Zabrze, a Coalminers' City

Zabrze (read: ['za:bzhe]) is a city belonging to the Upper Silesian Industrial District. Its main attractions are post-industrial monuments, among which there are mines and workers' colonies open to the public. In the nineteenth century, the city developed dynamically thanks to the discovery of coal and the construction of coal mines and surrounding industrial plants.

Today, there are two coal mines in Zabrze, while some of the closed, historic plants are open to tourists and are located on the Industrial Monuments Route.
The city library was the first amazing historical building we saw upon our arrival to the railway station.

In addition to the historic mines in Zabrze, there are several workers' colonies with preserved buildings and urban layout as well as neo-Gothic and modernist public buildings, including the St. Joseph Church.

During our visit of Guido Coalmine in Zabrze

Enjoying our visit to Guido Coalmine in Zabrze

When it comes to Zabrze, most people in Poland will certainly think of the Guido Mine right away, No wonder since the historic Guido Mine along with Queen Louise Mine belong to the biggest tourist attractions of Zabrze. During our day trip to Zabrze, we decided not to omit Guido Coal Mine because it seemed an interesting place there. This historic coal mine is by far the most popular tourist destination in Zabrze, and also the most visited of all Silesian sites located on the Industrial Monuments Route. Guido is a unique place in Silesia and also one of the world’s outstanding industrial monuments, having no equivalent in other similar museum centers.

The mine is open to visitors on three levels - 170, 320 and 355. You can visit it both "lightly" (levels 170 and 320), you can attend an underground concert or a theater performance, if any (level 320). There is also a pub at Level 320 that is advertized as Europe’s deepest pub. We have to pay a visit there someday and have a coalminer’s beer or two.

You can also feel like a real coal miner and visit the mine (level 355) during a shift - in full coal-mining gear, and take part in Darkness of the Mine Tour, where you can visit the coal mine only with a small, personal lamp.

When looking for information about the history and culture of Zabrze and the surrounding area, it would be good to visit the City Museum (“Muzeum Miejskie” in Polish). The museum is devoted to the history of the city and its inhabitants. There are three departments there: History, Culture and Fine Arts. There was also the fourth department specializing in industry, the greater part of the collection of which was transferred to the Coal Mining Museum in Zabrze, established in 1979.

The monument to a simple coalminer, Wincenty Pstrowski, was unveiled in 1978 in the city park. It was created by a Polish sculptor, Professor Marian Konieczny. The figure of this simple miner, after his death, became the subject of even greater propaganda of the then post-war authorities. However, this propaganda is not necessarily agreeable. When we were there, we saw the monument was being refurbished. There are rumors it might be disassembled altogether. To understand the history, I found out some facts about this coalminer.

Wincenty Pstrowski worked at Jadwiga Coal Mine in Zabrze (which does not exist today) as a pit cutter. According to the available information, as an employee of Jadwiga Coal Mine, from 1946 until February 1947 he managed to make 240% of the so-called standard consisting in cutting a 72.5-meter-long pavement, and in April 1947, he performed 293%, that is, 85 meters, of the standard pavement. For this simple coalminer, it was important to believe that thanks to his work, the country would quickly get back on its feet. Therefore, in July 1947, he decided to send an official letter to the miners, at the same time calling for the so-called competition, just like it was in the Soviet Union, where the movement of Stakhanovites became widespread with the “blessing” of the ruthless Communist authorities. Wincenty’s slogan was, "Who will produce more other than me?"

Guido Coalmine, Zabrze

Graffiti in Zabrze

Wincenty Pstrowski died on April 18, 1948. He died as a result of the above-mentioned norms, because he undoubtedly worked beyond his health limits and his own free will. For the Communist rulers, the death of Pstrowski was a propaganda failure. One of the sayings circulating around Poland at that time was, Chcesz iść szybko na sąd Boski, pracuj jak Wicek Pstrowski!" ("If you want to go to God's Judgment, work like Wicek Pstrowski"). Others joked: "Wincenty Pstrowski, górnik ubogi, przekroczył normę, wyciągnął nogi".("Wincenty Pstrowski, a poor miner, exceeded the norm, stretched out his legs.").

You can see beautiful examples of different (structurally and stylistically) water towers in Zabrze. Particularly noteworthy is the Art Nouveau water tower at the former Hospital of Unia Bracka, an organization which took care of disabled miners. It served not only for supplying water, but also housed inside an ordinary chimney. The brick tower located at one of the side streets in May 3 Street, on the territory of the Children’s Hospital, is an Art Nouveau brick water tower designed together with the entire hospital complex in 1858 by the Berlin architect Arnold Hartmann. This water tower of the old Zabrze is a monument of both architecture and technology. We admired the half-timbered wall of the reservoir, complexity of the structure and the beauty of its details. Unfortunately, the former water tower stands closed and neglected today. Hopefully, it will find its patron and will be renovated to keep the visitors happy.

Many of different towers (church towers, castle towers, industrial towers etc.) are an inherent part of the Zabrze panorama. That is the reason why Zabrze is sometimes called "the city of brick towers". One of them is the water tower located on Zamoyski Street (former Vinzentstrasse), which is one of the symbols of Zabrze. It was erected in 1911 according to a design of an architect August Kind and a royal building councilor Friedrich Loose. It was built to improve the water supply to nearby towns (Zaborze, Zabrze, Sośnica, Maciejów, Makoszowy).
We took bus 111 to Biskupice, one of the oldest city districts, and visited St.John the Baptists Church there.

Biskupice District, Zabrze

Visiting St.John the Baptist Cathedral, Zabrze

St.John the Baptist Cathedral in Zabrze

We took a walk along May 3rd Street - one of the central streets of Zabrze. We thought the city reminded us of Paris, although we had never been there. Therefore, we called Zabrze Little Paris.

May 3 Street, Zabrze

Walking along May 3 Street in Zabrze

Architectural details in Zabrze

We saw a huge beautiful church from afar and decided to visit it. It is St.Anna's Church built in 1900. We were greatly impressed by the atmosphere inside the church.

St.Anna's Church, Zabrze

Visiting St.Anna's Churh, Zabrze

During our visit to St.Anna's Churh, Zabrze

We visited St.Anna's Church, Zabrze

Visiting St.Anna's Church in Zabrze