Camp Kościuszko: The Polish Army at Niagara Camp
An introduction to the Polish training camp that was in Niagara-on-the-Lake from 1917-1919.
By Niagara-on-the-Lake Museum
Niagara-on-the-Lake Museum
From 1915 to 1916, some 37,000 people trained at Niagara Camp in Niagara-on-the-Lake for service during the First World War. In 1917, recruitment dropped off and the camp sat vacant.
In September 1917, Niagara Camp became the location of a training facility known as Camp Kosciuszko. Between October 1917 and March 1919, 22, 395 Polish Americans were trained so that they could help free their country, which had been occupied by neighbouring forces since 1795.
History of Poland
Poland's aggressive neighbouring empires—Russia, Prussia and Austria-Hungary— divided the country amongst themselves, which caused many Poles to leave their homeland.
Many of Poles that fled their country for the United States saw the First World War as an opportunity to reclaim their homeland, which had been occupied for 123 years.
Sanctioning aPolish Army
In June 1917, the French, who were desperate for more fighting men, announced that they would form and finance a Polish Army. Canada agreed to train these men, and by September 1917, the US President, Woodrow Wilson allowed Polish Americans to be recruited for this army.
Recruitment
Ignacy Paderewski, a leading supporter of Polish independence, envisioned an army of 100,000 men to be recruited from the Polish immigrants living in the United States. To inspire the Poles, Paderewski’s speeches exploited the memory of Tadeusz Kościuszko, a Polish-born patriot who had provided outstanding service under George Washington during the American Revolutionary War. The training camp was named after Kościuszko.
The Polish Falcons
Many of the recruits were members of the Polish Falcons, a paramilitary organization operating in the US. When war broke out in 1914. Without the Falcon's participation and organized military training prior to the First World War, the Polish Army in France may never have existed.
Major Antoni Wiącek Polish Falcons Instructors CertificateNiagara-on-the-Lake Museum
This certificate was issued to Antoni Wiącek in Philadelphia on September 14, 1912. This course was designed to create military instructors to train future officers of the Polish Army. Antoni was one of several Polish Falcon instructors who attended Camp Kościusko.
Major Antoni Wiącek Polish Falcons DiplomaNiagara-on-the-Lake Museum
Antoni Wiącek was awarded this diploma at one of the sports competitions held by the Falcons Nests of Eastern America in July of 1911.
Polish Falcons Alliance of America Belt BuckleNiagara-on-the-Lake Museum
Polish Falcons Alliance of America Belt Buckle.
In December 1916, before the Polish Army was sanctioned, 23 men from the Polish Falcons, came to Canada and were trained as officers at the School of Infantry at the University of Toronto. The graduates of this program helped train the recruits at Camp Kościuszko.
Canadian Officers’ Training Corps Certificate of Military QualificationsNiagara-on-the-Lake Museum
Lucjan Chwałkowski's Canadian Officers' Training Corps Certificate of Military Qualification.
Recruiting a Polish Army
Americans of Polish nationality, not subject to conscription in the American Expeditionary Force, were able to be recruited to the Polish Army. Recruitment was coordinated by the American National Department of the Polish Central Relief Committee’s Polish Military Commission.
The first 10 recruitment centres were in cities with large Polish populations. The ideal age of recruitment was between 18 and 31, but records show that some as old as 66 enlisted. By January 1918, there were approximately 47 recruitment centres across the United States.
The Falcons recruited a majority of the over 20,000 men who went to Europe as part of the Polish Army in France. This is an example of a recruitment form that was completed.
Recruitment centres also opened in Canada in cities like Toronto, Montreal, and Winnipeg, and in smaller Polish communities like Wilno/Barry’s Bay in Renfrew County. About 221 of the Polish volunteers were from Canada.
Paul Coulas
Paul Coulas was born near Barry’s Bay, Ontario, a Polish Community in Ontario. In 1918, he enlisted in the Polish Army. Here, Paul is wearing his "Blue Army" uniform in France.
Image courtesy of the Polish Kashub Heritage Museum.
Blue Army Uniform Tunic and CzapkaNiagara-on-the-Lake Museum
Paul Coulas' Blue Army Uniform.
From November 11, 2017 until November 15, 2018, Camp Kosciuszko: The Polish Army at Niagara Camp, 1917-1919 was on display at the Niagara Niagara-on-the-Lake Museum. This exhibition could not have been possible without the co- curators: Shawna Butts, Dr. Richard Merritt, and members of the Polonia Canadian Institute for Historical Studies, Andazej Kawka and Roman Baraniecki.
Images are courtesy of: The Polish Amy Veterans Association of America, Inc. Archives, New York; Carol Baggot-Forte; Andazej Kawka; The University of Toronto Archives; the Polish Falcons of America; the Polish Kashub Heritage Museum; the Polonia Canadian Institute for Historical Studies; and the Niagara-on-the-Lake Museum.
