Postcard

Postcard from ca. 1909 with a view of the school of  Sisters of Mercy of St. Borromeo, built in 1902 by Stanisław Cetnarski’s company. The building, which was referred to as “Zofiówka” as a tribute to the mother general of the congregation, was the oldest among the school buildings situated on Dolniańska Street, later renamed Grunwaldzka Street. Like all the buildings on this side of the street, it was built in a former empty lot, which until the 17th century separated the city ramparts and gardens, which was required for warfare at the time, and later it was transformed into small gardens. At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, the street, included in the so-called garden zone, became the main walking route of the city, usually frequented by young people. The school itself started its operations in 1878, when the Sisters of Mercy of St. Borromeo were brought to Łańcut by the Potocki family and subsequently started teaching. Initially, the institution operated as a female primary school, before changing its status in 1901. Based on the school, in 1917 the Female Teachers' Seminary was founded by the parish priest of Łańcut, Fr. Walenty Mazanek. The building visible on the postcard, which was expanded in 1926, contained, apart from classrooms, a chapel and rooms for female students. During World War I, the school was temporarily transformed into a hospital, and its halls were filled with wounded soldiers. Joanna Kluz