Media Releases
MEDIA RELEASE - Monday, 18 February 2002
Warsaw phone book emerges as hidden treasure
The 1939 Warsaw telephone book, currently on exhibit as part of the National Library of Australias Treasures From the Worlds Great Libraries, has emerged as one of the most significant items on display.
Printed just before Hitlers invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939, this unpretentious telephone directory now provides a rich snapshot of the people of Warsaw just prior to the outbreak of World War II.
Curator of the Treasures exhibition Margaret Dent commented on the significance of the item in todays world.
The Warsaw telephone book is an example of a treasure recognised after the event. This commonplace item now has extraordinary value as a genealogical resource. When all other records have disappeared, it provides official evidence for displaced persons and their relatives of their existence, said Margaret Dent.
As a result of the Treasures exhibition the National Library has had many enquiries from people wanting to research their family names. The original item cant be copied but the Library has just received a microfilm copy of the telephone directory from the New York Public Library, which anyone can access. Users can consult the microfilm version to learn the addresses, professions, honorary titles and even names of missing relatives although in 1939 not everyone had a telephone.
The fact that this telephone directory finds a place in an exhibition of world library treasures is a telling comment on the extraordinary history of the 20th century. Some people emerge from the Treasures exhibition in quite an emotional state due to the Warsaw telephone directory and what it denotes. We can now assist individuals and families by giving access to the microform version of this important document, which is a real indication of the importance of libraries in todays society, said Ms Dent.
The microfilm contains directories from 1931 -1940 and will be retained permanently in the Librarys collection. It can be used in the Newspaper and Microform Reading Room on the lower ground floor, open from 9am-9pm Monday to Thursday and Fridays and Saturdays from 9am-5pm.
People unable to visit can write, telephone or email. Staff will check the directories as part of the Librarys information service.
Contact details are:
Telephone: 02 6262 1501
Fax: 6262 1502
Email: newspapers@nla.gov.au
Media contact:
Yvonne Kennedy
Manager Communications
and Marketing
Telephone: 02 6262 1353 or 0411 753 891
