Bydgoszcz Bydgoszcz is a city in northern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Kuyavia. Straddling the confluence of the Vistula River and its bank (geography), left-bank tributary, the Brda (river), Brda, the strategic location of Byd ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...

Saint Florian Florian (; AD 250 – 304) was a Christian holy man and the patron saint of chimney sweeps; soapmakers, and firefighters. His feast day is 4 May. Florian is also the patron saint of Poland, the city of Linz, Austria, and Upper Austria, jointl ...

Brda river The Brda (; ) is a river in northern Poland. A tributary of Vistula River, the Brda has a total length of 245 km and a catchment area of 4,665 km2, all within Poland.Bernardyńska Street in the west and runs between the river and Jagiellońska street.

History

The area originally belonged to a city farm called ''Grodztwa''. The land registry cites that the farm owner successively sold pieces of the estate. Like many of the streets of the downtown district, Świętego Floriana started between the last quarter of the 19th century and the first quarter of the 20th century. The street bore the following names through time: * 19th century-1920, ''Alexander straße'' * 1920–1939, ''Ulica Świętego Floriana'' * 1939–1945, ''Frithjof straße'', alluding to

Frithiof's Saga Frithiof's Saga () is a legendary saga from Iceland which in its present form is from ca. 1300. It is a continuation from ''The Saga of Thorstein Víkingsson'' (''Þorsteins saga Víkingssonar''). It takes place principally in Norway during the ...

* Since 1945, ''Ulica Świętego Floriana''

Main edifices

Tenement at 3, corner with Bernardyńska Street 1910

Eclecticism Eclecticism is a conceptual approach that does not hold rigidly to a single paradigm or set of assumptions, but instead draws upon multiple theories, styles, or ideas to gain complementary insights into a subject, or applies different theories i ...

Before its erection in the early 20th century, the site was a garden. Carl Hintz, a mailman, was the first registered landlord. The building was thoroughly restored in 2018. One will notice the entry doorway, flanked by two

column A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member ...

s, three medallions depicting figures (among whom a king) and a

seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, also called "true seal" ** Fur seal ** Eared seal * Seal ( ...

. Corner facades are topped with ogee

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

s and eyelid

dormer A dormer is a roofed structure, often containing a window, that projects vertically beyond the plane of a Roof pitch, pitched roof. A dormer window (also called ''dormer'') is a form of roof window. Dormers are commonly used to increase the ...

s. Sw Floriana.jpg, View from Bernardyńska street Sw Floriana 3 door.jpg, Main door at Nr.3 Sw Floriana 3 roof.jpg, View of the gables Sw Floriana 3 medal1.jpg, Figure head

medallion A medal or medallion is a small portable artistic object, a thin disc, normally of metal, carrying a design, usually on both sides. They typically have a commemorative purpose of some kind, and many are presented as awards. They may be in ...

Sw Floriana 3 medal2.jpg, King head medallion Sw Floriana 3 medal3.jpg, Seal medallion Tenement at 5/7 Late 1930s

Modern architecture Modern architecture, also called modernist architecture, or the modern movement, is an architectural movement and style that was prominent in the 20th century, between the earlier Art Deco and later postmodern movements. Modern architectur ...

Those two buildings are part of a series of similar constructions built in downtown

Bydgoszcz Bydgoszcz is a city in northern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Kuyavia. Straddling the confluence of the Vistula River and its bank (geography), left-bank tributary, the Brda (river), Brda, the strategic location of Byd ...

during that period. Other instances can be found at Gdańska Street, Zamoyskiego Street or 20 Stycznia 1920 Street. Sw Floriana 5 7.jpg, Facades view from the street Old Building of Bydgoszcz Rowing Association, corner with Bernardyńska Street Registered on Kuyavian-Pomeranian Heritage list Nr.601291, Reg.A/1091 (January 18, 1994) 1914, by Theodore Patzwald

Historicism Historicism is an approach to explaining the existence of phenomena, especially social and cultural practices (including ideas and beliefs), by studying the process or history by which they came about. The term is widely used in philosophy, ant ...

The building was erected by the architect Theodore Patzwald for the German Rowing Club "Frithjof" established in 1894. The club joined from 1923 to 1945 the "Frithjof Rowing Club", a German rowing association. After World War II, the edifice housed the Bydgoszcz Rowing Association, or BTW (), founded on March 16, 1920, under the name "Tryton Rowing Association" (). In 1996, the building was sold by municipal authorities to a company, ''Shanghai Olym-Poland'', which set up a hotel and a catering center for Chinese people traveling in Poland and around Europe. In 2010, the building became a hotel with a gastronomic restaurant ''Zatoka'' ("The Gulf"). Zatoka 1917.jpg, Building of German Rowing Club "Frithjof" 1917 Zatoka 1973.jpg, Building of Rowing association "BTW" 1973 Bdg BTW 1 10-2013.jpg, View from Bernardyński Bridge Zatoka (2).jpg, View from Brda river's opposite side Tenement at N9 1910 Early

modernism Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...

The plot at then ''Alexanderstraße 5'' was first occupied by an insurance bank, ''Bersicherungsbank Teutonia'' till the start of the 20th century. In 1910, Mr Schlegel had this tenement built: however, he never inhabited it. The frontage still keeps its former shape with its large wall

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

, the four

balconies A balcony (from , "scaffold") is a platform projecting from the wall of a building, supported by columns or console brackets, and enclosed with a balustrade, usually above the ground floor. They are commonly found on multi-level houses, apartme ...

and some tiny motifs, bringing to mind a fading

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...

influence. Sw Floriana 9.jpg, Main facade Tadeusz Browicz Hospital for Infectious Diseases in Bydgoszcz, at 10/18 1898, 1911 by

Józef Święcicki Józef Święcicki (Polish pronunciation: ; 9 March 1859 – 3 November 1913) was a designer and builder of Bydgoszcz, under Prussian rule. A vast majority of his eclectic-style works can still be found all around the city. Józef Swiecicki was p ...

In 1885, the plot was purchased by priest Antoni Kielczynski, with the plan that the

Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul The Company of the Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul (; abbreviated DC), commonly called the Daughters of Charity or Sisters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul, is a society of apostolic life for women within the Catholic Church. ...

, based in

Chełmno Chełmno (; older ; , formerly also ) is a town in northern Poland near the Vistula river with 18,915 inhabitants as of December 2021. It is the seat of the Chełmno County in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship. Due to its regional importance ...

, would settle there. However, it was not before 1909 that the congregation officially took possession of the place. On May 4, 1898, with the participation of the parish priest of Bydgoszcz, Józef Choraszewski, city authorities, doctors and donors, a 12-bed hospital for children opened. The Bromberg address book from 1900 lists sisters with the following surnames living in the premises: Doliwa, Gralewska, Hermanska, Hoppe, Kapke, Schmidt. At that time, there was only a one-story building in the yard with several rooms containing beds for patients. Sisters even organised summer camps. In 1901, thanks to the help of the countess Potulicka, a separate branch for infectious children was organized in a separate building. In the years 1905–1906, about 200 children lived in the facility. In 1905, the recorded board of trustees comprised, among others,

Parson A parson is an ordained Christian person responsible for a small area, typically a parish. The term was formerly often used for some Anglican clergy and, more rarely, for ordained ministers in some other churches. It is no longer a formal term d ...

Ryszard Markwart and Dr. Stanisław Warminski. The latter, the uncle and tutor of

Emil Warmiński Emil Warmiński (15 March 1881 – 9 June 1909) was a Polish physician, social and national activism, activist and founder of the ''Polish House'' in Bydgoszcz. Biography Youth Emil Warmiński was born on 15 March 1881 in a tenement at 6 Pl ...

, donated in 1906 all his savings to the hospital, allowing the construction of one of the ancient brick building. At that time, the hospital had 36 beds and was maintained only by donations from Poles and landowners, among whom countess Potulicka and entrepreneurs Bronisław Kentzer and Antoni Weynerowski. In 1914, a hospital for wounded German soldiers opened in a section of the building. After 1920, both children and adults were treated at the hospital. In 1940, the Sisters of Charity were expelled from the premises, taken over by German forces who again used it as a military hospital. In spring 1946, it became a Polish Garrison hospital which was transferred to

Toruń Toruń is a city on the Vistula River in north-central Poland and a World Heritage Sites of Poland, UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its population was 196,935 as of December 2021. Previously, it was the capital of the Toruń Voivodeship (1975–199 ...

in 1948; the buildings then returned to their civilian goal. Recently, the clinic has developed a specialized

HIV/AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

research department and has become a reference center for HIV infections. In 2011, thanks to

Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship * Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship is one of the 16 voivodeships (provinces) in Poland. * Kuyavian-Pomeranian is one of 13 Polish constituency of the European Parliament. * Kuyavian-Pomeranian Regional Assembly is the regional legislature of t ...

funds, a modern building has opened next to the ancient ones, which keep administration offices and some laboratories. On January 29, 2019, the hospital celebrated its 70th anniversary as a Center for Infectious Diseases. The

Neo-Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half of the 19th century ...

project, designed by builder W. Pluciński from Chełmno, was also realized by

Józef Święcicki Józef Święcicki (Polish pronunciation: ; 9 March 1859 – 3 November 1913) was a designer and builder of Bydgoszcz, under Prussian rule. A vast majority of his eclectic-style works can still be found all around the city. Józef Swiecicki was p ...

. It opened on May 6, 1910. Wojewodzki Szpital Obserwacyjno-Zakazny im Tadeusza Browicza 1910s.jpg, Building ca 1910 Bydgoszcz Wojewódzki Szpital Obserwacyjno-Zakaźny im. Tadeusza Browicza (3).JPG, Main building from the street File:Sw Floriana szp chapel door.jpg, Detail of the main door File:Szpital obs-zakaźny Bydg 3.jpg, Ancient building from the

Brda river The Brda (; ) is a river in northern Poland. A tributary of Vistula River, the Brda has a total length of 245 km and a catchment area of 4,665 km2, all within Poland.

Eclecticism Eclecticism is a conceptual approach that does not hold rigidly to a single paradigm or set of assumptions, but instead draws upon multiple theories, styles, or ideas to gain complementary insights into a subject, or applies different theories i ...

The original address was ''Alexanderstraße 8'', and the first recorded landlord was Julius Jacoby, a merchant dealing with construction materials. He kept ownership till the end of

WWI World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting took place mainly in Europe and th ...

. A sign bearing his name is still visible on the corner facade. Both facades display eclectic features, which were fashionable at the time: round or triangular

pediment Pediments are a form of gable in classical architecture, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the cornice (an elaborated lintel), or entablature if supported by columns.Summerson, 130 In an ...

s on openings, a

Mansard roof A mansard or mansard roof (also called French roof or curb roof) is a multi-sided gambrel-style hip roof characterised by two slopes on each of its sides, with the lower slope at a steeper angle than the upper, and often punctured by dormer wi ...

and a decorated main door (although in need of restoration) with a transom light window. Sw Floriana 22.jpg, Main elevations from the street Sw Floriana 22 detail New1.jpg, Openings adornment motifs Sw Floriana 22 portal.jpg, Main entrance Sw Floriana 22 scripture.jpg, Details of the writing ''Julius Jacoby''

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

*
Restaurant Zatoka
*
Tadeusz Browicz Hospital
{{Bydgoszcz streets and squares Cultural heritage monuments in Bydgoszcz Streets and squares in Bydgoszcz

Location

History

Main edifices

See also

References

Bibliography

External links