Franciszek Januszewski (November 23, 1886 – June 10, 1953) was a

Polish-American Polish Americans () are Americans who either have total or partial Polish ancestry, or are citizens of the Republic of Poland. There are an estimated 8.81 million self-identified Polish Americans, representing about 2.67% of the U.S. population, ...

social activist and the publisher of Detroit's ''Dziennik Polski''. He was also one of the founders of the

Józef Piłsudski Institute of America The Józef Piłsudski Institute of America (full name: Józef Piłsudski Institute of America for Research in the Modern History of Poland) is a museum and research center devoted to the study of modern Polish history and named after the Polish in ...

and its president twice (1943–44 and 1951–53).

Before World War II

Born on November 23, 1886, in

Łomża Łomża () is a city in north-eastern Poland, approximately to the north-east of Warsaw and west of Białystok. It is situated alongside the Narew river as part of the Podlaskie Voivodeship. It is the capital of Łomża County and has been the se ...

, Januszewski became active in the

Polish Socialist Party The Polish Socialist Party (, PPS) is a democratic socialist political party in Poland. It was one of the most significant parties in Poland from its founding in 1892 until its forced merger with the communist Polish Workers' Party to form ...

in 1905 and, fearing arrest, had to immigrate to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

two years later. He joined the local "Sokół" club in

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

, where he finished the

Business College A business college is a school that provides education above the high school level but could not be compared to that of a traditional university or college. Unlike universities and even junior and community colleges, business colleges typically ...

. In 1912, he moved to Detroit and became active in the Polish National Defense Committee in Chicago. In 1913. Januszewski started working for ''Dziennik Polski'' in Detroit as an advertising agent. He eventually became the owner of the journal in 1930 and largely contributed to its expansion.

Social Activism

After the outbreak of World War II, he worked for the cause of Polish independence. He was one of the initiators of New York's Józef Piłsudski Polish National Defense Committee (1942). He served as vice-president and president of the National Committee of Americans of Polish Extraction (KNAPP) until 1946. He co-organized and led the Organizational Committee of the

and became the first president of the Institute, serving in 1943–1944. Elected president once again in 1951, he fulfilled the function until his sudden death two years later on June 10, 1953.

Bibliography

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Biogram Franciszka Januszewskiego na stronie Instytutu Józefa Piłsudskiego
1886 births 1953 deaths Polish Socialist Party politicians Emigrants from Congress Poland to the United States Polish independence activists Individuals associated with the Józef Piłsudski Institute of America {{Poland-activist-stub