Forms of life

Bozywerek is a living place. Nowadays it's rather cheap district - more than a hundred years ago "familoki" - the workers houses had quite a high standard, but very little changed from these times. I decided to add some info in english (see below the photos).











Settlement Borsig (Germany: Siedlung Borsigwerk, Silesian: Bozywerek) - workers' housing estate for employees of mining-metallurgical works, belonging to the German manufacturer, August Borsig was built in the years 1863 - 1871 to the south of the nearby coal mine "Hedwigswünsch" ( "Hedwig Wish"), "Ludwigsglück" ("Luck of Louis") and launched in 1863 years steelworks. It is currently a part of today's district of Zabrze - Biskupice.

At the same time as houses similar to each other and farm buildings, also a school, houses for teachers, park, gym as well as evangelical chapel and cemetery were built. In later years there have been built two kindergartens.

At those times standard of flats was very high. They numbered an average of 55 square meters, have kitchen facilities and even up to 3 chambers, outside the apartment - on the stairwell were WC and access to running water. The buildings of the estate consisted of over 50 two-storey houses, traditionally made from red bricks "familoki". The shape of the estate appointed by the geometric arrangement of buildings and streets designed to be symmetrical and balanced.

The northern part of the estate, of a better standard and a different form, was intended for senior staff.

Currently, Borsigwerk is one of the most unique of the patronage settlements (build by plant or mine owner for its workers) on Upper Silesia, however less known than Nikiszowiec and Giszowiec settlements in Katowice.

Source: Wikipedia (in Polish). Sorry for awkward translation