Church of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Sosnowiec

The Church of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary stands on ul. Skautów in Sosnowiec's Sielec district. It is a three-aisled church of red brick, and its construction took almost half a century.

A building that dragged on for decades

As industrial plants grew up around Sielec, residents needed a church of their own. A building committee was formed in 1902, and work began in 1905 to a design by Stefan Szyller. The parish was established on 6 April 1908.

Before the outbreak of the First World War only the foundation beam was laid, and the ground turned out to be unstable. In 1935 Wiesław Kononowicz prepared a reduced design, with shortened naves, a transept and a chancel. By 1939 the walls had been raised to half their height, and they were completed in 1947-1952. The church was blessed on 2 November 1952 and consecrated in June 1961.

The building and its furnishings

The church is a basilica on a Latin cross plan, without towers, with a gabled roof and stepped gables. Among the furnishings are items moved from the vanished chapel of Sielec Castle, including an image of the Virgin and Child known as Our Lady of Sosnowiec.

On ul. Skautów there is also a former chapel from around 1900, built of stone and brick with rich carved decoration and still used by the parish, as well as the presbytery, built as the inn of the nearby brewery. The whole complex was entered in the heritage register on 30 December 2022.

The 1980 plaque

A plaque set into the wall of the church recalls that in 1980 the Dąbrowa Basin branch of Solidarity was born here and that Masses for the homeland were held.

Practical information

• Address: ul. Skautów 1, Sosnowiec-Sielec.
• Next door lies Dietel Park, and in the centre of the district stands Sielec Castle.
• Check service times and visiting hours with the parish.