Bronisław Zbigniew Bulkowski papers

Identifier
irn565715
Language of Description
English
Alt. Identifiers
  • 2018.555.1
Level of Description
Item
Languages
  • German
  • Polish
  • English
Source
EHRI Partner

Extent and Medium

folders

oversize box

6

1

Creator(s)

Biographical History

Bronisław Zbigniew Bulkowski (later Bruce, 1920-1996) was born in Ostrowiec, Poland to Wladyslaw Bulkowski and Zofia Noach and was raised Roman Catholic. Bronisław had seven siblings; Zdzisław (Wies d. 1997), Adam, Janek (d. 1999), Helena, Jadwiza, Antonia, and Irena. Bronisław was conscripted as a forced laborer to the German National Railway Authorities (Deutsche Reichsbahn) in Altena, Germany between 1942 and 1945. After the war, he worked as a displaced person in the Kassel and Grohn DP camps in Germany for the United States Army. Bronisław married Wanda and had four sons; David (b. 1954), Richard (b. 1955), Thomas (b. 1957), and James.

Archival History

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Acquisition

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of the Bulkowski family

The Bronisław Zbigniew Bulkowski papers were donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2018 by the Bulkowski family.

Scope and Content

The Bronisław Zbigniew Bulkowski papers consist of biographical material, correspondence, a diary, photographs, and documents relating to the experiences of Bronisław Bulkowski, a Roman Catholic man, as a forced laborer for the German National Railway Authorities (Deutsche Reichsbahn) in Altena, Germany between 1942 and 1945. The collection also includes documents and photographs relating to his post-war experiences as a displaced person working for the United States Army in the Kassel and Grohn DP camps in Germany. Biographical material includes an original and a copy of Bronisław’s report card from 1938, his school ID, a certificate to certify that Bronisław attended a class in Americanization, and a certificate of literacy from the University of the State of New York. Correspondence includes letters from Helena through the Red Cross regarding the health of their family, post-war letters written to Bronisław and Bruce from family members, and letters written to Wanda Bulkowski after her husband’s death. The diary was kept by Bronisław from January 31, 1942 to May 11, 1946. In the diary Bronisław writes about other forced laborers and the abuse they endured, provides descriptions of digging a tunnel, working all night, the lack of food, and overpriced bread, and describes accidents that injured and killed other laborers. Displaced persons camps material includes identification cards, discharge paperwork, certificates of screening, and certificates of good conduct relating to Bronisław’s work as a displaced person for the United States Army at the Kassel DP camp and well as a copy of Bronisław’s identification card and certificates of work from the International Refugee Organization. The collection also contains a wartime log which includes a forced labor patch, sketches and drawings, photographs, and entries, dated 1948.

System of Arrangement

The Bronisław Zbigniew Bulkowski papers are arranged as a single series.

People

Corporate Bodies

Subjects

This description is derived directly from structured data provided to EHRI by a partner institution. This collection holding institution considers this description as an accurate reflection of the archival holdings to which it refers at the moment of data transfer.