Summary

Wojciech Batura

Construction of the Augustów Canal
in the light of contemporary press and publications

Preliminary research on construction of the Augustów Canal – the biggest communications investment of the Congress Kingdom of pre-uprising Poland - conducted in the Warsaw central press, produced quite meagre effects. Occasional notes were found, which made it possible to clarify findings coming from other sources. Preliminary research into announcements made by the Canal Boards of Directors in an official gazette and research into requests directed to the Mayor of the town of Augustów for their verbal publication brought much more information about the progress of works and their organization. Although they are not complete sources, thanks to them, however, it was possible to reconstruct the construction chronicle, as well as reveal social problems the construction had caused.

Elena Michajlowna Bukreeva

The Karcovs – Russian owners of the Dowspuda ententailed estate

The Karcov family appeared in Poland in 1865, when Siergiey Nikolayevich Karcov became chairman of the Commission for Peasantry Affairs in Lomza, and a year later – the chairman of the Legislative Commission of Civil Department at the Managing Committee in Warsaw in the Kingdom of Poland. In 1871 and 1873, for his services at those posts, his heirs received farms of Szkocja and Dowspuda and part of the Szczebra farm in the Suwalki Guberniya. The Karcovs stayed in Dowspuda from time to time, and only between the years 1892 and 1911 they stayed there permanently. On the basis of Yuriy S. Karcov’s memoirs, his correspondence and other documents the author presents Yuriy Karcov’s and his wife’s activities during their stay in Dowspuda. She also describes fates of his descendants living in the USA and Norway.

Stanislaw Cieslukowski

Villages of Zielone Królewskie and Zielone Drugie near Suwalki,
their origins, development and inhabitants

On the basis of archival documents and also accounts of oldest inhabitants the author recreated the history of the villages mentioned in the title. He devoted a lot of space to the history of the last century,paying particular attention to the influence World War II had on the fate of the villages and their inhabitants. The article is supplemented with a list of the most distinguished residents.

Andrzej Matusiewicz

Chairmen of Augustów Province Commission and Augustów governors
in the years 1816–1866

Augustów Province ( Augustów Guberniya from 1837) functioned in the years 1816-1865. Chairmen of the Province Commission headed the civil authorities (until 1837), and later the authorities were headed by civil governors. In the period described, 12 people performed the function.

The author describes the group and presents short biographies of the chairmen and governors. Information on their competences, principles of their appointment and taking up office by them complements the article.

Marcin Zwolski

Celebrations of patriotic national holidays at the Oak of Freedom in Suwalki
in the years 1980–1989

In the years 1980–1989, the surroundings of the Oak of Freedom growing in the present 3rd May Constitution Park in Suwalki were a place of patriotic, anti-communist demonstrations. Maciej Butkiewicz and the environment of independent youth paper called “Ława” were their initiators. The first demonstration was held on 11 November 1980. On the basis of recollections and documents stored at the Institute of National Remembrance the author describes in great detail consecutive celebrations at the Oak of Freedom held until martial law was declared in December 1981, and later, until 1989.

Józefa Drozdowska

Private chapel in the Tajenko manor house

In the middle of the 18th century,on the Tajenko farm, there was a private manor house chapel.

It was probably founded by Anna Rostkowska, maiden name Swiderska, who managed the estate then. After her death in 1811, a new owner changed the chapel into a store-house.

Łukasz Faszcza

Administration of villages in the Kingdom of Poland in the1820s
on the example of villages in Barglów Koscielny Parish

During the Prussian rule, and later, during the Duchy of Warsaw and early days of the Kingdom of Poland, attempts were made to introduce transformations in government-owned demesnes. They mainly came down to rentification of peasants. The process got stronger in the 1820s.

Jacek Jaworski

Insurrectionary artillery in Podlasie and Lithuania in 1863

During the 1863 uprising, the Polish side did not have a regular army at its disposal, which explained its poor weaponry. The lack of artillery was felt the most acute. Production of wooden cannons was one of the ways of dealing with the problem. The author estimates that there were at least 8 wooden cannons in insurrectionary troops in Lithuania. This number corresponded to a battery in a regular army.

Jaroslaw Marczak

Veterans of the January Uprising in Suwalszczyzna

Veterans of the January Uprising enjoyed a special respect and esteem in the Second Republic of Poland. On the strength of order by Józef Pilsudski, apart from the right to wear a uniform, they were promoted to second lieutenant rank, and officers from the uprising times were promoted to a rank higher. They were also granted a permanent salary. The article recounts profiles of nearly 50 veterans of the uprising in Suwalszczyzna.

Marcin Markiewicz

Remarks on obligatory delivery of agricultural commodities
in the County of Suwalki (1950–1956)

In 1950, the communist authorities burdened farmers with a scheduled buying of grain, and in later years, with obligatory deliveries of other agricultural commodities (slaughter animals, milk, potatoes). The author describes a variety of insults and repressions applied by the authorities to force farmers to carry out deliveries, and the ways the farmers used to avoid them. This situation lasted until the October breakthrough in 1956. Despite peasants’ demands, the obligatory deliveries were not abolished, but only limited a little. On 1 January 1957 obligatory deliveries of milk, grain, pigs and potatoes, and the purchase prices were raised. Fiscal burdens of farmers were reduced, favourable regulations concerning procurement contracts, increase in credits, agricultural banking and purchase prices were introduced. Obligatory deliveries of agricultural commodities were done away with completely only as of 1 January 1972.

Tomasz Naruszewicz

Originally Dauspuda, Douspuda, next Dowspuda and Rospuda

In the whole period of the First Republic of Poland the present Rospuda was known as Douspuda. The change of the form Douspuda for Dowspuda was brought about by the influence of both the Russian and Polish languages. The term Douspuda was linguitically alien to Slavic population, thus, with time, the form written with “w” became fixed. It can be assumed that taking into consideration the 16th and 17th centuries, the Balt form Douspuda should be used. Also, it would not be a mistake to use it with reference to the 18th century.

Finally, the name Rospuda began to be universally used in the 19th century. The author of the article describes the process of metamorphosis of the original name on the basis of rich and varied sources.

Jaroslaw Szlaszynski

Struggle for recovery of church, painting and establishing
of Blessed Virgin of Czestochowa Parish

The Colonel Boleslaw Moscicki 1st Cavalry Regiment of Krechowiecki (=Borderland) Uhlans was closely connected with Augustów in the inter-war period. In the area of its barracks there was a garrison church. After World War II, there were no “Krechowiaks” (the name was used for the uhlans from the Regiment) left, and the church was used as a warehouse until 1957. After the buildings had been taken over by Church, attempts to re-establish the parish began. It took place in 1980. Bringing back one of two gracious images of the Blessed Virgin of Czestochowa – Blessed Virgin of Krechowiaki was another intention of the faithful. This article is about all those efforts, until 1984, making use of rich archival records.