Pułaski Shaft Complex of the Wieczorek Coal Mine in Katowice

The Pułaski shaft complex is a former part of the Wieczorek mine in Katowice's Janów-Nikiszowiec district, on Szopienicka Street. It was built in 1903-1911 and is entered in the heritage register.

Who built the shaft and when

The investor was the company Georg von Giesches Erben, and the complex was designed by the Berlin architects Emil and Georg Zillmann. Zabytek.pl describes it as a valuable example of uniform industrial buildings from the early 20th century.

The original shaft was called Carmer and in 1903-1910 reached a depth of 450 metres. In 1924 it was deepened to 521 metres, and in 1935, after the area was taken over by Poland, the name was changed to Pułaski.

What the complex includes

The dominant feature is the 40-metre steel winding tower. Alongside it stand, among others, a three-storey sorting plant, two engine houses, a converter building, a forge with a machine workshop, a joinery and a bathhouse with a clock tower. The style is eclectic, with elements of Art Nouveau and historicism.

Present condition and surroundings

The Wieczorek mine was handed over for liquidation in 2018. The shaft area is to be turned into a technology and games district, so access to the site may change. Not far away, about half a kilometre from here, lies the Nikiszowiec housing estate, and in Szopienice the Rolling Mill, Museum of Zinc Metallurgy.

Practical information

• Address: Szopienicka Street, Katowice-Janów.
• The site is a monument in the heritage register (number A/1384/89, re-entered as A/1384/24).
• It is a post-industrial site; check the rules of entry and of viewing from outside with the city of Katowice before a visit.