Polish-American
Heritage
in
Polish Heritage Festival, 2004 ; Polish Heritage Festival, Inc.
BACKGROUND
The Polish influence in
By
1940, there were 76,465 Western New Yorkers of Polish stock, and in the 1990s
a great number of people from this area claim to be of some Polish descent. Many of them still live in the areas of the city that
their grandparents and parents first settled: Broadway-Filmore,
Clinton-Bailey, Black Rock, and
The Polish Community Center, 1081 Broadway, Buffalo, NY 14214 [
The
Holy Mother of the Rosary Polish National Cathedral, 6298 Broadway,
St. Adalbert's
Basilica,
St. John Kanty
Roman Catholic Church, 101 Swinburne,
St. Casimir Roman Catholic
Church,
Corpus Christi Roman Catholic Church,
Assumption Roman Catholic Church,
St. Francis Conventual
Friary,
Bridge at Black Rock (over the
PLACES TO
Polish Villa,
Broadway Market, 999 Broadway,
PLACES TO
Tradition Travel,
A Polish-American travel agency that sells
Polish books and gifts. Also houses the studio of Polonia Varieties, WHLD.
Broadway Market, 999 Broadway,
Polish specialty shops at the Market include:
MEATS
Camellia Meats
Malczewski Poultry
BAKERY
EM Chrusciki
SPECIALTY SHOP
Cards & Gifts
PRODUCE
Famous Horseradish
Lewandowski Produce
Broadway Market at Easter ã Fish/NFFA
LIBRARIES
Adam Mickiewicz
Library & Dramatic Circle,
The Dramatic Circle was organized and began
producing amateur theatricals in 1895. The library
contains over 4,000 volumes and over 400 hand-written scripts for Polish plays. The building serves as a social center as well.
The Polish Room, Lockwood Library, SUNY
The Fronczak
Room,
The collection was donated to Buffalo State
College by the Fronczak Family. The
bulk of materials documents Francis Fronczak whose extensive career included national work with
the Polish relief efforts in WWI & II, and his 35-year tenure as
Commissioner of Health in
Franciscan Sisters of
The Sisters maintain a
Felician Sisters Archives, Immaculate Heart of
Buffalo & Erie County Public Library, Fronczak Branch, 1080 Broadway,
Buffalo, NY 14212
SPECIAL EVENTS
Polish Heritage Festival
The Polish Heritage Festival, held in June,
serves to promote Polish culture and traditions. It also highlights
Polish-American organizations and provides college scholarships.
The Festival serves as a family-oriented gathering place that both Poles and
non-Poles can enjoy. It offers an excellent opportunity for Polish
entertainers, artists, and crafters to perform in front of a large audience.
It also gives Polish-American organizations and vendors an opportunity to
showcase their talents and services.
For more information,
Web Site: www.polfunfest.com
Phone: (716) 998-2501
E-Mail: james@polfunfest.com
POLISH-AMERICAN ARTS FESTIVAL
The
Festival takes place the third weekend in August with food, traditional crafts,
workshops, and entertainment. For more information, call the
ALSO OF INTEREST
Radio Shows
++ "Music Played in Poland Today" airs on Sunday from 1:00 to 2:00 PM on WJJL (1440 AM).
++ Some of the local polka shows are:
"Drive Time Polkas" with Ron Dombrowski on Monday through Saturday from 5:00 to 7:00 PM on WXRL (1300 AM) and on Sunday from 8:00 to 11:00 AM on WECK (1230 AM);
"Polkamotion" with Greg Chowjdak on Sunday from noon to 3:00 PM on WXRL (1300 AM);
"Stephanie's Polka Show" on Sunday from 7:00 to 8:00 PM on WXRL (1300 AM);
"Rockin' Polkas" with Mike Pasierb on Saturday from 2:00 to 3:00 PM and Sunday from 9:00 to 10:00 PM on WXRL (1300 AM);
"Tony Rozek's Polka Show" on Sunday from 5:00 to 7:00 PM on WJJL (1440 AM);
"Polka Show" with Chet Kozlowski on Sunday from 10:00 AM to 12 noon on WDOE (1410 AM).
++ The Father Justin Rosary Hour
is the oldest Polish language radio program of a religious nature in the
Newspapers and Periodicals
Am-Pol Eagle,
Polish American Journal,
Kronika,
Komunikat,
Polish Union of America News, 745 Center Road, West Seneca, NY
14224-2108 [(716)
CLUBS
Chopin
Singing Society [
I. J.
Paderewski Singing Society,
Polish
Singers
Quo Vadis Choir,
Villa Maria
Choir,
St. Hyacinth's
Men's Choir was founded in 1946 at
a
Polish Arts Club,
Polish
Genealogical Society of New York State,
Kalina Singing Society,
DISTINGUISHED POLISH-AMERICANS
Jozef Mazur (1897-1970)
was born in a Galician family in 1897. He studied at
the
Other famous Polish-American artists are sculptor Louis Dlugosz of Lackawanna; Joseph Bakos, a painter of western landscapes; Joseph Slawinski, scrafitto artist and sculptor; Marion M. Rzeznik, an ecclesiastical painter of numerous Western New York churches; and architect Joseph E. Fronczak.
IMPORTANT EVENTS IN
1.
2.
3. Seat of the Buffalo-Pittsburgh diocese of
the Polish National Catholic Church is Holy Mother of the Rosary Cathedral in
4.
5. The Catholic League for Religious
Assistance to
6. The Polish Baptist
Church movement originated in
7.
8.
9. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo observed
CONTRIBUTORS
Michael Drabick
Pat Monaghan
Antoinette Mucilli
Nancy Piatkowski
Wanda Slawinska
Polish Union of America
DECEMBER 2007
This HERITAGE SHEET is one
of a series originally prepared by the Western New York DOCUMENTARY HERITAGE PROGRAM (DHP). The DHP was established by
law in 1988. It
is a statewide program designed to locate, organize, and make available the
state's historical records that are critical to ensuring the survival of
Other "Heritage Sheets" available from the DHP: African-American; Hispanic/Latino-American; Irish-American; and Italian-American (available in the future).
For more information on the DHP, contact:
Documentary Heritage Program
If you have corrections for or suggestions regarding this Polish-American heritage sheet, please contact:
Photographs courtesy of the
c/o Department of Anthropology
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