Historical Pisemka – Polish Letters from the Far East … – Uncle Wicek and his beloved Manżuria, 1918 – weekly LISTY POLSKIE Z DALEKIEGO EASTUR (POLISH LISTS FROM THE FAR EAST) weekly and monthly magazine ECHO GALEKIEGO EAST in Polish and Japanese
From family memorabilia found in the home library:
1. “WEEKLY Polish Letters from the Far East Organ of the Polish Council of the Far East and Eastern Siberia”, Kharbin (Harbin), corner of Prawlenska and Glucha Streets, Local of “Gospoda Polska”,
No. 13/22 of 18/09/1918 and No. 14/23 of 25/09/1918.
2. “ECHO OF THE FAR EAST, National Monthly Magazine Devoted to Polish Affairs in the Far East”, Tokyo, Japan,
No. 6 of January 1, 1922 and No. 9 of April 1, 1922.
By some miracle, these four magazines survived at home throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Very interesting content. The weekly is lithographically printed in “Litografja Sztabu Editor Wł. Homan” (Editor’s Notebook). The monthly is much richer in illustrations, with many memorabilia from Poland and the past and present culture of Japan, printed in Polish and Japanese.
This family heirloom is from Uncle Wicek Wincenty Skorka, who came from an old Polish landed gentry family and lived in Manchuria in the early 20th century, where, as a top-class engineer, he built the Trans-Siberian Railway. After returning from Asia to independent Poland in 1920, he remained fascinated by Buddhism and the cultures of China, Mongolia, and Japan for the rest of his life.
It must have been an incredible experience for Poles in the first decades of the 20th century, thrown by history into Manchuria and Japan, where, as citizens of Russia (Poland was then part of Russia), they had to fight for their national interests. Later, when they had to stay and live there, they established a Polish diaspora in Manchuria and Japan. They cultivated Polish culture in Manchuria, founding Polish associations and publishing houses. And after returning to Poland, some of them, like Uncle Wicek, cultivated Asian culture and the Far Eastern religion of Buddhism in independent Poland with enormous hearts and for the rest of their lives.
This is an example of history and the connection of Polish culture and Christian religion with the then distant culture of the Far East and the Buddhist religion.
To this day, family and literary memories preserve fragments of the past: after returning from Asia, Uncle Wicek traveled to Poland, to Italy near Warsaw, with a Chinese cook, which came as a huge surprise to many acquaintances. Residents of Italy, just before the war, remembered him as a mustachioed old man, strolling through Italy and dressed like a Chinese mandarin. They called him Chiang Kai-Shek (memoirs and books from Italy near Warsaw, written by the renowned writer Marek Nowakowski, who after the war moved with his parents to a shared apartment in a house on Zachodnia Street, built by his uncle Wincenty Skorka).
Attached are scans of several pages of these magazines, and at the end of the photo album of the entry are 3 old family photos with Uncle Wincenty Skorka:
1. Wincenty Skorka in Harbin, Manchuria, 2007.
2. Wincenty Skorka after his return to Poland, to Włochy near Warsaw, after 1920 (unfortunately, no photograph of the mentioned cook taken by Uncle Wick from Harbin to Warsaw has survived).
3. Wincenty Skorka on a walk with his aunt Eugenia Maternicka – Warsaw ZOO, 1937.
In memory of all Polish families who were thrown into Manchuria and Harbin over 100 years ago, who cultivated Polish culture and tradition there, and many of whose family members stayed there and never returned to independent Poland.
Tadeusz Wysocki and Maria Mioduszewska-Wysocka
Warsaw-Włochy, 1 July 1999
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Entries added in subsequent years:
Here on the website Narodowa.pl we have added a memory about Aunt Gienia, who, together with Uncle Wicek, built our family house in Włochy near Warsaw in 1936, thank you!:
https://narodowa.pl/exhibits/eugenia-maternicka-jedna-z-pierwszych-polskich-emancypantek-sawantek/
and another souvenir – an extraordinary thing, Uncle Wicek brought this lamp from Harbin, it is indeed strange why 100 years ago he carried this fragile souvenir thousands of kilometers to Poland:
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CORRESPONDENCE:
8.
Gallery editor’s note – all those who requested photocopies of these letters received their requests after receiving them.
your
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
7.
— Content of the original message —
Subject: CONCERNING A GRANDFATHER WHO FOUGHT IN THE MANCHURIAN WAR
Date: Thu, 20 Sep 2012 19:47:11 +0200
From: Wiesława Proga <wiesia 291 @ wp.pl>
To: <dho@dho.com.pl>
Copy: Wiesława Proga <wiesia291 @ wp.pl>
Dear Sir, I currently have the same problem you had seven years ago. Unfortunately, I have no clue how to find my grandfather’s fate. Perhaps you currently know what sources I could use to find this information (institutes? archives? internet addresses?). If so, which ones? I would be very grateful for any information.
Regards,
Grzegorz Proga
6.
—– Original Message —–
From: Romuald Oziewicz
To: dho@dho.com.pl
Sent: Friday, June 18, 2010 2:53 PM
Subject: Charbin, Manchuria- POLONIA CHARBIŃSKA.
Good morning,
I came across this very interesting text. I was born in Harbin in 1950, and we were among the last to leave the Polish colony in September 1952.
I live in Szczecin, where the Charbińczyk Club has been operating for over 20 years, the president of which is Dr. Leonard Spychalski.
We work closely with the Pomeranian Library in Szczecin (Ms. Cecylia Judek).
I’m collecting materials about our Polish community in Harbin. If you could provide copies of these magazines, I’d be very grateful.
Best regards and I look forward to your reply.
Romuald Oziewicz
5.
—– Original Message —–
From: maria romanow
To: dho@dho.com.pl
Sent: Friday, October 19, 2007 6:43 PM
Subject: Information and request…
Dear Ladies and Gentlemen,
My name is Andrzej Romanow, a professor at the University of Szczecin, a press historian, and the author of books in this field. For some time now, I have been collecting materials on the history of the Polish press in Harbin. I would be extremely grateful if you would provide me with photocopies of the attached issues of “Listy Polskie z Daleiego Polskę” and “Echa Daleiego Polskę.” I will, of course, cover all costs associated with this.
Please accept my highest regards.
Andrew Romanov
4.-
—– Original Message —–
From: Witold Stańczuk
To: dho@dho.com.pl
Sent: Wednesday, October 19, 2005 6:41 AM
Subject: Manchuria 1905
Hello
Many thanks for posting at least some information from that period in Manchuria.
My family’s fate was also tied to Manchuria. My grandfather was conscripted and sent to Manchuria in 1904. Of course, he never returned from the Russian army—he remained there. Our grandmother and her children also left for Manchuria, but they returned around 1918.
We are currently collecting family documentation from that period.
If you have any information about Poles from the period 1904 – 1920, please provide a photocopy.
Many thanks.
3.-
From: Piotr Szczepaniak piotr.szczepaniak1 @ neostrada.pl
To: dho@dho.com.pl
Sent: Thursday, July 08, 2004 12:32 PM
Subject: Harbin
Hello,
I came across a website dedicated to a short remembrance of Mr. and Mrs. Uncle Wick and the artifacts he brought back from Harbin. I’m a journalist, currently working on a film reportage project from China—one of the main themes will be the history of the Polish community in Manchuria. I assume that the film—in addition to photos from Harbin and statements from people who may still remember life with Poles in this remote corner of the world—will also feature statements from living Harbin residents or their loved ones who have memorabilia, memories, notes, or photos…
Please contact me to exchange views. I would be grateful for any help in documenting this interesting and little-known topic.
Best regards,
Piotr Szczepaniak
2. –
#NATIONAL Gallery GA.PA
www.narodowa.pl
To: Maria Dybowska
Mrs. Maria, we are pleased to inform you that we already have in our possession the two Weeklies LETTERS POLSKIE FAR EAST (Charbin, No. 13/22 of 18.IX.1918 and No. 14/22 of 25.IX.1918) and the two Biweeklies ECHO FAR EAST (Tokyo, No. 6 of 1.J.1922 and No. 9 of 1.IV.1922), published simultaneously in Japanese.
We will be sending the copies for photocopying on Monday, 5.IV.2004 in the morning – so we believe they will be ready for collection at noon on that spring day.
1. –
Sent: Thursday, April 01, 2004 10:40 AM
Subject: Re: Poland
From: GA.PA Gallery
Mrs. Maria,
Hello and thank you for your email.
Of course, all these souvenirs are ready to be shared with others – this is the principle of the online gallery GA.PA
Tomorrow we’ll try to Xerox these extraordinary weeklies from Siberia – where should we deliver them!? Or maybe someone can pick them up at our office:
Software Department ,
ul. Żeromskiego 4a apt. 13,
01-861 Warsaw,
8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. (but tomorrow after 10:00 a.m. because the Xerox needs to be Xeroxed).
Greetings, and we would like to inform you that these online galleries have something in common with our friends – also ethnographers – e.g. Wojtek Dąbrowski from Australia, Marek Bogatek from Australia (a traveler, he was also associated with the Asia and
Pacific Museum), etc.
Cordial greetings,
Tadeusz ‘Max’ Wysocki
www.narodowa.pl
—
—– Original Message —–
From: “Maria Dybowska” <mardyb8 @ wp.pl >
To: <dho@dho.com.pl >
Sent: Wednesday, March 31, 2004 5:13 PM
Subject: Poland
mardyb8 @ wp.pl I happen to be writing a piece about Harbin and Polish traces. I deal with Siberia in general, and not only that.
