The team of the Piaśnica Museum in Wejherowo on the National Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the German Crime in Pomerania in 1939, October 2, 2024.
Bottom row, from left: Maciej Kurpiewski, Dr. Magdalena Sacha – Director of the Piaśnica Museum, Piotr Tarnowski – Director of the Stutthof Museum in Sztutowo, Katarzyna Bieszke, Dariusz Bąkowski;
Top row, from left: Lucyna Kurpiewska, Izabela Bukowska, Stanisław Skierka, Janusz Kalkowski.
What is the Mission of the Piaśnica Museum?
To serve the present and the future by preserving and presenting evidence of the tragic past collected at the Piaśnica Museum, a branch of the Stutthof Museum. To disseminate knowledge about the lives of the victims of the Pomeranian crimes, including in particular the Piaśnica crime, preserved in the memory of future generations. To serve history and its increasingly younger audiences.
The History of the Piaśnica Museum
The Piaśnica Museum was established in December 2015 as a branch of the Stutthof Museum in Sztutowo, at the request of the “Piaśnica Family” Association in Wejherowo. Through its collections and exhibitions, our institution tells the story of the prosperity of Gdynia in the Second Polish Republic and the martyrdom of the inhabitants of Gdańsk Pomerania during World War II, in particular the German crimes committed in the Piaśnica Forests in 1939-1940. The museum collects evidence of the crimes and memorabilia of the victims, implementing a historical policy of commemorating the so-called Pomeranian crime. The victims of the Piaśnica crime were Poles and Kashubians – local elites, builders of Gdynia, as well as mentally ill people, transported from psychiatric institutions in Germany, and members of national minorities considered opponents of the Nazi regime.
The Piaśnica Museum is located in the former villa of the Panek family. The purchase of the building in 2015 (PLN 2.4 million) and its renovation in 2017-2023 (approx. PLN 26 million) were made possible by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage as part of an investment project entitled “Extension, reconstruction, and adaptation of the Villa Musica building, including the construction of a permanent exhibition and development of the site for the permanent headquarters of the Piaśnica Museum in Wejherowo at 6 Ofiar Piaśnicy Street.”
The content of the permanent exhibition was developed by eminent historians of Pomerania and museum staff. The permanent exhibition, opened in August 2023, was created by Group AV using state-of-the-art multimedia solutions. At the Piaśnica Museum, we cherish the memory of the victims and highlight the responsibility of the perpetrators of the crime.
