Made from larch wood, this diminutive church stands in stark contrast to the hulking brick behemoth Manufaktura across the street. This small church was built between 1765-68 and was originally situated in Kościelny Square under the name the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. As the city boomed so did the congregation, which grew to 6,000 members when it was decided that a larger brick church was needed as replacement. Bishop Jan Siemiec decided to move the wooden church to its current spot on Ogrodowa – at the time home to an abandoned cemetery – and the building was moved piece by piece overnight by local factory workers to its present location in 1888, where it was consecrated by the Bishop of Warsaw as St. Joseph’s. As a result the church is the oldest and most humble house of worship in the city and possesses just one nave, a shingle roof and a tiny steeple. The church’s interior has recently undergone an impressive renovation and is worth a peek inside. Of particular interest is the neo-Baroque main altar, paid for somewhat surprisingly by the Jewish factory owner Israel Poznański. The free-standing bell tower, depending on whom you wish to believe, either dates from the 18th century and along with the church is the only pre-19th century building in the city, or was built from concrete in 1922. If the latter, then it has since been clad in wood.
St. Joseph's Church
Website
www.jozef.org.plOpen
Church opens 30mins before morning mass (7:00 during the week and 8:30 on Sundays).
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