Mother and three sons in Siberian exile

Posted on June 14, 2011

Mary Vysniauskiene, with her three young sons, was deported to Siberia for eleven years. In this letter she writes of her first days in exile. Upon arrival she had to sell her few clothes, leaving her and her sons only with the clothes on their backs, and two small pillows. She used the little money she received to buy potatoes to feed her children.

This letter was written to her husband Povilas Vysniauskas, who was living and working in North Bay, Ontario. In fear that it would be found out that she was writing to him, and he sending her packages, a Canadian intermediary, Mr. P. Bukis, living in Toronto, Ontario, assisted the family. The only reason that she and her sons were able to survive, is because Mr. Vysniauskas sent her packages totaling $25,000 in value. (Accounting for inflation and adjustments between Canadian and US dollar value, this amount approximates $250,000 in current US dollars.) The circumstances of how Mrs. Vysniauskas and their sons were deported, and Mr. Vysniauskas was working in North Bay, are not known.

Six letters that Mrs. Vysniauskas wrote, and envelopes sent, are on display at the Hope and Spirit exhibit. I have organized this exhibit and program to commemorate the 70 year anniversary of the start of mass Soviet deportations to Siberia.

The letters and photographs from Siberia are on loan from the Lithuanian Research and Studies Center, Chicago, Illinois.