OKRĄGLAK - parowozownia w Pile
The most valuable monument of extant
industrial architecture in Piła is
roundhouse with adjoining objects. It is
permanently embedded in city landscape.
At present, it is the unique type of
object extant in original shape in
Poland and it is among a few in Europe.
The roundhouse objects were taken under
restorer’s care. Unfortunately, it is
gradually destroyed as the result of
desisting from regular restoring
actions. Due to its solid construction
it has not collapsed yet. The only
rescue for that object could be
targeting it for transport and
productive or exhibition purposes
supported with necessary funds for
carrying out essential redecorative
works. The group of citizens of Pila
having interest in city history formed
association by the name of Pilska
Parowozownia – OKRĄGLAK which was
registered in Judicial Country Register
on the 29th of March in 2007
as the initiative to fulfill these
objectives. Now, the study works are in
progress over preparing utilization
concept of not only roundhouse hall but
of the whole railway monumental complex:
the back of office and storehouse, and
workshops with water-tower. Worked out
materials will be presented to object
owners, local authorities and the other
bodies which could take part in project.
The railway in history of
Piła played significant role. It was the
source of jobs for major part of city
citizens until nearly XX century. The
beginnings of railway in Pila reach the
half of XIX century. After ten years
from starting first preparatory works
and after three years of aforementioned
works in progress, the first railway
line crossing Pila was festively opened
on the 27th of July in 1851.
It was part of Eastern Railway (Ostbahn)
from Berlin to Krolewiec. Some stations
needed to be equipped with devices for
water supply and coal supply and tools
for substituting locomotives, because of
technical range of contemporary steam
engines which amounted to only several
kilometers. One of such stations was
Pila.
The bill of parliament passed in 1868
decreed the construction of railway line
from Pila through Chojnice to Tczew and
it was thus possible to shorten the
route to Bydgoszcz by 34 kilometers.
From the moment of opening this railway
line on the 16th of January
in 1871 (the line was built through
stages, the whole route was negotiable
just only on the 15th of July
in 1873) Pila was granted the status of
node station. Aforementioned decisions
caused the urgent need of building
technical support system. One is tempted
to think that it caused the second birth
of Pila station. Investments were
realized during 1870-1874 period.
Besides constructing new station
building, the roundhouse with central
rotating device (designed as the model
one for Eastern Railway) and office
building with water reservoir and boiler
house and workshop and water-tower and
water take were built.
The roundhouse was the
building used for stopovers of steam
engine locomotives. All kinds of work
connected with present maintenance of
steam engines locomotives were carried
out in it: preparing them for
functioning, securing them after ride
and making all the fine repairs. The
functioning of roundhouse was
accompanied with the activity of the
devices of the other buildings:
workshops, office and dispatching
center, changing rooms, dining room,
storehouses (spare parts, oils etc.),
boiler house, pump station and water
reservoir (water-tower) and coal depot.
Taking into consideration the technical
conditions of servicing the railway
traffic all the aforementioned buildings
and devices were situated between
railways tracts coming out into
direction of Bydgoszcz and Chojnice.
New roundhouse in hexagonal shape with
rotating device situated centrally
allowed for moving locomotives of 11
meters. It was equipped with three entry
gates which made stationing and
servicing 13 locomotives possible at the
same time. Main hall has diameter of 31
meters and height of 16 meters. It is
surrounded with nave of 9, 7 meters
width and 6, 2 – 8 meters height. The
dome of hall is supported on cast-iron
poles and it is crowned with blind vent
of 6, 5 metres diameter and 2 metres
height. The roof construction is made of
framework installed with rivet steel
elements and its roofing is made of
boards covered with asphalt. The blind
vent (in the shape of chimney) is built
into the dome over every stopover
position allowing for moving outside
steam and smoke from active chimney of
steam engine.
The dome is separated from nave
surrounding stopover positions by high
(ca. 2 metres) glass skylight consisting
of 64 modules (4 for each 16 segments).
The roof of nave is constructively
supported by rivet grating based on the
one end on the external wall and on the
other end on cast-iron pole. The wood
roofing made of boards attached to
crosswise edges is covered with roof
asphalt. The whole construction of roof
is augmented by many steel pulls
connected with screws.
The two windows are situated in most of
lateral walls. The entry gates (at
present fully steel, originally with
glassed wood construction) are built
into three windows and one entry gate is
constructed with bonding bar for office
building with water reservoir on the
last floor. All the walls (external and
internal) are made of brick and they are
externally connected and internally
whitened. They are also plastered and
painted (in separate rooms). The tracks
(stopover and gateway) are equipped with
review canals of 12,5 -13,5 metres
length.
The main hall is directly adjoined by
two storerooms (built in slightly later
period). The buildings of pump station
and water-tower and storehouse and
boiler house belong to roundhouse unit,
too. Only traces of external devices for
carborization (coal trenches, cranes)
and routing (cleaning canals) remained
in present day roundhouse. As time had
elapsed steam engine locomotives got
longer (increasing their power caused
the lengthening of boilers). New
rotating device of 16 meters diameter
was built in 20s of last century in
order to use continuously roundhouse
facilities. New fanned roundhouses were
constructed for longer steam engine
locomotives (for passenger and freight
stations). The decisions were taken to
perform current repairs of carriages and
tenders in old roundhouse to enhance its
use.
At the break of 80s and 90s of the last
century the whole roundhouse was used as
the place of storing inactive steam
engine locomotives and tenders and as
the workshop in which future railway
mechanics were trained. The first class
locomotive works were dissolved in 1991.
Finally, the utilization of the
roundhouse was terminated in 1997 with
dissolving the repairing section of
internal combustion engines. Up to the
end of XX century the hall was utilized
as the garage for trolleys of the
department dealing with railway lines
maintenance and as the storehouse of
road materials. It was no longer used
after that time because of poor
technical conditions.
Everything should be done for that
important and monumental object of
industrial architecture in order to
preserve it in Pila landscape. The task
undertaken by the members of Pilska
Parowozownia Association is huge
challenge not only for them but most of
all for the owners of roundhouse
property and Pila town.
Piotr Rogoziński
Above
article was published in “Kronika
Wielkopolski” Nr 4(124) year 2007 p.
101-106
