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TO CREATORS OF THE BIALOWIEZA NATIONAL PARK thanks to their commitment & visionary imagination the great forests of Bialowieza have survived - THANK YOU!
JÓZEF KONRAD PACZOSKI (1864-1942)
A botanist, explorer of the Bialowieza Forest flora, creator
of pantopism theory and fundamentals of phytosociology, professor
of the Poznan University, member of the Polish Academy of Science.
From 1877 he studied botany at the Cracow University & Kiev University
under supervision of Iwan Fiodorowicz Schmalhausen. After graduation he
established as the first one in the world - the Institute of Plant Sociology
at the Poznan University. Regarded as the creator of the term: phytosociology.
In November 1923 he became the scientific director of nature reserves in the
Bialowieza Forest. He carried out large-scale research on the local flora.
He included the results in his work "The forests of Bialowieza" published in
1930. He is the author of the first vascular plants herbarium of the Bialowieza
Forest and co-author of the forest museum. Moreover he kept struggling to
legally grant the reserve prestige of an independent scientific centre.
In 1925 he became a full professor of the plant taxonomy & sociology at
the Poznan University. In 1928 he was dismissed from the post of the forest
district manager, and in 1931 due to political reasons he lost the chair
of his university department. He died of heart attack after receiving bad
news ( his son was beaten by Gestapo). He was buried at the Cemetery
of Distinguished Inhabitants of Great Poland in Poznan.
WŁADYSŁAW SZAFER (1886-1970)
A Polish botanist, professor UJ(Jagiellonian University)-
from 1936 to1938 the vice-chancellor of UJ, the director of
the Cracow Botanical Garden, for many years director of the
Botany Institute at UJ. When during German occupation the institute
was turned into the German post "Botanische Anstalten", dismissed
from his position Władysław Szafer performed the function of the
vice-chancellor of clandestine UJ. After the war he once again took
a post of the Institute director and at the same time from 1953 he was
the creator and director of the Unit(today-the Instiute) of PAN Botany.
A member of PAU & PAN, honorary member of the International Union of
Nature Protection & its Resources. His duties included nature conservation,
floristics, paleobotany, plant geography. He was the author of the Polish
paleobotanical school, co-author of Polish national parks, initiator of bringing
in European bisons from Sweden to the Bialowieza Forest, he took part in forming
the International Office of Nature Conservation in Brussels, transformed later
into the World Union of Nature Conservation. Author of circa 700 publications,
from which 473 titles concern conservation.
JAN JERZY KARPIŃSKI (1896-1965)
Since early childhood he was fascinated by insects, especially their biology,
instinct and habits. In VII grade of secondary school for doing well in studies,
entomological & all-natural knowledge he was admitted as a participant of a big
nature expedition to Siberia & Japan. And one year later he took part in an
expedition to Caucas, Turkiestan & Buchara. During both expeditions he was a
custodian of obtained natural collections. After graduation from secondary
school in 1915 he enrolled in a famous forest school - The Forest Institute
in Petersburg where he was on scientific placement. He met his future wife
Anna there. He got a diploma, which he nostrificated in SGGW in Warsaw. Since
1919 he was working in the state forests administration: at first as a clerk's
assistant in the Ministry of Agriculture & State Properties, then as a forester
and forest district manager. At the same time he was the deputy manager and a
zoology& forest conservation teacher in the Forester School in Zagorze.
In 1928 he took up a post of the manager(of forest district)in the Forestry
Commission "Reserve"(currently the Bialowieza National Park). Apart from
work concerning forest preservation & conservation, in the Forestry prof.
Karpinski organized the first systematic scientific research. As the director
of the National Park in Bialowieza, until the outbreak of war, professor
Karpinski organized in the park: a scientific library, a Park laboratory,
the Biology Laboratory for protected animals' service & breeding and hunting
needs. And finally the Museum of Nature & Forest where he collected works on
forest beekeeping and also exhibit items on the subject of zoology & botany.
From 1929 professor Karpiński was in charge of the Forester School as well
as of folk industry institution. He was working on the restoration of
bisons & bears in the Bialowieza Forest. Professor Karpiński was carrying
out systematic scientific research. In 1933 he published his doctoral
dissertation:"The Fauna of woodworms in the Bialowieza Forest in comparison
with the types of treestands occuring in the forest". He got a doctoral
degree at the Lwow Technical University. In 1939 he was evacuated to Vilnius.
Until autumn 1944 he worked on a farm in the village Rezgi near Kiejdany.
In October 1944 he returned to his position of the Park Director & Manager
of the branch of the Forest Research Institute. In 1947 he habilitated at
the University of Maria Curie Sklodowska in Lublin and became associate
professor in the Insitution of Animal Ecology. Since 1952 prof. Karpiński
was working in Warsaw as a senior researcher in the Forest Research Institute.
His dream was working in the field, therefore he often stayed in a new
research area which became the second love of his life- in the Fir Forest
of the Swietokrzyski National Park. Many times prof. Karpiński was awarded
with high state decorations such as: Commander's Cross, Knight's Cross of
The Order of Polonia Restituta and Medal of 10th Anniversary of the Polish
People's Republic. Prof. Karpiński was a member of many organizations
e.g.: the PAN Forest Sciences Committee, Science & Technology Council
at the Ministry of Forestry & Timber Industry, the Polish Entomology
Association. He died on 16 XI 1965 in Warsaw at the age of 69. He was
buried at the Powiazki Cemetery.
AUGUST GUSTAW DEHNEL (1903-1962)
A zoologist & anatomist. Professor UMCS in Lublin from 1951, the
PAN member from 1958. Organizer & manager (1954-1962) of the PAN Mammal
Research Institute in Bialowieza. The Chairman of Scientific Council of
the Bialowieza National Park(1957-1962). He was working on comparative anatomy
of small mammals, nature conservation, comparative embryology of birds & mammals,
teratology and research on interspecies cross-breedings e.g. bison with farm
cattle. He conducted research on biology of goshawk & peregrine falcon(1939),
works connected with beaver protection in the river basin of
Niemno & Prypec(1938-1939). During German occupation he was imprisoned,
in the POW(prisoner of war) camp in Gross-Born (Borne-Sulinowo) from 1939
to 1945 he was giving lectures in biology. Outstanding educator and scientific
research popularizer. He was interested in falconry. He translated "Life of
Animals" by A. Brehm(1936) into Polish. Author of several scientific works.
HUGO CONVENTZ (1855-1922)
An outstanding German paleobotanist and archaeologist, director of nature
museum in Gdansk. Thanks to him in 1906 the Office of Nature Oddity Protection
An outstanding German paleobotanist and archaeologist, director of nature
museum in Gdansk. Thanks to him in 1906 the Office of Nature Oddity Protection
was established in Prussia. When his countrymen hurried to build sawmills in
order to obtain wood from the Bialowieza Forest, he cruised between Bialowieza
and Berlin struggling to save the most valuable nook of the Bialowieza
Forest "hidden in arms" of the rivers Narweka & Hwozna. His efforts were
successful and German administration started to form an intensive bison
protection and excluded from clearing a future "German" nature park: natural
treestands near the small river Orlowka.
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