In addition, the building also presents a cultural and research value stemming from the surviving machinery and equipment from the 1920s, which has retained its overall integrity despite the passage of time.

History

The watermill in Kluczno forms part of a miller’s farmyard founded by Franciszek Patrzykowski, a German settler, which also encompassed a cottage, a timber mill and two utility buildings. The structure is believed to have been constructed in 1830, standing on the right bank of the Liswarta river. Initially powered by an overshot waterwheel, the mill performed an industrial function (grain grinding). In 1927, the watermill was modernised, with the overshot waterwheel being replaced by a vertical turbine with a reduction drive. The mill was extended upwards by a single storey, with the western façade now adjoined by a small building serving as a timber mill. The entire water flow system was redesigned, as was the accompanying canal. The successive transformations of the watermill took place in 1971, focusing on its drive and water flow system. The mill received a new turbine, with the mill race now featuring reinforced concrete banks. The upper canal was also modified, with a new, steel grate being installed. From 1995 onwards, the building stood abandoned, with both the mill itself and the timber mill no longer in operation. Until this very day, the entire farmstead - along with the mill - remains in the hands of one family.

Description

The watermill is located on the right bank of the Liswarta river, in the western part of the Kluczno village. The building forms part of a larger farmstead complex which also includes a timber mill, a farmhouse, utility buildings positioned in the northern part of the complex as well as a pond located south of the farm.

The building has various features typical of the regional wooden architecture, forming an example of a mill powered by an overshot waterwheel. No information exists in historical sources which would make it possible to identify the designer of the structure; the design for the remodelling works performed in the 1920s was produced by W. Kuderski. The mill is a three-storey structure designed on a rectangular floor plan, positioned on field stone foundations, its compact, asymmetrical silhouette topped with a low gable roof. The watermill is a post-and-beam structure, with the exception of its first storey, designed as a saddle-notched log structure. The façades are symmetrical in appearance, their surface clad with weatherboards in a vertical arrangement, with the joints between the sections of the cladding designed to accentuate the individual storeys. The window and door openings are simple and restrained in appearance, with no decorative surrounds. The main entrance is positioned in the centre of the front façade. Inside, the watermill features flat ceilings supported by sturdy crossbeams; the building has concrete flooring at the ground-floor level, with wooden floors being used for all the remaining storeys. Access to the individual storeys is facilitated by simple stringer stairs. The mill features surviving original fixtures and fittings in the form of milling equipment, shafts, bucket conveyors, grinders, sifters and chaff separators, dating back mostly from the 1920s. The positioning of individual devices used for chaff separation, grinding, winnowing and grain and flour transport is such that the main section of the mill can be said to occupy the second and third storey of the building.

It can be viewed from outside.

compiled by Agata Mucha, Regional Branch of the National Heritage Board of Poland in Katowice, 16-10-2014.

Bibliography

• Record sheet of monuments of architecture, Młyn Wodny (Watermill), prepared by H. Łabęcka, Częstochowa 1998, Archive of the Regional Monuments Protection Office in Katowice