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Tarnobrzeg is a city in south-eastern Poland (historic Lesser Poland), on the east bank of the river Vistula, with 49,419 inhabitants, as of 31 December 2009. Situated in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship (Polish: Województwo podkarpackie) since 1999, it had previously been the capital of Tarnobrzeg Voivodeship (1975–1998). Tarnobrzeg lies in the Sandomierz Basin, and directly borders the town of Sandomierz, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship. Its history dates back to the year 1593, when it was granted Magdeburg rights, and belonged to the Tarnowski family. For centuries Tarnobrzeg remained a small town, which did not develop until the post-World War II period, when it became center of an industrial area, based on rich sulfur deposits.
Until the 20th century, however, the name Tarnobrzeg was not popular among residents. In common use were such names, as Dzików (see also Dzików Castle) and Miechocin, as these two locations were older, larger and more important. After opening of a rail station called Tarnobrzeg (1887), and creation of the Tarnobrzeg County (1920), the name caught on and became commonly used. Nevertheless, patron saint of the region, is still called Our Lady of Dzików (see also Dominican Church and Convent of Assumption of Mary in Tarnobrzeg).
Currently Tarnobrzeg is one of the largest towns of Poland in terms of territory. It covers the area of , and the distance between its extreme northern and southern locations reaches . This is because, in 1975, Tarnobrzeg unexpectedly became the capital of a newly created province, Tarnobrzeg Voivodeship. To expand the town, local authorities initiated a policy of annexation of local villages. As a result, in the late 1970s, the size of the town quickly grew, when several villages and settlements (Machow, Dzików, Miechocin, Wielowieś, Sielec, Podleze, Sobow, Mokrzyszow) became part of Tarnobrzeg as its Osiedle. The Old Town and historic center of Tarnobrzeg covers a very small area of the town, as 80% of Tarnobrzeg was built after the war.
In the aftermath of World War I, the short-lived Republic of Tarnobrzeg was declared here, and in 1919, the town became part of Lwów Voivodeship of the newly independent Second Polish Republic. The city suffered significant emigration within the former Austrian empire and elsewhere during the interbellum years (1919–1939). A public school system was founded during that time.
In the 1950s, after geological research into fuel deposits, significant sulfur resources were discovered. From the early 1960s the city grew rapidly: the population rose from 5,000 to 50,000 in 1990s. After closing the sulfur mine "Siarkopol" in Machów and Jeziórko a stagnation of Tarnobrzeg followed. In 1999 it ceased being a Voivodeship capital and became a city-county (powiat grodzki).
Timeline of Tarnobrzeg history (note: the history of Tarnobrzeg itself is not very long. Much older are several districts of the contemporary town, such as Wielowieś in its north, and Miechocin in the south).
The development of Nowy Tarnów was stopped during the catastrophic Swedish invasion of Poland (1655–1660), when the town was destroyed by the Swedes. After the invasion, Jan Stanislaw Tarnowski funded a Dominican Monastery, with the painting of Our Lady of Dzików (1678), which was moved there from the Dzików Castle. In 1734, the Dzików Confederation was formed in the Dzików Castle, and among its creators was Jozef Mateusz Tarnowski. In the late 18th century, the castle was remodelled in the late Baroque style, and last owners of Dzików were Jan Zdzislaw Tarnowski (1862–1937), and Artur Tarnowski (1903–1984).
In the years 1772–1918 (see: Partitions of Poland), Tarnobrzeg was in the province of Galicia as part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, based in Vienna. The 19th century after 1815 was, across Europe, a period of relative peace and stability following the conclusion of the extremely violent Napoleonic Wars. Due to progressive initiatives following Napoleonic times, Tarnobrzeg citizens including the Jewish community benefited from free compulsory public education mandated by the Austrian Emperor. The same was not true for other Polish Jewry in areas outside of Galicia (e.g., Danzig or Warsaw). Compulsory public education was opposed by some Jewish religious authorities who believed that traditional Jewish Torah and Talmud studies should not even be partially supplanted by secular instruction.
The political stability in Tarnobrzeg and surrounding areas that ended with the collapse of the Austrian Empire as a result of World War I portended a difficult future for Tarnobrzeg's Jews. Although atrocities and population displacements during World War II dominated the history of Tarnobrzeg's Jews, deportations during World War I to trans-Ural Russia were also highly disruptive and destroyed much of the established community. Many emigrated to the United States or Palestine.
Nearby (of, e.g., Rozwadów and Ulanów) had many commercial and family ties to Tarnobrzeg. There were several affinity groups among the thriving Jewish population before World War II, including Hasidic, Zionism, Bundism, and others. Many Jewish citizens of Tarnobrzeg emigrated to Palestine, later to become Israel, during the pre-World War II period.
A prominent Tarnobrzeg citizen, Moses Hauser, who was Jewish, was a centenarian whose lifespan nearly coincided with the 19th century. Hauser was a wealthy businessman, trader, and landholder dating from Napoleonic times through the reign of Austrian Emperor Franz Josef. His life is documented in a Yizkor (Memorial) book published by Tarnobrzeg elders following the Holocaust. Hauser was father to twelve children and many descendants who reside in the United States, Israel, and elsewhere.
Since the 1980s, the land in the mining areas has gradually been Land reclamation. The Machów mine has been filled with water to form a reservoir used for recreation, and the same is happening to the Jeziórko mine — it is being slowly filled from the nearby Vistula river.
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| Dominican Church and Convent | Marian Sanctuary of Our Lady of Dzików, Baroque monastery from the end of 17th century, step of St. James Lesser Polish Way, situated close to Głowacki Sq in Old Town | open 6am – 7pm, tourism visitation forbidden during worship services | ||
| Chapel and Monastery of Dominicans Sisters and church of St. Michael and St Gertrude in Wielowieś | complex of buildings from half of the 19th century, a tomb of the founder of the assembly Róża Kolumba Białecka is located at a monastery, its roots go back to the 13th century, according to tradition, the original wooden church was associated with the activities of the Dominican – St. Hyacinth | conservation works inside the church | ||
| Dzików Castle with park and garden complex | works on transferring the Historical Museum of City | thorough restoration and repair work, possible visit the cellars, open Tue – Fri 10am – 4pm; Sun 12am – 4pm, end of work and reopen in 2011 or 2012 | ||
| Jewish Graveyard | founded in 1930 | closed for visitors | ||
| Tarnobrzeg synagogue | built in the second half of 19th century, now used as the Municipal Public Library | open Mon – Fri 10am – 6pm, Sat 8am – 3pm | ||
| Church of Mary Magdalene in Miechocin | Gothic church from the 14th century, its roots go back to the beginnings of Christianity in the Polish territories | closed apart from hours of worship services, Weekdays 6pm, Sun and Fest 7:30am, 10:35am, 5pm | ||
| Shindler's Hunting Palace in Tarnobrzeg Mokrzyszów | Neogothic building from the 19th century, at present, adapted up to needs of the Centre Of The Teacher Education | |||
| Church of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Serbinów | huge mosaic presbytery, relics of saints and blessed: Edmund Bojanowski, Jan Bosko, Albert Chmielowski, Zygmunt Gorazdowski, Mother Teresa, Faustyna Kowalska, Gianna Beretta Molla, Padre Pio | Perpetual Adoration Chapel open around the clock, the upper church opened in hours of worship services, Weekdays 6am, 8am, 3pm, 6pm, Sun and Fest 7am, 8:30 am, 10am, 11:30am, 1pm, 4pm, 5pm, 7:30pm | ||
| Padewicz Manor House in Tarnobrzeg-Nagnajów | Classical building, situated close to the Wisłostrada St. | closed | ||
| Zwierzyniecki Wood | rest of Sandomierska Wilderness | Zwierzyniecka St leads from the Dzików Castle through Serbinów to the wood | ||
| Machowski Reservoir | artificial reservoir built on the premises of the former sulfur mine, situated close to the Wisłostrada St. | open in 2010 | ||
| Former Tarnobrzeg Granary in Wymysłów | built in 1843, now used as the Historical Museum of City | open Tue – Fri 8am – 3pm; Sat 12am – 4pm | ||
| Monument of Bartosz Głowacki | built in 1904, situeted in the main Town Square, vis-à-vis of Dominican Monastery | |||
| Tarnobrzeg City Hall | Eclectic building from 1910, former County Hall, now the office of the Mayor of Tarnobrzeg, situated close to Surowieckiego Sq | open 7:30am – 3:30pm | ||
| Former Burgher Casino | built in early 20th century, now Community Centre of Culture, situated close to Sokola St | |||
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