Case no. 2

Case no. 1 - Dogs Community Archive (Toruń/online)

(Polish: Psie Archiwum Społeczne)

In July and August 2025, the Primary Investigator, Dr. Magdalena Wiśniewska-Drewniak, met with Paulina Bolinowska - a creator of the Dogs Community Archive, which is physically stored in Toruń (in P. Bolinowska's premises) but operates mostly in the virtual environment, especially through an Instagram account (@dogstory100) and the portal Community Collections (Zbiory Społeczne). 

The archive documents the history of dogs, attempting to tell their story from the perspective of animals rather than humans. The central theme of the collection is cynology (the study of dogs), but it also covers the practical aspects of handling dogs and the relationship between dogs and humans in interwar Poland. However, some of the materials also come from other countries and periods.

During the visit, Dr. Wiśniewska-Drewniak conducted 3 interviews with P. Bolinowska (about 3,5 hours), the first one being held with the presence of the archival materials. Interviews covered the archive's content, P. Bolinowska's motivations and the beginning of the archive, how the archive is managed (collected, preserved, described, and made accessible), and what the archive's challenges and future plans are. 

All of this was possible thanks to Paulina Bolinowska's commitment to the project and her readiness to talk about this interesting animal-centered narrative about the past. 

Dogs Community Archive on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dogstory100/ 

Dogs Community Archive on the portal Community Collections (Zbiory Społeczne): https://zbioryspoleczne.pl/archiwa/PL_2270

A research report describing the Dogs Community Archive, authored by M. Wiśniewska-Drewniak: https://repozytorium.umk.pl/handle/item/7252