Gdynia Automotive Museum

My parents’ misfortune was that everything that fell into my hands was immediately dismantled. I could never draw anything other than a motorcycle or a car, because no matter how hard I tried, I would end up with either one or the other.

I bought my first motorcycle when I was 8 years old for PLN 300 in instalments from a watchmaker in my town. This PLN 300 was money I received for my birthday, name day and for butter rolls, which I was supposed to buy when going to school, but of course I didn’t buy them.

Then he was second, and later still third. As the years passed, more and more motorcycles and cars. When I passed by an old rusting car or motorcycle, my heart ached at how poor and abandoned it was, and I had to have it.

There were rallies and old car races along the way. There was also a school – Automotive Technical School, because that was the only place where I could learn how to repair my beloved vehicles. As the years passed, an ordinary garage became too small and I dreamed of a museum. For twenty-five years I walked around various cars and offices.

Everyone made promises but never kept their promises. Finally, I said enough – you have to do something yourself. Thanks to the help of my friend, I bought an old hall from the Port of Gdynia Authority. This hall had to be dismantled first to recover the steel structure that I needed. It was the hardest work – but it worked. Thanks to the help of kind people, we managed to arrange all possible consents and arrangements, although it took a very long time. It’s finally here and standing.

The next step is to arrange the interior so that it resembles an old street. Thanks to the help of my friend Krzysztof, this was also possible. I leave the final effect to your judgment.

Please bear in mind that I am not a rich or richly born man. Everything you see here is the result of my many years of hard work, as well as the help of many kind people, the President and Director of the Gdynia City Hall, the Director and employees of the Department of Culture and many others – for which I am grateful. I would also like to thank those who were less friendly and who put their foot down – there were a lot of them, but they had the opposite effect than intended, because as you can see, the Museum stands and so be it.