When they got fed up with being harassed, the citizens build a wooden fort around their shtetl, which gave Pavoloch's inhabitants increased protection against invaders.

It was a good thing that the people of Pavoloch built their fort, because their settlement was a constant pit-stop for advancing and retreating armies.

During the Russian Civil War of 1917-1923, most of the inhabitants of Pavoloch left, most likely in fear of the encroaching Bolshevik army.

The population continued to decline, up to World War II, during Operation Barbarossa, when a Nazi Einsatzgruppen (SS) squad drove into Pavoloch.

Today, Pavoloch remains a historic community, visited by tourists, descendants of men and women who lived in the shtetl, and people who are interested in its history.