Ostrava mills

Mills in Moravská Ostrava and Přívoz

The water mills were very likely to start to appear in Moravian Ostrava simultaneously with the establishment of the city in the thirteenth century but the oldest document about them was not earlier than in 1396. It is some kind of a proof of the upper and middle mill possession which were both the property of Ostrava´s reeve. The lower mill which later got the ,,surname" Valchovni must have already existed this time. Then followed the Field mill which was found during the influence of the bishop of Olomouc, Stanislav Pavlovský. These four mills worked all centuries when they were joined at the end of the last century by the ,,modern" mill for production of hulled grain and groats.

Mills in land Ostrava

Horní ostravský mlýn

Karolina 1939, New Karolina 2012

Upper Ostrava´s mill used to be about 270 m north-east of today´s railway station Ostrava-střed. The oldest information on it is from 1396. The last owner – from December 19th 1894 the Vítkovice Mining and Metallurgical Plant continued in former operation for several years but at the end of the century the mill and the sawmill totally closed as the operation of the shaft and coking plant Karolina increased.  

Bližní ostravský mlýn

Year 1920, situation today

Ostrava´s nearby mill used to be in the place of the Imperial hotel newer wing in 28.října street. Also this mill in 1396 already existed. The last owner since 1892 was Josef Brauner. In 1898 the mill reportedly burned down.

Valchovní (dolní) mlýn

mill to the right of the theater - year 1900, situation today

Valchovní mill is reminded by the memorable board in Mlýnská street. The mill used to be somewhere opposite the telecomunications building. Also this third mill already existed at the end of the fourteenth century. Rudolf Kolovrat from Hrušov was the last miller in the Vlachovní mill. In 1912 the mill burned down. The machine device was sold to scrap and the building was used for other purposes for some time. 

Polní mlýn

Reimann factory 1900, situation today

Field mill is mentioned in the oldest Ostrava´s register in 1625. The Field mill used to be somewhere in today´s Petr Bezruč park, in Ostrčilova street. In August 2nd 1859 the whole complex burned down and in 1865 his owner Dingler built a new paraffin and paraffin refinery factory. At the same time he built a new steam mill and a bakery. In 1880 during a serious flood there was a fire in which this mill burned down. 
In 1888 on the burnt place company W. Reimann built a new paperboard factory. The mill was not restored.

Mills in land Přívoz

The first news about the mills in Přívoz are from the beginning of the 17th century but everything indicates that both oldest mills – the Upper and the Lower one – existed already at the end of the 14th century when the colonization of Přívoz was finished.

Horní přívozský mlýn

situation today

Upper mill in Přívoz used to be the biggest one from the three mills in Přívoz. The oldest report about this mill is from 1614, the mill was situated behind Božena Němcová park in the place where there are residential buildings today.  After 47 years of possession, Josef Neuser, the last miller of the Upper mill sold this mill including the agricultural homestead to Opava´s company Tlach and Keil - zinc rolling mill in March 16 1853 for 11000,- PLN. Božena Němcová park is actually the first used brownfield in big Ostrava. The former zinc company Tlach & Keil company was at the end of the 19th century dissolved. The city bought the land in 1901. Opava´s company of Skazik brothers that owned the first silesian forest school and a florist shop and an artistic and trade garden centre worked out in 1903 a project of the park architectonic development including the calculation of the woody plant quantity. The planting lasted until 1907 after which the park was fenced and there were put two gates that were locked at night. The park had twelve hectares but today there is just less than one tenth of its former area. 

Faldynovský mlýn

situation today

This smallest mill in Přívoz used to be in Valchařská gutter under Nakvarovský pond in the place where Vlachařská gutter emptied into the Mill stream. As the main task of the gutter was to supply the pond with water the first miller Jakub Faldyna got the right just to the superfluous water from the Nakvarovského pond under which dam he could build an one-wheel mill. It happened on the basis of agreement with the city in February 16 1666. Faldynovský mill was in turns a mill and a draper´s fulling mill, mostly both at the same time.
Even in 1880 the building was called a flour mill. Owners hired out this building to private tenant farmers, one of the last farmers known in 1923 was Rudolf Blahuta.  In 1926 the City of Ostrava bought the mill and in the same year sold to the lessee Rudolf Blahuta. 
The shutdown of the mill is dated to 1926. Today there are no footprints left behind it, only the street behind the railway track where the mill used to be with its name „Na Valše“ reminds its existence.

Dolní Hechtrův mlýn

Mill Hechtr in 1900, situation today

Lower mill in Přívoz was built before 1616 and was situated on the joined watercourse of the Mill stream and Valchařská gutter, at the mouth of Odra river.  In 1916 the company Ostrava´s mills, owner of the mill in Třebovice, gained this mill. This very year 1917 the company invested to the device of the mill and changed the machines for more effective and modern ones. In 1922 the City of Moravian Ostrava gained this mill and immediately in 1923 sold the mill as the former mill to Mark Shoefer, businessman with old iron. 
Today there are no footprints left behind this mill Hechtrův mill (Lower one in Přívoz) was in Vyravova street, today Na náhoně Land Registry Number was 22. 

Other mills that were situated in Ostrava were outside the territory of Moravian Ostrava and Přívoz. Also information on these mills are in the museum on individual panels. It is the mills in Hrabová, Kunčice, Bartovice, Svinov, Poruba, Třebovice, Stará Bělá, Proskovice, Polanka and Koblov.