Walter J. Chrusciel had a deep love of Hamtramck, and when he died recently his wish was to help preserve Hamtramck’s history.

In his will, he left $20,000 to the Hamtramck Historical Commission and the Hamtramck Public Library to work on a joint project to digitize all the historic photos in the Commission and Library’s files. These will be placed on a new Web site that will make the photos available to all persons. The Historical Commission frequently gets requests from all over the country for photos, and this project will make it possible for anyone anywhere to tap into the resources of the Commission and the Library.

The $20,000 donation was made at a special ceremony held July 14 at the library. Chrusciel’s attorney, Robert Kaczmarek, made the presentation.

The Historical Commission and the Library have hundreds of photos. Not all have been archived as yet. That will be done as part of this project. The next step is for the Library and the Historical Commission to appoint a committee to develop the project scope, guidelines and begin the digitization process.

This is the largest contribution the Historical Commission has received to date.

Other projects

The Historical Commission is actively workings on a variety of projects. Here’s a rundown:

* The Commission is working in conjunction with St. Florian Parish to get a state historical marker for the church and the surrounding historical district. The plan is to have the marker in place for St. Florian’s 100th anniversary celebration in 2007. Along with that, the Historical Commission is working on producing a 100th anniversary book for the parish. Dr. Ted Radzilowski, of the Piast Institute, has agreed to update the superb 75th anniversary book he did for the parish.

* As part of its Restore Hamtramck program, the Commission is rebuilding and will replace the historic huge birdhouse that once stood in front of St. Francis Hospital. A local artist is recreating the birdhouse along the design of the original structure, which was about 4-feet tall. It will be placed on a pole at Zussman Park in front of City Hall, which used to be St. Francis hospital.

* Commission Chairman Greg Kowalski has received notification from Michigan History magazine that a story he submitted on the Tau Beta organization has been accepted for publication. No date has been set yet for its appearance. Tau Beta was once one of the most significant social organizations in Michigan and was critically important in molding Hamtramck as we know it.

* New Commissioner Hillary Cherry is working on two projects: She is conducting a survey of all corner stores that once existed in Hamtramck. At one time there were hundreds, and many remain, although converted into living spaces. Hillary is also contacting Wayne County to track down some records of Hamtramck Township we have learned still exist.

* Commissioner Dennis Orlowski has nearly completed his wonderful mural on the history of Hamtramck. The mural, more than 100 feet long and 5 feet tall, traces the history of Hamtramck from Ice Age to the present. It is highly detailed and superbly executed and even features some local faces that Orlowski used as models. The mural lines the wall of the main room of Peoples Community Services building on Jos. Campau. A September dedication is being planned.

* The Commission continued to acquire new material. Our collection now numbers several thousand individual items. Some of the most interesting items we have acquired lately include two newspapers from 1792, featuring items about Col. Hamtramck. We also have three newspapers from 1870 that have stories about Hamtramck Township events.

* New displays have been placed at City Hall. They include a variety of items, ranging from Mayor Rudolph Tenerowicz’s doctor’s bag to an original wooden water pipe.

* We continue to fill in the gaps in Hamtramck’s early history. We have acquired more old maps and some county records that mention the construction of ditches in Hamtramck in the 1860s.

* Student volunteer Joshua Saganski is doing a survey of all building name and date stones.