Masuria Report |
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•Welcome |
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My father, Max Dibowski, was born on a Masurian farm in Lepacken, district of Lyck, where his parents, Gottlieb and Auguste Dibowski, lived and worked until they fled the country in January 1945 when the Red Army came nearer. Auguste Dibowski's maiden name was Koslowski. Gottlieb and Auguste Dibowski and their children belonged to those Masurs who were able to speak both Masurian and German. Originally, Dibowski was spelled Dybowski, meaning "from Dybowo" in English. There are several places in East Prussia that include the Polish name Dybowo: Dybowen in the district of Johannisburg, Diebowen in the districts of Oletzko and Sensburg, Diebowen belonging to Nikolaiken, and Diebau in the area of Elbing. My mother's first name was Charlotte Helene. Her maiden name was Schwarz (in English: Black). Her parents' names were Wilhelm Friedrich Schwarz and Auguste Therese, née Voss. (Voss is a Low German word and means "fox" in English.) Coming from the countryside, they moved to Königsberg. Further ancestors bore the names Ewerlin, Hafke, Knoch, Seiduckel, Tengler and Tiedtke. I remember visiting my grandparents in Lepacken as a little boy: the farm house overtopped by fir trees, the barn and the brook running across the farmstead, the bright red poppies in cornfields flooded with sunlight, sandy field paths with deeply cut wheel tracks and peaceful small lakes surrounding the area. I also remember having seen gondolas on the large Lake Lyck as well as a merry-go-round and a pendulum ride on a fairground for the first time when I was visiting my aunt Frieda and uncle Willi Augustin in Lyck. |
My name is Benno Dieter Dibowski. I was born in Königsberg-Metgethen in 1938. I am the author of this web-site.