Józef Piłsudski Institute of America facts for kids
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| Founder(s) | Henryk Floyar-Rajchman, Franciszek Januszewski, Wacław Jędrzejewicz, Lucjusz Kupferwasser, Stefan Łodzieski, Ignacy Matuszewski, Ignacy Nurkiewicz, Maksymilian Węgrzynek |
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| Established | 1943 |
| Mission | Research in the Modern History of Poland |
| President | Iwona Korga |
| Location |
New York City
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| Coordinates | 40°43′48″N 73°57′18″W / 40.729887°N 73.955041°W |
| Address | 138 Greenpoint Avenue , Greenpoint, Brooklyn, N.Y. 11222 |
The Józef Piłsudski Institute of America is a special museum and research center in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. Its full name is the Józef Piłsudski Institute of America for Research in the Modern History of Poland. It helps people learn about Polish history from recent times. The institute is named after Józef Piłsudski, a very important Polish leader from between the two World Wars.
Contents
History of the Institute
How It Started
The Piłsudski Institute of America began on July 3–4, 1943. It was created during a big meeting in New York City. This meeting included eight important people. Three of them had worked closely with Marshal Józef Piłsudski before World War II. These were Wacław Jędrzejewicz, Henryk Floyar-Rajchman, and Ignacy Matuszewski. Other well-known Polish-Americans were also there, like Franciszek Januszewski and Maksymilian Węgrzynek.
Wacław Jędrzejewicz explained that they wanted to start the Józef Piłsudski Institute. Its goal was to study Poland's most recent history. This new institute continued the work of an older research center in Warsaw, Poland. That center had been renamed after Marshal Piłsudski in 1936. The people who started the New York center knew it was important to collect documents about World War II. This was a very important time for Poland. The Polish government-in-exile, which was outside Poland during the war, also supported the idea.
At this time, Poland's history and culture were in danger. Both the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany were a threat. The Nazis wanted to destroy Polish learning and culture. They did this by harming scholars and cultural leaders. They also stole from libraries and museums. They stopped cultural and educational activities. Many Polish university professors were arrested and killed. Important Polish institutions were closed.
It was hard for Poles to do scholarly work in Europe. After France surrendered in 1940, Polish centers there closed. The Germans took or destroyed many books. Only in Great Britain and the United States could Poles continue their cultural activities.
At the first meeting, they decided to:
- Form an eight-member committee.
- Continue the work of the Warsaw Institute from afar.
- Become an American partner of the Warsaw center after the war.
Franciszek Januszewski became the head of the committee. Wacław Jędrzejewicz became the first director of the new institute. They decided the institute's main goal would be to collect, save, and study documents about Poland's history since 1863. They also wanted to create archives, publish books, and offer scholarships. Most importantly, they aimed to gather documents to rebuild the Warsaw institute's collections, which were destroyed.
The institute started small with only $30. Wacław Jędrzejewicz traveled to Polish communities in cities like Detroit and Chicago. He explained the institute's goals and asked for support. This helped bring in valuable collections of books and documents. These materials were about World War II and Polish groups in other countries.
After World War II
After World War II, Poland ended up under Soviet influence. This meant the original plan to rebuild the institute in Warsaw couldn't happen. The Polish government-in-exile was no longer recognized by many countries. So, the founders of the institute decided to make it a permanent, independent research organization in the U.S. Their new mission was to gather documents and share accurate historical knowledge about Poland.
This was a big challenge because they didn't get help from the Polish government-in-exile. The institute relied on money from Polish people living abroad, membership fees, and donations. The institute's leaders strongly believed in Poland's independence. They refused to work with the communist government in Poland. This sometimes made the institute feel isolated, especially in the 1960s and 1970s.
The institute also tried to connect with Polish groups in other countries. They worked with a Piłsudski Group in the Middle East and an affiliate in Ankara. A Józef Piłsudski Society was also started in São Paulo, Brazil, and is still active today. However, many Polish military and political figures moved to London. This led to the founding of the Piłsudski Institute in London in 1947. At first, it was linked to the New York institute, but it later became independent.
The Piłsudski Institute of America faced many financial problems. But it survived because of the hard work of its founders and directors. They gave their time and money. Thanks to their efforts, the institute grew. It started publishing more and organizing its large collection. Its unique library has documents and materials that are hard to find anywhere else. Many researchers from different countries visit the institute for information.
In the 1940s, the institute tried to help Polish scholars in Poland. They sent publications and materials. These contacts stopped during the strict Stalinist period but started again after 1956. Polish students visiting the U.S. began to visit the institute. The institute also started its own scholarship program in the 1970s and 80s. This helped young scholars in Poland who were not part of the communist system.
In the early 1980s, historian Taras Hunczak used the institute's archives for his book, Ukraine and Poland in Documents: 1918-1923.
Since 1989
After the communist government in Poland fell in 1989, the Piłsudski Institute of America became officially recognized in Poland. Important Polish government officials started visiting. In 1991, the former president of Poland visited, followed by the Prime Minister in 1992.
The changes in Poland made it possible to work with Polish academic groups. The institute now cooperates with the National Library of Poland in Warsaw and Jagiellonian University in Cracow. They also work with the National Archives in Warsaw. Librarians and archivists from Poland come to help organize the institute's collections. The institute has also given duplicate books to libraries in Poland and Germany.
Collections
The Piłsudski Institute of America has a very large collection of documents about Poland's recent history. It's one of the biggest among Polish libraries in the United States. Only the Hoover Institution at Stanford University has more.
The collection includes archives saved during World War II. These came from the institute's earlier version in Poland. It also has materials from important Polish leaders and military groups. Some documents were even smuggled out of Poland in 1939.
The archive grew a lot through donations. New materials came from Polish embassies and from private people. Documents about Polish communities in the U.S. make up about 80% of the collection. These include materials from important Polish-American leaders. The institute also has older archives from the 18th and 19th centuries. In total, there are about one million pages of documents.
The institute's research library has about 23,000 books. Many of these books were donated by individuals and other organizations. Important donors include Ignacy Matuszewski, Wacław Jędrzejewicz, and General Kazimierz Sosnkowski.
The institute also has audio and visual materials. These include recordings of people who survived Soviet labor camps. There are also personal stories from politicians. The collection has about 3,000 newspaper clippings. These range from wartime newspapers published in Palestine to news from the Solidarity movement.
The stamp collection has postcards and stamps from as far back as 1818. It includes 700 postcards about "The Legions and their Founder." The institute also has medals and plaques. These include items like a medal from the 1808 Battle of Somosierra. There are 20 medals honoring Marshal Piłsudski.
The institute has a collection of 20,000 maps and photographs. It also has an art collection with about 240 watercolors, oil paintings, and drawings. These include works by famous Polish painters like Jan Matejko, Juliusz Kossak, and Jacek Malczewski.
Presidents of the Institute
- 1943–1944 Franciszek Januszewski
- 1944–1951 Stefan Łodzieski
- 1951–1953 Franciszek Januszewski
- 1954–1955 Ignacy Nurkiewicz
- 1955–1961 Henryk Korab-Janiewicz
- 1961–1962 Władysław Bortnowski
- 1962–1965 Henryk Korab-Janiewicz
- 1965–1966 Ignacy Nurkiewicz
- 1966–1969 Henryk Korab-Janiewicz
- 1969–1972 Wiesław Domaniewski
- 1972–1977 Jan Fryling
- 1977–1978 Wacław Jędrzejewicz
- 1978–1983 Tadeusz Pawłowicz
- 1983–1993 Stanisław Jordanowski
- 1993–1999 Andrzej Beck
- 1999–2008 Jacek Gałązka
- 2008–2016 Magdalena Kapuścińska
- 2016–present Iwona Korga
Executive Directors of the Institute
- 1943–1948 Wacław Jędrzejewicz
- 1949–1951 Marian Chodacki
- 1951–1956 Damian Stanisław Wandycz
- 1956–1963 Wincenty Kowalski
- 1963–1964 Wacław Jędrzejewicz
- 1964–1972 Jan Fryling
- 1973–1983 Michał Budny
- 1984–1985 Stanisław Jordanowski
- 1986–1988 Czesław Karkowski
- 1989–1991 Jerzy Prus
- 1992–2000 Janusz Cisek
- 2005–present Iwona Korga
See also
- Józef Piłsudski Institute for Research in Modern History of Poland, Warsaw (1923–1939)
- Józef Piłsudski Institute in London
- Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum
