PL-82880 POLAND from Patryija

~ Poland ~ (PL-82880)
                                                                               Received April 2010
Thanks for Patryija!!!

History

The town lies near the historical region of Silesia but was not part of Silesia until the 20th century, when it was made a part of the Silesian Voivodeship.

In the 12th century the settlement was a village called Kromołów (currently a district of Zawiercie). It expanded in the 19th century and received town privileges in 1915. While Zawiercie was occupied by Nazi Germany, it was known in German as Warthenau between 1941 and 1945. During that time, many Jews were expelled to Zawiercie, where a ghetto was eventually established.

In 1847, the Warsaw-Vienna Railway was completed. The railroad connection facilitated the trade between Russia, Germany and Austria. The fact that Zawiercie was located less than one kilometre from the railroad triggered the rapid development of the region. Twenty-five years later, there were coal and iron ore mines in Zawiercie and an industry was developed around the mines in the town. The first industrial plant, a glass factory, started around 1870. Immediately other industries followed; a large cotton spinnery, large weaving mill, iron mining, cast iron, brick manufacturing, sawmill, chemical laboratories, steam and water flour mills, machining, etc. The flourishing economics accelerated the local population growth.