Ołbin

Ołbin is a district in Wrocław, located north of Ostrów Tumski, which was the nucleus of the city's settlement. Its history dates back to the 12th century, when in the 1130s, Count Piotr Włostowic founded the Benedictine Abbey of St. Vincent. In the 19th century, the Church of St. Michael the Archangel was built on the site of the former abbey. For a long time, Ołbin remained on the outskirts, outside the city walls of Wrocław, and its development accelerated after the city was occupied by Napoleonic troops in 1807 and incorporated into the city limits in 1808. Important structures were located here, including the Chapel of St. Jerome and later the Church of St. Ursula. In the mid-19th century, a glassworks was established near the church, and in the area of Nowa Wieś Polska, there was the People's Garden, a popular recreational spot. Ołbin also became the birthplace of St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, whose family home was converted into a museum. In the second half of the 19th century, the Wrocław Consumer Cooperative was founded, and at Sienkiewicza Street, the "Mamut" bakery, one of the largest at the time, was located. The architecture is dominated by tenement houses from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, and due to lesser destruction during World War II, many of them have survived to this day. Ołbin is also known for its rich cultural and educational history, including the existence of the Institute for the Deaf and Dumb and the Evangelical Theological Seminary "Johanneum." Between 1902 and 1904, the building of the Royal School of Building Crafts was constructed here. The name Ołbin, first recorded in documents in 1175, most likely derives from the name Albin or may be related to the German word for "swan." Today, Ołbin, with its numerous architectural monuments and rich history, is a cultural hub, inhabited by approximately 41,100 people according to 2004 estimates. In 1991, separate districts were carved out from it, giving Ołbin a well-defined identity within Wrocław.