Water Tower on ul. Starowiejska in Racibórz

The water tower on ul. Starowiejska in Racibórz is a structure from the 1930s no longer used as a waterworks, 37 m high and standing on a rise 216 m above sea level. Today it houses a production plant and offices of a confectionery company.

Construction and structure

The design was drawn up in 1926. It was prepared by the municipal building councillor Wucherpfennig together with the architects Tschanter and Stromsky. Construction began in 1933, and the tower was put into operation while work was still under way, in 1935. Finishing work lasted until 1936.

The building stands on a plan close to a horseshoe, measuring 12 by 24 m. The walls are masonry and reinforced concrete, and the roof and floors reinforced concrete. The façade is faced with clinker brick from Baborów. Inside there are two reinforced-concrete tanks, each holding 600 m³ of water, and the building also provided flats for workers' families.

Why it stopped serving as a water tower

The tower was meant to meet the growing needs of the city, but it produced too high a pressure and caused failures of the network. It therefore supplied only the higher-lying Ocice, while the rest of the city continued to be served by an older water tower on today's ul. 1 Maja. After the war the Polish authorities gave up on restoring it to use.

Its propaganda function in the Third Reich

The tower was called the border tower, in German Der Grenzlandturm. It was decorated with the emblem of the Third Reich and an inscription, removed after the Second World War, and a state flag flew from its top.

The building was used for propaganda purposes: on the ground floor a place of veneration of the unknown soldier with a sarcophagus was set up, and on three floors a training centre for 50 people. On the eve of the Second World War the tower served as an observation point.

Today

The building houses one of the production plants and offices of a confectionery maker, the Mieszko company. At one time Radio Vanessa also had its seat here.

The tower stands in Racibórz, about 1.6 km from Racibórz Castle, and the Roth Town Park lies at a similar distance.

Practical information

• Location: ul. Starowiejska, Racibórz; the tower is clearly visible from the area thanks to its position on a rise.
• The building is in use by a company. Assume you will view it from the outside.