Nieznajowa - Nasze Chatka

"History in Nieznajowa just doesn't hide on some dusty shelf. It is in our midst. You can accidentally step on her bunion. If you stop for a moment some distance from Rostajne and close your eyes, you may surprisingly find yourself among blue painted houses, smell the scent of growing wheat, hear creaking of wooden wheels from hay wagons, and meet people who used to live here over 60 years ago. In 1936, Nieznajowa had 250 souls living there. It was a large, pulsating with life Lemko village. Children used to go to school with a Polish teacher, housewives gossiped beside the one of the two stores. There even was a pub, a vestige of Austrian times, where one could drown the sadness of everyday life. If somebody caused a problem in the pub, the police station was right there to ensure that everything was under control.

Markets took place every two weeks in Nieznajowa. This made Nieznajowa well known in the whole area. Traders came from Zmigrod and Gorlice. Even larger markets took place four times each year.

There were two sawmills in the village. One was equipped with a steam engine, mill wheels, and an electrical power generator. It stood near the road to Rostajne. The other sawmill was the water mill near the Wisloka River and above the Zawoja River. It was run by the local postmaster. The larger sawmill was closed down for some possible renovations and the second one was detonated by Germans at the end of the war.

Near the Zawoja River, there used to be a small Orthodox church, one of the most beautiful in Beskid Niski. Nearby, only stone graves mark the resting place of last village inhabitants.

In 1945, it all ended. In the name of the "freedom of movement" of Ukrainian, Byelorussian, Russian, Rusyn citizens, all Lemkos from Nieznajowa departed to Soviet Union. The village stood empty. What can we see today ? Not one house is left there. In the grass, one can see forgotten road chapels. The remainder of the Orthodox church fell apart in 70's. Cemetery crosses are overgrown by grass. There are the ruins of the old sawmill on the road to Rostajne. We can still find the location of the old pub, where people were able to drink and dance. Where the old market stood, now only high grass is growing. Now, if we close our eyes for moment again...

A different story is told about Our Cabin ("Nasza Chatka"). Before war, this cabin was a forester's house. The sign above the door read: "Lasy Zagorzany, Lesnictwo Nieznajowa" (Forests Zagorzany, Forestry Nieznajowa). The forester lived in part of this house. Behind its walls, in a second part, a ranger with his family used to live. Electricity was drawn from sawmill. Possibly also the post office was located at this place. After school, children from school often came to the forester to listen to his radio. In 1944, German military staff took over the house. The ranger and his family moved to farm buildings. The forester died in the war in 1939 while the ranger was transported by the UPA in Spring 1947 to some unknown place. After the war, for a short time, forester's house had returned to its original function.

Another populated building was a wooden cabin moved here from a hilltop near Lipna. Some Pole made a private shelter inside of it. In 1969, the forester's house became a penal institution. Its prisoners were sure that they had been taken deep into Siberia. Its existence ended during the state of emergency in Poland in 1981.

The legend says that one can still hear ghostly odd sounds in Nasze Chatka while nobody is there. Maybe it is that forester, maybe some escaping and killed prisoner.... There is no actual information about this.

Not too long ago, there were still holes in the wall from bullets. Maybe this is a ghost of this unlucky escaping person visiting with us after the sun is down.

Did you hear about Earl Bogus? The story tells that this odd man lived in Nieznajowa. Where the kitchen is now, a large bed with baldachin used to stand. A small liquor cabinet, made in a wooden stump and full of different drinks, stood in the corner. Earl had guests often and many grill parties took place here. The story says that Earl on his white horse travelled in the area and sullied all of the village girls around here. Another version says that Earl was in love but this wasn't a lucky alliance. When he discovered that his lady found somebody else, he shot himself. Many people would now say that this is a ghost of Earl Bogus scaring people at night in Nasze Chatka. Others say that this isn't true, because Earl shot himself in Golesze near Jaslo and died at the hospital there.

One place, so much can be said. If this house could speak, it would tell many stories..."