The Polish diaspora in the Alsace region. Photographed for posterity

Photographs that illustrate the history of Polish emigration
 

As material records of life among the Polish diaspora, photographs form an important part of the archive stock of the Polish Catholic Mission in France. If we regard photographs as being witnesses to the past, then the documents surrounding the life of the Polish diaspora in the Alsace region and the story of the Polish migrants in the Bassin Potassique turn out to be a particularly interesting case. As a source of information, these images are of incalculable value. However, in-depth research that takes into account both their technical and historical value is yet to be conducted. Such an analysis of the photographs requires a differentiated methodological approach. With regard to the content, the images can be divided into five categories: artistic, reportage, documentation, scientific and family photographs. Each of these categories requires different research tools and an individual analytical approach. As a result, researchers always need to adjust their methods to the specific characteristics of the documents in question. The photographs, which document life among the Polish migrant community in the potash basin in the Alsace region, are a source of invaluable knowledge. However, in order to analyse these materials, researchers need not only a comprehensive knowledge of historical events, but also a certain sensibility with regard to the socio-cultural context. This enables us to understand how the identity of the Polish diaspora in the Alsace was developed and what challenges the local community faced when it came to integration.[5] 

The author of this article has also conducted a considerable number of studies on the importance of photographs of the Polish diaspora, the story of Polish emigration and Polish pastoral care abroad, the results of which have appeared in numerous publications.[6] 

The subjects of the photographs
 

The life of the Polish diaspora in France has been recorded in numerous photographs, which document the activities of Polish groups and associations. The story of how these groups originated and their spontaneous, truly dynamic development, are typical of quite a number of centres of Polish migration in France. The archive documents show that a number of factors contributed to their creation and development, particularly during the period immediately following immigration. The entirely unfamiliar surroundings, the lack of language skills, which made it harder to establish contact with the local population, combined with the large number of Poles living in France, all produced a need among the newcomers to join together with their fellow countrymen and create some semblance of home in the foreign environment. The associations also offered spiritual and practical support for all kinds of problems faced by the fresh arrivals in their new home. From this perspective, they were created in response to the very real, urgent social needs of the Polish diaspora. The Archive of the Polish Catholic Mission contains photographs of “patriotic-religious ceremonies” that took place among the Polish community in France. A separate set of images documents Polish districts and churches and chapels in France. Some of the photographs show sacred buildings.[7]

A further group of files included in the photographic documentation consists of images of Poles who emigrated to France after 1919 for economic reasons. After the end of the First World War, there was an urgent need for labourers in France, particularly in the mining sector. This led to a search for labourers from abroad, including from Poland, which had only recently become independent, and from Westphalia, where a large number of “Ruhr Poles” lived at the time. Sources show that many Poles answered the call to come and work in France. The archive documents contain the following account: “They packed their few belongings into a small wooden crate, went to confession before starting out on their long journey, said goodbye to their loved ones, and set off... They travelled to where there was work to be found with the idea of securing a living, earning a bit more money and returning to their homeland a few years later.”[8]

Anyone who is interested in photographs of the Polish community in France will be familiar with the name Kasimir Zgorecki (1904–1980). Here, one book in particular deserves attention, which was published by the Musée du Louvre-Lens following an exhibition of his work. In 1922, Kasimir Zgorecki, who was born in Recklinghausen in Westphalia, moved with his family from the Ruhr region to France in order to work in the Pas-de-Calais coal mining region. At that time, he was 18 years old. In 1924, he took over the photo studio run by his brother-in-law in Rouvroy and began to work among the Polish diaspora in northern France. He took on various different jobs, from passport photos to photographs of events and official functions within the Polish community. These photographs, which have only recently been rediscovered by the artist’s family, are a unique record of the life of the Polish diaspora.[9]