with great enthusiasm. It was read aloud in gatherings and on street corners before groups of listeners. Soon, many expressed the wish that it be printed as a small booklet and distributed among the people of my parish.

Responsibility, ambition, and dedication marked the life and career of Dr. Milorad Drobac, Doctor of Economic Sciences.
He was born on February 11, 1948, in Bočar, where he completed elementary school as the top student of his class.

May 31 – June 1, 2001
Invitational Composers’ Competition

The jubilee marking the 150th anniversary of the birth and 70th anniversary of the death of composer Josif Marinković was celebrated throughout the year with numerous rich and diverse cultural events. The 9th “Horizons on the Tisa” festival centered around the third composers’ competition for art songs, held on May 31 and June 1, 2001.

In the northern Banat region, which includes the municipality of Novi Bečej, an organizational unit has existed since 1973 under the Water Management Organization “Gornji Banat” in Kikinda, addressing issues related to the Core Canal Network (CCN).

A considerable amount of time had passed since our trip to Šumica before we embarked on a new adventure to Matejski Brod. We were eagerly waiting for Voja Glavaški to get a bicycle so that the three of us could ride together. This anticipation lasted almost until the end of the school year. Voja finally got a Vesta-brand bicycle, just like mine, but his was newer and more stylish by two years.

The first parliamentary elections for the Constituent Assembly were called only two years after the unification, at a time when the bourgeoisie believed it had achieved a certain level of international and internal consolidation.

Folk songs like "Hey homesteads, I will come to you again..." or "Hey homesteads in the north of Bačka," with their exceptional melody and perhaps perfectly chosen words, awaken a longing for homesteads even in those who have never experienced their charms in reality.

May 23–25, 1996
Invitational Composers’ Competition

After the highly successful first competition for solo singers, the devoted cultural workers from the town on the Tisa organized the 4th “Horizons on the Tisa”, held from May 23 to 25, 1996, as the first invitational composers’ competition for solo song.

Novi Bečej, along with Vranjevo, was a prominent trading center during the era of the Great Kikinda District, particularly known for its grain export trade in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

The medieval settlement of Arača is located on the southern shore of Crna Bara, a watercourse within the alluvial plain of the Tisza River, about 13 kilometers east of its riverbed. The name of this settlement, also referred to in sources as Potiska Arača, is associated with the ruins of a basilica and monastery.

After the great success in the semi-final, the excitement reached its peak. There was little time for celebration, as everyone eagerly awaited October 14 – the day of the European Cup final. I had the impression that my roommate, Laslo Makra, had barely closed his eyes throughout the entire night.

Flood protection, or the management of external waters, is achieved by improving the defense conditions on the watercourses that cross the state border, specifically those coming from Romania. These watercourses include the Zlatica, Begej, Tamiš, and others, which have embankments built along them and, before the construction of the Main Canals, faced serious problems with flood defense.

Sava Baračkov was born in 1929 in Kumane, Banat, where he completed elementary school. He attended construction and architectural secondary schools in Novi Bečej, Petrovgrad, and Novi Sad. In 1955, he graduated from the Department of Scenography at the Academy of Applied Arts in Belgrade, under the mentorship of Professor Milenko Šerban.

The competition began in the morning at 10 o’clock with a ceremonial parade of all participants in front of the stands by the Tisa River, which were filled to the last seat. After the presentation of plaques and commemorative awards, the start of the event was officially announced. The jury consisted of the leader of the Belgrade club Bob, Đorđe Paljić, and the event organizers Brana Kiselički and Vasa Nićin.

Even in his youth, Bogdan Čiplić was reserved and somewhat detached from social life, although he was a good conversationalist, open as a person, and musically educated. Because of that, he could easily fit into any tavern company. But he lacked one crucial thing—a desire for such a lifestyle. Just like the expression jokingly says: "but"—what ruins a girl’s happiness. That "but" steered Bogdan Čiplić’s life.

In the final years before the outbreak of the Second World War, a need emerged in Novi Bečej for the establishment of a new football club that would bring together working-class and artisan youth. At that time, Football Club Zvezda already had a stable squad and was, to some extent, closed to the admission of new players from these social groups. As a result, in 1940, a group of young men—mostly of Hungarian origin—founded Sports Club Napredak.

In the former Novi Bečej maternity hospital, located near the Andre family home, Karolj Andre was born on July 21, 1951 — a future collector and philatelist. He was educated in Novi Bečej, Subotica, and Novi Sad, where he later worked as a laboratory technician.

In the 1890s, Socialists were already participating in local elections. In some places, they took power. In Kuman, they achieved their greatest success in the municipal administration elections of 1898, when members of the Social Democratic Party were elected to the Municipal Board: Toša Stančić, the municipal prince, Boža Radišić-Bratko, the secretary, Živa Sekulić, and Laza Tubić, councilors.

Hajnalka Zerebelji is the first female lawyer in Novi Bečej. After several decades of professional work, she has gained extensive experience, which she gladly shares with younger colleagues.

19–21 May 2004
Open Competition for Solo Singers

The biennial alternation between the solo singers’ competition and the invitational composers’ competition for solo songs found its rhythm, so the 12th edition of “Horizons on the Tisa” was marked by the fifth open competition for solo singers.

The idea of the Novi Bečej swimmers was accepted, but due to issues with obtaining a permit, the swimming event wasn’t held as originally planned—on August 1st and 2nd—but instead on August 28th and 29th, 1943.
From the manuscript The Great Swimming Day by Branislav Kiselički, we highlight the part describing the welcome of the Belgrade athletes:

In the harsh conditions of the economic crisis — especially in a year when it reached its peak — the football enthusiasts of Novi Bečej, or perhaps even better described as fanatics, organized a true football spectacle in 1932. That year, they managed to bring the multiple national champion, the Belgrade Sports Club (BSK), to Novi Bečej.

Vilmoš Kujan, born in Novi Bečej, moved to Novi Sad as a boy to learn a trade, where he stayed until 1942. During his time in Novi Sad, he played football, which made him one of the top players in Novi Bečej upon his return. In DMKS Turul, during the early war years, he quickly established himself as one of the team’s most important first-team players, alongside István Berta.