PAŃSTWOWY INSTYTUT GEOLOGICZNY – STO LAT W SŁUŻBIE NIEPODLEGŁEJ Sto lat Państwowego Instytutu Geologicznego – zarys historii materialnej

Abstract

One hundred years of the Polish Geological Institute – an outline of the material history.A b s t r a c t. Established a few months after regaining independence in 1918, the Polish Geological Institute was carrying out research aimed at ensuring the supply of necessary mineral raw resources to the domestic industry. The director of the Institute, Prof. J. Morozewicz as well as the state authorities were aware of the fact that for the proper functioning of the Institute suitable headquarter was needed. Therefore, already in the mid-1919, the appropriate area and financial resources were allocated for the construction of large buildings, the designer of which was Prof. M. Lalewicz. The laboratory pavilion was opened in 1926. The main building, which was put into use in 1936 and rebuilt after the destruction during World War II, has been the pride of the Institute until today. The extension of the state and a wide range of research issues meant that already in 1921, it was necessary to establish the Upper Silesian Station in D¹browa Górnicza, whose activity was focused on the coal geology. The Geological Station in Borysław, operating in the structure of the PGI since 1920, was transformed three years later into the Oil and Salt Department of the PGI, which closely co-operated with the Carpathian oil industry. The Holy Cross Mountain research group was located during 1937–1955 in the family home of Jan Czarnocki. After World War II, due to the significant intensification of geological research and exploration in Poland, new regional divisions of the Institute were established that currently have their headquarters in Kraków, Sosnowiec,Wrocław, Kielce, Gdańsk and Szczecin; all have the rank of branches. The organizational structure of the PGI is of an extremely regional nature, and the research issues of individual branches are mostly related to the recognition of the geological structure and mineral resources occurring in a given region. In addition, the Polish Geological Institute possesses 8 core repositories.