The three murals (Jan Kiliński, Father Ageidius Tarasiewicz, and General George Washington) were among eight originally located on the third floor hall (later the gymnasium) of St. Casimir School. Most likely painted following the First World War when Poland gained its independence. Kiliński was a commander in an uprising launched by General Tadeusz Kościuszko in 1794 to repel Russian domination over the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Fr. Tarasiewicz was the church's first pastor, who helped forge parishioners' Polish-American identity, while Washington's was painted to reinforce the patriotic fervor following the First World War and to counter anti-immigration attitudes at that time. All eight murals in the gymnasium were destroyed by a fire in 1976.
Find related items in the Saint Casimir Roman Catholic Church and Our Lady of Divine Providence Parish collection.
- Catholicism
- Christianity
- Education
- Mural
- Photograph
- Riverwest Neighborhood
- Roman Catholic Church
- Saint Casimir Roman Catholic Church
- Source: Saint Casimir Church. 75th Anniversary Book. Custombook, Inc., 1970, 22-23. Box 3, Folder 3. St. Casimir’s Parish. Archdiocese of Milwaukee Archives, Milwaukee, WI.
- Creator: Jonathan M. Bohrer, Martin J. Kozon, and Daniel D. McCollum.