Beginning on a trip to the Chicago World's Fair at the age of twelve, and throughout her years in Europe and for the rest of her life, Leonida Krajewski kept a diary. The details of activities, places, events and friends in these writings are extensive, with entries for most of the days in this period of nearly fifty years. The diaries depict a wide range in her life and lifestyle from a member of a wealthy family living in New York and traveling in Europe, with friends including notables from all walks, to her extensive work with the Polish War Relief Committee in New York, her marriage to George Fudakowski in 1918, and the birth of her two sons.
The clarity of writing, understanding and comments on important people and places in the earlier years are extraordinary from a young person, and are a remarkable record of her knowledge and interests. Later years reveal the stresses in finding herself and satisfying her true interests and emotional needs. From her early life her family was close to Ignacy Jan Paderewski, the world-renowned pianist and first premier of free Poland, and his wife, Helena. This was particularly true after World War I started in 1914, when the two families spent much time together in the United States.
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Chapter I: Family Travels, 1893 to 1906
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Fudakowski-Krajewski family home