Polish Cultural Center & Museum

We’re proud to share an important update.  Our organization is now the Polish Cultural Center & Museum. This name reflects the two pillars of our mission: to connect people to people through culture and community, and to preserve and share the museum resources that bring Winona’s Kashubian Polish heritage to life. While some may notice that “Kashubian” is no longer in our name, please know this identity remains central to who we are.   

The Polish Cultural Center & Museum is a dedicated non-profit organization. The museum strives to preserve and promote Polish and Kashubian heritage. Located in Winona, Minnesota, our museum offers a vibrant and immersive experience into the rich traditions, history, and cultural contributions of the Polish and Kashubian communities.

Core Objectives:

1. Preservation and Promotion: To collect, conserve, and showcase the cultural artifacts, art, and historical records of Winona’s Kashubian and Polish communities, making them accessible to the public for education, research, and cultural enrichment.

2. Education: To provide educational programs, exhibitions, and events that teach Kashubian history, culture, and traditions, as well as the broader context of global events and their impact on our local community.

3. Cultural Exchange: To facilitate cultural exchange programs, workshops, and collaborations that promote understanding, tolerance, and respect among people of different backgrounds, fostering a more inclusive and pluralistic society.

4. Community Engagement: To serve as a community hub for Kashubian and Polish cultural events, festivals, and celebrations, welcoming visitors from Winona and beyond to experience our rich cultural heritage.

5. Interpretation and Contextualization: To provide contextualized exhibits and programming that highlight the significance of global events and their connection to local history, promoting a deeper understanding of the complex relationships between culture, politics, and society.

Values:

1. Respect for diverse cultures and traditions

2. Commitment to preserving our shared heritage

3. Belief in the power of education to promote understanding and empathy

4. Emphasis on community engagement and inclusivity

5. Passion for sharing our stories with the world By fulfilling this mission, the Polish Cultural Center & Museum aims to become a beacon of cultural understanding, a symbol of community pride, and a catalyst for positive change in Winona and beyond.

The Polish Cultural Center & Museum’s building was built in 1894 by the Laird-Norton Lumber Company for use as an office building next to their lumber campus just across from Second Street. After Laird-Norton relocated their office elsewhere in 1918, the Winona Printing Company purchased the building that same year. Several additions to the building were constructed over the years, namely in 1934 and 1944. Once the Winona Printing Company relocated their business over to 1117 East Mark Street, the building was vacant for only a few months before Father Paul J. Breza purchased the building in 1979. He intended the building to serve as a museum-storage area. It took just over a year of hard work by Father Breza and the local community for the building to become a showcase for the history of Winona’s vibrant Kashubian Polish community. Meanwhile, the Center obtained recognition as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in 1979. Its mission is to preserve the artifacts and stories that were quickly being lost. Over the past 40+ years, the Center collected and preserved more than 8,000 items, with the collection growing to this day.

Established in 1979 by the late Rev. Paul Breza, the non-profit group operates the only Kashubian-focused museum in the United States, and is the largest of its kind in North America. It houses more than 8,000 artifacts that chronicle the vibrant history of Polish immigrants in southeast Minnesota .