September is a special month in Polish history, associated with the tragic events of 1939. September 1 and 17 are the dates that remind us of the German and Soviet aggression of Poland marking the beginning of World War II. For hundreds of thousands of families, it was a prelude to suffering and deportation to Siberia.
The Lewandowicz family is an example of those who faced the drama of war. In 1913, Stanisława Andruszkiewicz married Józef Bolesław Lewandowicz. They lived in the Łódź Voivodeship, leading a peaceful life until the outbreak of war. Six of their children were born there: Józef (born and died in 1912), Antonina (born and died in 1913), Elżbieta (born in 1918), Hanna (born in 1922), Zofia (born in 1922), and Helena (born in 1926). In 1929, the family moved to Wilejka Powiatowa in the Vilnius Voivodeship, where their son, Jan, was born in the following year. In 1936, the eldest daughter, Elżbieta, married Jan Niechajczyk.
Some of the items presented at the exhibition such as the pocket watch, medal ‘For participating in the Defense War of 1939’, Grunwald Badge, and ID cards belong to Jan Niechajczyk.
Jan Niechajczyk fought as an uhlan in the Polish Campaign and was taken prisoner by the Soviets. Luckily he managed to escape quickly. Along with his wife and young sons, Andrzej (born in 1939) and Ryszard (born in 1940), he reached the then-independent Republic of Lithuania, so that they avoided Soviet deportation. Unfortunately, the rest of the family was not so lucky. In early October 1939, the Soviets arrested Józef Lewandowicz and sent him to a labor camp. Although he was released in September 1941, his fate afterward remains unknown.
After her husband’s arrest, Stanisława and the children were deported to Kazakhstan, where she died the beginning of 1942. Meanwhile, a friend of Józef Lewandowicz, Stanisław Bukład, who had also been deported to the East, found the orphans and helped them escape to Persia with Anders’ Army. After all, the Lewandowicz siblings made their way to Palestine and, after the war, to the United Kingdom. The story of this family, like many others, is marked with the pain of separation, exile, and loss.
The exhibits presented as part of the ‘Exhibit of the Month’ series are not just objects – these are the symbols of incredibly difficult experiences that Poles had to face. The photographs, medals, and badges remind us of individual stories that make up one great story.
The Lewandowicz family’s mementos can be seen at the Sybir Memorial Museum until the end of September. They are located in a glass display case on the first floor, next to the museum shop.
