It was erected in the 1st half of the 16th century as a fortified manor, so-called tower house, and then experienced various fortunes and conversions, characteristic of Polish history.

History

The building was probably created ca. 1540 as a tower house. Local property was owned in that time by Jakub Sancygniowski; then, through marriages and inheritance, it went to the families of Kostek, Tarnowski, Ostrogski, and in 1619, Lublin Voivode Piotr Aleksander purchased it for the Tarło family. The latter owned Chełmce until 1898, but the manor (tenement house) ceased to be their residence probably already after 1652, when they erected an impressive palace in nearby Piekoszów; the tower house became a family hunting manor then. The history of the building is unknown up to 1848, when its description was made — the building featured then two wooden side wings — on the south, with residential rooms, and on the east — a kitchen with back-up facilities. After the manor house and village were burned down by Russians in 1864, the ruined manor house was probably reconstructed after some time, and a stairwell and a porch on the first floor were added to it; the wings were never reconstructed. At one time, the manor house was surrounded by a park stretching to the east, and on the northern side there was a pond with a wooden country house. Further to the north, there was a yard with a manor farm surrounded by agricultural buildings. In the late 19th century, the property was parcelled out, and the farm manor Chełmce went into private hands. In 1915, the structure was bought by the parish priest from Oblęgorek, persuaded by H. Sienkiewicz, to organise a school in it. After the war, it was handed over to the Jarząbek family, and 1928, it was deemed unsuitable for living and destined for utility purposes. In 1956, wooden porches and stairwell with main roof were consumed by fire. The manor house decayed; in the 1960s an attempt was made to accommodate fire brigade in it and buildings started to appear around it, but in 1985 it was earmarked for demolition. Thanks to the efforts of restoration and conservation circles, the demolition was not carried out and in 1991 the structure was purchased from local authorities by the family of Borsa, architects, who partially renovated the structure, adapting it for residential purposes; in 2014, it changed owner once again. The structure is considered an Arian church on the basis of unspecified tradition, without evidence in sources.

Description

The manor house is currently situated in the middle of the village, between the hill of Góra Plebańska (with church) and Góra Zachętna. The original building was constructed on a plan approximating that of a square; it originated from the tradition of brick and stone, late-medieval defensive towers. It was and is a two-storey building with basements, currently covered with a hip roof. Many a time renovated or converted, it has lost numerous style features — which are mainly visible today in the proportions of the building. The basements are arranged in a two-bay layout, with a barrel vaulting. The ground floor features a representative hallway with barrel vaulting, and two rooms covered with a groin vault. Initially, the first floor's interior was a single space, with eight large windows opening to the four corners of the world. It was covered with a wooden ceiling, and entrance to the first floor led via a small drawbridge to the balcony on the west.  The layout of basements and ground floor has remained virtually the same, but on the first floor, there are early modern partitions dividing its space into smaller rooms. In the last years, also a new annex from the east was added, to house a stairwell. The small manor is now fenced, there is a lawn around the building as well as remains of a once impressive park, at present totally indiscernible. The buildings is made of stone (local dolomite and sandstone); ceilings, roof truss, and roof are from present times.

The historical building is not accessible, but well visible from the outside; private property.

Compiled by Dariusz Kalina, 21.12.2014.

Bibliography  

• Borsa M., Dwór w Chełmcach w powiecie kieleckim, [in:] Dwór polski w XIX wieku, Warszawa 1998, pp. 267-272.
• Borsa T., Domniemany zbór na tle przemian krajobrazu wsi Chełmce [in:] Dwór polski w XIX wieku, Warszawa 1990, pp. 77-88.
• Kajzer L., O kilku dworach późnorenesansowych z Sandomierszczyzny, [in:] Przemiany architektury rezydencjonalnej w XV-XVIII w. na terenie dawnego województwa sandomierskiego. Wybrane przykłady. Materiały z sesji naukowej - Kielce 18 września 1999, Kielce 2000, pp. 51-66.
• KZSP vol. 3, fasc. 4, pp. 11-12.
• Wiśniewski J., Dekanat konecki, Radom 1913, pp. 21.