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Mills

On the territory of Wizna municipality there used to be numerous historical mill complexes of extraordinary value. Milling was a very important branch of industry in pre-war Poland so most of the mills survived in good condition till the beginning of the 20th century. Unfortunately, nowadays, you won’t be able to find any operating mills. However, the remaining structures themselves, even in ruins, are great examples of hydro-based technological solutions and important features constituting cultural heritage.

The course of fate of most millers’ families was tragic and complicated. The hardest time came when the 2nd World War broke. Wheat milling was fully controlled by the Germans.”Illegal milling” was a crime punishable by prison or even death. After the Russian invasion the only fact of being an owner of a mill resulted in deportations of whole families to Syberia.

The end of war didn’t mean that the life of mill owners changed. Mills, manor houses and estates were nationalized. As a consequence, nobody took care of the mills and the destroyed ones never revived.

The current condition of milling is hopeless. The mills of unique historical and cultural importance aren’t at work. Sometimes, we can only discover the outlines among the ruins or abandoned fragments of water systems. Only a few of them were revitalized but they don’t perform their original function.

Author: Artur Szulc, „Młyny Ziemi Łomżyńskiej” autorstwa Grażyny Balińskiej i Jerzego A. Balińskiego, Wrocław 2003.

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