The Australian Polish Historical Society was established in 2004, in Melbourne, and is a non-profit community-based organization. It comprises over 30 members, who are interested in documenting and celebrating the Polish presence in Victoria and Australia.

Aims:

- integration of people interested in Australian-Polish history, incl. recent and contemporary issues

- promotion, interchange and advancement of knowledge about the Polish migration to and heritage in Australia

- initiate, organise or facilitate collection and protection of authentic historical items and artefacts

- research, document, publish and promote information about the Polish presence in Australia

- broaden opportunities for participation in historical research

- encourage young people in the activities of the Society

- organise lectures, workshops, functions and visits on a wide variety of topics regarding Polish Australian heritage

- establish a library

- develop a computerised database

- offer a research service to all interested individuals

- provide an information and referral service

- work closely with other historical societies and all relevant community groups and organisations

- undertake any other activity that is conducive to the Society’s objectives

If you are interested in contributing to APHS, help us fulfil the above aims, please contact us.
 

The Members of Australian Polish Historical Society would like to congratulate Jo Szczepanska (Vice-President of APHS) for achieving the title of "Best Tertiary Student in Victoria" - well done and all the best for your future success!

Click here to read what the press is saying about Jo.
 

Stories from Ballarat’s Polish community

The Gold Museum and the Ballarat Historical Society has recently organized an exhibition about the Polish community entitled Migrant to Citizen: Stories from Ballarat’s Polish community. The exhibition will be open till 22nd June 2008. The official guests of the exhibition opening was Elizabeth Drozd, CEO of the Australian Polish Community Services, and Monika Wiench the Secretary of the Australian-Polish Historical Society. Elizabeth stated in here opening address:

To Ms Jane Cowles, Chair of the Gold Museum Committee, Mr Roger Trudge on, Deputy Museum Director, Manager and Curator, Dr George Luck Kozika, the Hon. Consul of the Republic of Poland, Ms Valdie Cham, Spokesperson of the Polish Exhibition Project Committee and all Committee Members, Ms Monika Wiench, Secretary of the Australian Polish Historical Society, Ms Eufemia Aszenbrener, President of Golden Age Polish Senior’s Club, Mr Waclaw Kaska, President of the Polish Senior Citizens Club in Albion, the many representatives of the Polish Community in Ballarat, and of course each and every person whose story forms part of the exhibition entitled: Migrant to Citizen: Stories from Ballarat’s Polish Community.

Many distinguished guests, Ladies and Gentlemen.
Good morning and dzień dobry.

I am very pleased to have been asked to open this unique and important exhibition about the special Polish community in Ballarat. What a wonderful milestone it is for our community, especially as late last year, we celebrated the 60th anniversary of the arrival of the largest wave of Polish immigrants in Australia and next year the Polish Association in Ballarat will be able to celebrate its 60th anniversary.

The Polish community in Australia has the largest number of refugees that have ever arrived from one ethnic group to this date. This includes the almost 60,000 who arrived between 1947 and 1953, largely as Displaced Persons from war-torn Europe.

The stories included in the Migrant to Citizen Exhibition document the reality of Polish migrants coming to Australia, following unimaginable hardship, atrocities, torture and depravation during the six years of World War II and displacement for many years after that. Most of them were young people who were deported to the Soviet Union and Germany as slave labour.

These migrants came with nothing. They arrived in Australia with expectations of a new life and hopes for a prosperous future; many wanted to get as far possible from the suffering and the destruction they had experienced. They also missed their homeland, family members, their culture and traditions.

As with many migrants and refugees they often experienced a sense of isolation. But they soon began building their first homes, establishing life long friendships, celebrating marriages, christenings, establishing cultural, religious and sport groups. The life of the Polish community in Ballarat has previously been documented by Mr Zdzislaw Burcon, Kazimierz Mroczkowski and Jakub Pamula.

The Polish Displaced Persons started to arrive in Ballarat in 1949. This was also the year when a Polish priest, Father Wladyslaw Ziołkoś, joined the community and began holding Polish masses at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. It was after one of those masses that Father Ziółkoś organized a meeting to discuss the formation of a Polish Association.

The authors of the article, well document the high level of activism, support and community involvement by a small but dynamic Polish community. Over the years, there was a community theatre, a band, a choir, celebrations of Polish national days and important historical anniversaries. The first Polish Opłatek and Polish way of celebrating New Year’s Eve – Sylwester - took place in 1953. There was also a group of people who visited those that were not well and the Polish language school was established. The community supported each other. The support extended to the disadvantaged in their home country eg. Blind children in Laski, Poles returning to Poland from the Soviet Union, as a result of forced deportation during the war.

The community maintained its high level involvement and in 1955 began discussions about establishing community centre, a place for everyone, where time could be spent together, and sharing beautiful Polish traditions. Of particular pride to the community was its own Polish soccer club called Kościuszko that existed for 30 years.

It is very impressive to see how over the years, the Polish community here in Ballarat has been able to maintain the language, culture and religious traditions. There have been many community leaders who have been active in the Ballarat community for 20-60 years. This is a remarkable effort. Some are still active like Mr and Mrs Skrypko who support so many Polish seniors including those who now live in nursing homes.

I read with much interest the individual stories. They give a particular perspective from people who were children or very young at the time of arrival. There has been little documented or written about what it was like for that particular age group, to attend school, to cope with two cultures while feeling pressure from both sides, trying to balance it, fit in and have friends and feel part of the general community.

I was particularly touched by some of the comments in the stories. For example, Valdie describes the life of her parents prior to arriving in Australia, displacement and not being able to return to their home country due to the communist regime that was imposed on Poland.

The meaning and joy of Polish traditions is portrayed by Valdie, and I quote:
 

The best thing I remember about Christmas was that we got our presents after tea, so we received our gifts on Christmas Eve. I remember going outside to our Australian neighbourhood children and saying, “Look what Santa brought me”. They would be quite scornful and say that Santa was not meant to come until Christmas day. However, nothing could dampen my joy and enthusiasm, because he brought presents to us on Christmas Eve. - end of quote.

Mrs Teresa Skrypko, who was 13 when she came to Australia with her parents, talks about the crying that took place during the first night at Bonegilla, in view of what the migrants found and the fact that families were separated despite the promise prior to arrival that this would not happen. Teresa also describes how as a young family, together with her husband Roman, they coped with childcare and full time employment and how they would wave to each other one being on the way from work and the other on the way to work. Finally, Teresa so vividly describes the meaning of Polish Easter to her and how for 57 years she never went away from home during that time.

Stasia Dron’s story, in addition to the experiences that the Polish Displaced Persons endured, reflects the strong attachment of that particular group of immigrants to their homes. They rarely moved out of the first home that they built or bought. Just like Stasia’s parents, all these migrants, despite their gratefulness to Australia, never stopped longing for the places where they were born. The story is expresses the strong connection to Polish traditions, celebrations, good food (often home grown and home made) “sprinkled” with some Vodka and of course good company and dancing until the early hours of the morning.

And last but not least the story of Marysia Buczek who arrived as a 5-year old child in 1950. When reading what Marysia’ parents experienced, for those of us who are younger, it seems that we would just not manage to survive the suffering, hunger and poverty. Australia in the 1950s was a more insular society than it is now and during the initial years in Australia, some Polish migrants felt that they were not welcome and were not treated fairly. On the other hand there were people like Poppy in Marysia’s story, who was one of the most kindest people you could meet.

Congratulations and thank you to the Polish community in Ballarat especially each and every person who has contributed to this exhibition. The stories are the stories of triumph over adversity. Thank you and congratulations to the Gold Museum, Jane Cowles the Chairperson and all the Gold Museum Staff including Rodger Trudgeon and Clare Muir.

It is a true delight for me to declare this exhibition open.

Activities Report:
 

Refugee Realities Exhibition

At the end of February 2008, Members of the APHS Committee took part in the official opening of an exhibition entitled Refugee Realities, that recreates the experience of a refugee or internally Displaced Person, from fleeing their home to finding permanent settlement in Australia. The project educated about refugee rights: the right to protection, the right to assistance, the right to asylum. This event aims to give compelling experience, which help to identify with the struggles faced by refugees around the world.

There are currently over 34 million Displaced People in the world who have fled horrific and violent circumstances of conflict. Refugee Realities was a tribute to their strength and courage in the face of crisis. Refugee Realities was also about protecting the rights of people caught up in crisis situations; just the way all of us would expect our rights to be upheld if we faced the same challenges.
The project has been developed with the help of returned humanitarian workers, former refugees and hundreds of other volunteers from Victoria and around the country.

We are pleased to report that one of the artistic directors of the exhibition was a former refugee from Poland - Joanna Szczepanska – Vicepresident of APHS. The event was organised by Oxfam Australia and was held in Gasworks Theatre, Albert Park, Melbourne.

Mound and Mount Kosciuszko Festival

This event was held in Jindabyne and in Cooma, 18-th to 20-th April 2008. APHS was one of the sponsors of the Festival.

This unique celebration of Polish culture in Australia aimed to connect two representative landmarks in Australia and Poland – the Kosciuszko Mound in Krakow, Poland and Mount Kosciuszko in Australia’s Snowy Mountains.

The event was executed by Puls Polonii Cultural Foundation Inc.  Gala concert “Kosciuszko, Hero of Many People and Nations” paid a tribute to a great and true Polish patriot.

Who was Tadeusz Kosciuszko?

General Tadeusz Kosciuszko, a fighter of the highest calibre for human rights, for freedom, independence and democracy, in both the United States and Poland, was also a talented artist – drawing, painting and composing musical pieces – among them two polonaises and a waltz.

General Kosciuszko regarded the toleration of slavery as the darkest blot on the escutcheon of a free America, violating his concept of a land of the free and equal. Before his departure to Europe, Kosciuszko pleaded for the emancipation of the Negro slaves.

The Polish nation wished to commemorate General Kosciuszko by means of a permanent and simple monument. On July 19th 1820, a decision was made to erect a symbolic tomb for the Leader, built of native soil and stones, on the hill of Blessed Bronislawa in the western part of Cracow.

Kosciuszko is commemorated all over the world. His name was given to the highest mountain in Australia.

[In 1840 Paul Strzelecki, the Polish-born explorer of Australia climbed from the valley of the great Murray River to the heights of the Australian Alps, naming the highest peak after Tadeusz Kosciuszko, the hero who fought for Polish independence. The mountain rises 2,228 metres (7,328 feet) above sea level. - www.poles.org].
 

Human Rights Torch Relay in Melbourne

On Sunday 17th of November 2007, three Committee Members of the Australian Polish Historical Society (APHS) (located in Melbourne) i.e. Joanna Szczepanska, Monika Wiench and Elizabeth Szczepanska, took part in a demonstration march against human rights abuses in the world.

Over 200 demonstrators began the relay from Queen Victoria Gardens, from where they walked in silence, with flags and banners, through the city to Parliament House.
During the relay, Joanna Szczepanska (23 year old Vice President of APTH) carried a white and red flag with the name Solidarity, as a sign of support by Polish people of those who fight for human rights.

The theme of the relay was Global Human Torch Relay for Human Rights in China.

About the Relay

• The Human Rights Torch Relay is an international campaign that seeks to bring an end to all human rights abuses fuelled by the Chinese regime while highlighting the persecution of Falun Gong, one of the most severely persecuted in China today.
• During the run up to the 2008 Olympics, the Relay will pass through 37 countries and over 100 cities on five continents to public its founding premise: The Olympics and crimes against humanity cannot co-exist in China.

Elizabeth Szczepanska, Committee Member of APHS, previous anticommunist activist, prisoner of conscience in the communist Poland, led the relay with Kai Chen, accomplished Chinese basketball player and a witness of Chinese student massacre in 1989. At the conclusion of the relay, Elizabeth shared her experiences of fighting the Polish communist regime. She asked the gathered demonstrators never to give up, to have faith in the inevitable victory and wished all to find strength and persistence in their fight for human rights in the world.
 

The 67th Anniversary of the Katyń Massacre
 

In June 2007 members of the APHS Committee visited the Katyn Monument in Chicago, USA."

On the 67th anniversary of the Katyń massacre, on 15th of April 2007, representatives of the Australian Polish Historical Society Inc. – Monika Wiench and Grażyna Plawska, laid a wreath of white and red flowers at the Katyń Memorial in Melbourne, as a sign of commemoration of all those who were murdered ‘in the inhumane land’.

The commemoration was organized by the Katyń Family Association and the [Polish] Siberians Association.

Standing from left:

Monika Wiench

Grazyna Plawska

Zofia Kwiatkowska-Dublaszewska

International Women's Day 8th of March - click here to read the President's speech.
 

39th Anniversary of March 1968 in Poland - a milestone on the Polish Way to Freedom. Read more...

64th Anniversary of the discovery of mass graves in Katyn Forest (12 April 1943), where thousands of Polish Army officers - POW's - were slaughtered by their Soviet captors. Read more...
 

The Steering Committee of the Australian-Polish Historical Society received a congratulatory letter form the director of the National Museum in Warsaw, Mr. Michał Jagiełło, together with a statement that the “Celebrations of the 25th Anniversary of Solidarność” DVD produced and delivered by APHS will be placed in the National Library’s collection.

The Ministry of Culture and National Heritage forwarded to the Chairman of the APHS the expression of gratitude for the materials about the 25th anniversary of Solidarność in Melbourne’s Parliament. The director of the Department, Mr. Franciszek Ciemka said …”I wish to express respect for the members of the APHS for the undertaking of this mission of showing the Polish emigrants and the Australian public the truth about events that have changed the face of not only Poland but the whole of Europe”…

The Institute for National Remembrance and its Chief Commissioner for the Prosecution of Crimes Against Polish People issued to Ms Joanna Szczepanski from Melbourne, in response to her application, Certificate No.2152/06 affirming that:
 
"Personal data about Joanna Maria Szczepanska of Melbourne does not relate to personal data found in the catalogue of officers, collaborators, candidates and other persons acting on behalf of the secret police and associated organisations, available at the Institute of National Remembrance since 26th November 2004."
 
This certificate was issued on 8th August 2006 and signed on behalf of the Institute for National Remembrance - Chief Commission for Prosecution of Crimes President, Mr Pawel Plerzyna.

On 21st October, at the Princess Royal Fortress in Albany, Western Australia, two members of the Committee of Management of APHS paid tribute to sailors who died during World War II. Flowers were laid at the monument which reads:

 
 
"Dedicated to the memory of those men and women of the World's merchant Navies and those whose lives were lost in peace and war, and whose only grave is the sea."

Previous Activities:

On 30th April 2006, three members of APHS, together with many other Polish community leaders, laid wreath and paid tribute at the Katyń Memorial to those that were murdered in 1940, by the Russian regime.

On 26th April 2006, two Committee Members of APHS joined representatives of the Ukrainian community at an official opening of an International Photographic Exhibition entitled Chernobyl 20 Years, 20 Lives, Queens Hall, Victorian Parliament, Melbourne

11th February 2006, the President and Vice President of APHS took part in walk for freedom organised by Free China organisation. The march ended with a gathering at Federation Square, where Elizabeth Szczepanska was invited to speak. Elizabeth spoke about her personal experience of fighting for freedom in her country of birth Poland, and about the historical events associated with Solidarity – a movement that changed the face of Europe. Download the speech

Bonegilla Project
By the end of 2006, the Australian Polish Historical Society aims to have a comprehensive list of all people of Polish background for whom the Bonegilla Migrant Reception was their first home in Australia. This list will be compiled from the original records held at the National Archives of Australia in Canberra.
 

Also, as part of the Bonegilla project, on December 4th 2005, APHS co-organised an excursion for people who stayed at Bonegilla to Celebrate – The Beginning Place’. A professional video recording of Bonegilla Stories took place involving a number of Polish people. Some participants revisited Bonegilla after more than 50 years!

24th anniversary of Marital Law in Poland
APHS Committee organised a film screening of ‘Śmierć jak kromka chleba’, about the invasion by ZOMO of the Wujek Coal Mine in Katowice, Poland, in December 1981.

Poland’s Independence Day 11th November
Together with numerous Polish Combatants Associations in Melbourne and other Polish organisations, APHS laid a wreath at the Katyn Memorial Monument at the Polish Marian Shrine in Essendon.

History, Community, Identity - Exhibition
APHS attended an official launch of an exhibition organised by the Royal Historical Society of Victoria, to showcase Melbourne cultural diversity. A Committee Member of APHS helped to prepare information about the Polish community – one of eight communities chosen as part of this exhibition. APHS organised and assisted a group of frail Polish seniors to view the exhibition.

In the memory of Katyń victims…
In April 2005, APHS took part on wreath laying ceremony in Essendon to commemorate those who died at the hands of Stalin’s regime in 1940.

25th Anniversary of Solidarity
One of its first and major achievements of APTH to-date is the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Solidarity movement. The celebration included a unique exhibition at the Victorian Parliament (Queen’s Hall) in September 2005. The Hon. Rob Hulls, Attorney General of Victoria, officially opened the exhibition. Amongst other prominent guests were Mr Jerzy Więclaw, Ambassador – Embassy of the Republic of Poland, and Mrs Bogumiła Więcław, Dr George Luk-Kozika, Honorary Consul of RP and Mrs Denise Luk-Kozika, Mr Robert Doyle, Leader of the Opposition in Victoria, Mr Richard Marles, Assistant Secretary – Australian Council of Trade Unions, representing Ms Sharan Burrow. Equally importantly, former Solidarity activists and their families who currently live in Victoria attended the exhibition.

The exhibition was possible due to an enormous effort and dedication of Mr Ryszard Jan Konikowski who was the Artistic Director of the exhibition and Elizabeth Szczepańska, the President of APTH, who was a prisoner of conscience during the Solidarity struggle.

Click here to read the opening speech.

Click here for the Exhibition Guide.

Click here to read about Poland's way to freedom.

Click here for Bionotes of Solidarity activists.

The 25th anniversary Solidarity celebrations included participation of APHS members in a solemnly Mass on 28th August 2005, at the St. Ignatius Church in Richmond. The Mass was dedicated to those who fought for a free and independent Poland between 1939-89. Amongst official banners, APHS President, carried a Solidarity banner.

As a part of the 25th anniversary celebrations, a group of Solidarity activists, their families, friends and supporters, prepared an artistic program, which included Solidarity songs and poems, sharing of personal stories about imprisonment during martial law. The event took place at Syrena, the Polish center Rowville and was attended by a wide range of Polish community representatives (approx. 100 in total).

Multicultural Documentary Heritage Workshop
Between 14-15 June 2005, APTH President participated in the above-mentioned workshop, which was organized by the State Library and the Public Records Office of Victoria. APTH would be pleased to share the acquired knowledge with other Polish organisations as to how they can identify and store valuable heritage information.

The future of Polish culture in Australia Forum
On 4th June 2005, together with the Australian Polish Community Services, APTH organized a discussion forum about the future of Polish culture in Australia. Mrs. Bogumila Więcław, First Counselor at the Polish Embassy in Australia, was the keynote speaker. Over 60 people attended the forum, representing the Polish community in Melbourne including numerous Polish organisations.