Paprocka Huta

The Paprocka Steelworks, founded in 1703 by Baron Baltazar Erdmann Promnitz, is located near the village of Paprocany, now a district of Tychy. Throughout its over 170 years of operation, significant events took place in the 18th century when Prince Frederick Erdmann of Anhalt-Köthen of Pszczyna expanded the plant and named it after his son, Louis. Management of the steelworks was entrusted to August Kiss, the father of a renowned sculptor. Engineer John Baildon carried out a modernization in 1835, and in 1856, a steam engine was installed, contributing to the region's industrial development. The steelworks was closed in 1878, and after its liquidation, only three buildings remained, situated near Lake Paprocańskie and the Gostynka River. In 2009, these state-owned lands were put up for sale. After renovation, the Huta Paprocka restaurant along with a conference hall was opened in 2014, breathing new life into the historic site. The Paprocka Steelworks complex was entered into the register of monuments of the Silesian Voivodeship in 1991. Interestingly, although the steelworks ceased operations, its architectural and cultural heritage has endured, contributing to the local history and contemporary identity of the region.