The Mazovian Voivodeship Conservator of Monuments has decided to enter a section of Wileńska Street in Warsaw into the register of monuments. The protection covered the section between Targowa and Konopacka Streets. This decision was justified by the historical and spatial value of the urban layout, which was formed at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries and has retained its original character despite post-war transformations.
The varied development of Wileńska and the railway heritage
The development of Wilenska Street exemplifies the complex development of the city. It includes a parcel layout characteristic of late 19th century rented buildings and buildings associated with the operation of the railway, including representative edifices from the 1920s and a housing estate from the late 1930s intended for railwaymen. The buildings were partially completed after the Second World War, maintaining their scale and compositional coherence. Despite modernisation and minor damage during the Second World War, the street layout remained legible. The original course of the road has survived, with greenery on the eastern side and pedestrian routes at the elevations. Existing architectural elements, such as window and door woodwork and façade details, reflect the material heritage of Warsaw’s Praga.
The origins of the development of Wileńska Street
Wileńska Street was laid out in 1873 on land belonging to the former Targówek manor. The owner of this land was Ksawery Konopacki, an official of the Government Commission of Revenue and Treasury, who carried out regulatory activities in the area. We wrote about the excellent renovation of his palace HERE. The development of the street accelerated after the construction of the initial station of the Warsaw-Petersburg Iron Road in 1862. A horse-drawn tram line was launched in the area of the street, and the street itself in the vicinity of the station was paved.
Significance of the street and intensification of development
In 1891 Nowa Praga, together with Szmulowizna and Kamionek, was annexed to Warsaw. This resulted in the need to regulate the numbering of plots. Two years later, it was decided to extend the horse-drawn tram line through Wileńska, Konopacka and Stalowa Streets to Szwedzka Street. In 1895, the surface level of Wileńska was raised and new concrete pavements were made. The station of the Warsaw-Petersburg Railway served as the main station for travellers arriving from the east. It was also a point for official visits, including those of Tsar Nicholas II. During World War I, the building was destroyed by retreating Russian troops. The ruins were demolished in 1919, but the residential buildings survived without major damage.
Investments in the interwar period
At the beginning of the 1920s, the villa of the head of the road distance was built on the south side of the street. In 1928-1931, however, the building of the Warsaw State Railway Directorate was constructed according to the design of Marian Lalewicz. In 1938, the Association for the Construction and Operation of Railway Workers’ Housing built two blocks of flats with landscaping. At the same time, the regulation of the course of the street was considered, but these plans were not realised.
Wartime and post-war period
Vilnius Street was not seriously damaged during the Second World War. After 1945, however, significant changes took place. The WZ route and Solidarity Avenue were laid out along the former railway tracks. New residential buildings were built near the Railway Directorate, and the course of the street at the junction with Konopacka was modified. New blocks of flats were built, including one at 18 Wileńska Street, replacing older buildings. In the 1960s, architectural details were removed from some of the buildings. Two decades later, Rzeszotarska Street was laid out. From the late 1980s, intensive development of the eastern section of the street continued. New blocks of flats were built in place of demolished tenements or on empty plots of land. In 2010, the Prague steam engine house, one of the last traces of the industrial past of this part of the city, was demolished.
Vilnius and the significance for Prague’s heritage
The conservator’s decision underlines the importance of Wilenska Street as a historical testimony to the urban development of Warsaw’s Praga. The protection extends not only to the spatial layout, but also to the architectural elements that have survived despite the passage of time. Unfortunately, many of the surrounding tenements are in ruins or approaching this state. Perhaps an entry in the register will help change their fate?
Source: Mazovian Voivodeship Historic Preservation Officer
Photo: WUOZ in Warsaw
Read also: Architecture | Tenement | City | Warsaw | Architecture in Poland
