Manor in Sikory
The village, initially named Niereśla-Sikory, was first mentioned in the 16th century. It was situated within the Knyszyn property, Kalinowo parish, and was owned by the gentry. In the second half of the 16th century it was owned by Mikołaj Waśkiewicz and Józef Wołowicz, and in 1635 there is a mention of Stefan Wojno. In late 17th century and throughout almost the entire 18th century, Sikory was in the hands of many landowners and its largest part was belonged to the Tołczyk family. At the end of the 18th century the entire land was bought by Kazimierz Świerzbiński of the Rawicz coat of arms. Sikory was in the hands of this family until the first half of the 19th century. In the 1770s the Świerzbiński family built a manor-house (which survived to this day) and arranged its surroundings. In the 1850s and ‘60s the children of Zofia Świerzbińska and Michał Dyżewski were born in the manor. However, only the youngest daughter, Stanisława Dyżewska, lived here until her death in 1920. During the interwar period members of the Dyżewski family returned to Sikory from Russia. Bronisław Jeżewski, Jadwiga Dyżewska’s brother-in-law, became the owner of the property. In 1939 the Soviet government parcelled out the estate and established two ‘kolkhozes’ here. During the Nazi occupation German owners and a German administrator lived here. After the war, the property was parcelled out and the manor became nationalised. The previous owners, Jadwiga Dyżewska, and her daughter were allowed to live in the manor. The remaining rooms were transformed into a school.
A precise description of the manor and the manor farm can be found in the inventory from 1824. The manor was situated outside the village and surrounded with farm buildings and gardens. On the southern side there was an orchard and a vegetable garden where an ice house was built, and two wooden granaries covered with straw stood on the opposite side. One of them was built of wooden planks from the old house. Behind the granaries there was a fodder storage with three hinged gates, a barn, a cowshed, a pigsty, a brewery and a cattle feeder. The farm buildings were made of wood and had roofs mostly covered with straw, sometimes with lumber. The farm yard and the orchard were surrounded with a fence.
The manor was built from fashioned timber, placed on a stone foundation, had a basement and was covered with shakes. The entrance to the manor-house from the yard was preceded by a porch resting on two poles. A set of seven stairs with a balustrade led to the entrance. Double front doors led to the vestibule and other rooms arranged mostly as an enfilade. On both sides of the vestibule there were rooms: a dining room and the so-called ‘first’ room. The central part of the manor was occupied by a kitchen, in which ‘to the right there was an oven for making bread, and to the left – a furnace with a chimney, and a brick floor.’ By the kitchen, on the western side, there was a pantry and a steward’s room, and from the east – ‘a room with a grey-tiled stove and a wardrobe.’ The room ceilings and walls were plastered and floors made of planks. In the vestibule there was a set of stairs leading to the attic and under the stairs there was a woodshed. Today the interior layout is slightly changed. The building was transformed into a school, so new rooms had to be created, walls moved and new partition walls built. New windows and doors were made in the old kitchen, and the door leading to the dining room was covered. The big kitchen oven and heating stoves in the rooms were dismantled, and the floor was replaced. The porch was removed and the roof – covered with fibre cement. In the 1960s the building was boarded and window openings were cut out in the gables. Some of the six-section windows were replaced with casement transom windows. A vestibule was added to the northern elevation.
The manor-house is built on a rectangular (almost square) plan and placed on a stone foundation. It’s made of wood using log construction and boarded with planks in a horizontal arrangement in the first floor part. The gables are boarded with planks in a decorative horizontal and diagonal arrangement. The cornice between the gable and the wall is emphasised with a wooden pelmet formed by horizontal planks with carved decorative indentations. It is a one-storey building with a usable attic, a partial basement, and it is covered with a high half-hip roof. The interior originally had a two-bay layout, but was modified in recent years.
The manor was probably built in the fourth quarter of the 18th century and has retained its original shape and most of its original interior layout (despite post-war modifications). The ceiling is relatively low while the roof is a high half-hip structure, typically Baroque. The building belongs to the rare group of manor-houses built on a short rectangle (almost square) plan. The building is wide and has a three-bay interior. The regular rooms, living room, dining room, and a wardrobe are arranged in a three square checkerboard pattern. The central part of the manor was occupied by a large kitchen with a pantry. The complex domestic part of the building suggests that the manor was more of a manor farm management centre than a gentry residence.
A precise description of the manor and the manor farm can be found in the inventory from 1824. The manor was situated outside the village and surrounded with farm buildings and gardens. On the southern side there was an orchard and a vegetable garden where an ice house was built, and two wooden granaries covered with straw stood on the opposite side. One of them was built of wooden planks from the old house. Behind the granaries there was a fodder storage with three hinged gates, a barn, a cowshed, a pigsty, a brewery and a cattle feeder. The farm buildings were made of wood and had roofs mostly covered with straw, sometimes with lumber. The farm yard and the orchard were surrounded with a fence.
The manor was built from fashioned timber, placed on a stone foundation, had a basement and was covered with shakes. The entrance to the manor-house from the yard was preceded by a porch resting on two poles. A set of seven stairs with a balustrade led to the entrance. Double front doors led to the vestibule and other rooms arranged mostly as an enfilade. On both sides of the vestibule there were rooms: a dining room and the so-called ‘first’ room. The central part of the manor was occupied by a kitchen, in which ‘to the right there was an oven for making bread, and to the left – a furnace with a chimney, and a brick floor.’ By the kitchen, on the western side, there was a pantry and a steward’s room, and from the east – ‘a room with a grey-tiled stove and a wardrobe.’ The room ceilings and walls were plastered and floors made of planks. In the vestibule there was a set of stairs leading to the attic and under the stairs there was a woodshed. Today the interior layout is slightly changed. The building was transformed into a school, so new rooms had to be created, walls moved and new partition walls built. New windows and doors were made in the old kitchen, and the door leading to the dining room was covered. The big kitchen oven and heating stoves in the rooms were dismantled, and the floor was replaced. The porch was removed and the roof – covered with fibre cement. In the 1960s the building was boarded and window openings were cut out in the gables. Some of the six-section windows were replaced with casement transom windows. A vestibule was added to the northern elevation.
The manor-house is built on a rectangular (almost square) plan and placed on a stone foundation. It’s made of wood using log construction and boarded with planks in a horizontal arrangement in the first floor part. The gables are boarded with planks in a decorative horizontal and diagonal arrangement. The cornice between the gable and the wall is emphasised with a wooden pelmet formed by horizontal planks with carved decorative indentations. It is a one-storey building with a usable attic, a partial basement, and it is covered with a high half-hip roof. The interior originally had a two-bay layout, but was modified in recent years.
The manor was probably built in the fourth quarter of the 18th century and has retained its original shape and most of its original interior layout (despite post-war modifications). The ceiling is relatively low while the roof is a high half-hip structure, typically Baroque. The building belongs to the rare group of manor-houses built on a short rectangle (almost square) plan. The building is wide and has a three-bay interior. The regular rooms, living room, dining room, and a wardrobe are arranged in a three square checkerboard pattern. The central part of the manor was occupied by a large kitchen with a pantry. The complex domestic part of the building suggests that the manor was more of a manor farm management centre than a gentry residence.
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