Bykovtsi

Bykowce is a village located in the Podkarpackie Voivodeship, within the Sanok commune, known for its rich history and beautiful landscapes. A small stream flows through the village, and it is surrounded by forests and the San River. Since 1918, the village has changed its administrative affiliation several times, and it is currently traversed by the national road No. 28. The settlement has its roots in several independent settlements, the first of which was Rytarowce, established in 1435. During the 16th and 17th centuries, these settlements merged into one village known as Bykowce. The first owners of Bykowce were the Czeszyk family, and later the estate passed into the hands of the Tarnawiecki family. Architecturally, the village is distinguished by the 19th-century manor of the Tarnawiecki family and a newly built Roman Catholic chapel (2000). Bykowce is also home to the "Polanki" nature reserve, which was established on the site of former oil and gas exploration. In terms of culture, before World War II, the village had social and cultural organizations, including an agricultural circle and a volunteer fire department. Interestingly, in 1860, Aleksander Truszkowski, a major general in the imperial army, was born here. The history of Bykowce is also linked to the dramatic events of World War II, when the village was successively occupied by Soviet and German forces. In 1940, the estate was transformed into a kolkhoz, and in 1941, Slovak soldiers died in a skirmish with the Red Army, which is commemorated by a cemetery in the western part of the village. Religiously, until 1946, Bykowce was a Greek Catholic parish, and after the war, it came under the care of the Roman Catholic parish. Historical monuments such as cemeteries, roadside crosses, and monuments commemorating historical events have also been preserved. Thus, the village is not only a place with an interesting cultural heritage but also a space that bears traces of the region's turbulent history.