Stary Brus

Stary Brus (formerly Bruss) is a village in the Lublin Voivodeship, in Włodawa County, situated along the provincial road No. 819. The history of the settlement dates back to 1485, when it was first mentioned in the Chełm records. The village was established under German law before 1492, and its name derives from the word “brus,” meaning a whetstone. During the 16th and 17th centuries, it was a typical noble enclave, with the estate held by the Horoch family. After various changes in ownership, in the 18th century the Brus estate passed to the Chajęcki family, and then in 1802 it was acquired by Franciszek Kunicki, whose son sold the village to Roch Jasieński. Jasieński invested in the development of the village, building infrastructure such as a granary, an inn, and an elementary school established in 1870. After World War I, the village was reconciled to the Catholic Church, and in the 20th century, Stary Brus underwent a series of administrative changes. An important architectural landmark is the parish church of Our Lady of Częstochowa, built between 1805 and 1807 as a Uniate church and later converted to Roman Catholic in 1918. It houses valuable elements such as a classicist sandstone baptismal font and a sculpture of St. Nepomucene. Another preserved historical building is a wooden manor farmhand’s quarters, built in a log structure. With a population of 414 according to the 2011 census, Stary Brus pursued modernization by introducing water supply and sewage systems in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The village is an example of Poland’s rich history and the transformation of rural areas, from a noble estate to a modern community.