Wooden four-family houses of the interwar period in Hajnówka and Czarna Białostocka

Aleksander Owerczuk

doi:10.37190/arc250101

Abstract

Wooden architecture, including residential architecture, is an important element of the landscape of Podlasie. Interesting examples of it can be found in Hajnówka and Czarna Białostocka. Both towns owe their dynamic development in the interwar period to the timber industry. For the rapidly increasing number of inhabitants at that time, new houses were built.

The subject of the research were two housing estates of four-family houses in Hajnówka and one in Czarna Białostocka. The main goal of the author of the article was to expand knowledge in the field of wooden buildings of the interwar period in the Podlaskie Voivodeship. The basic task was therefore to describe the architectural solutions of four-family houses, as well as the urban planning solutions of the housing estates. The study used methods applied in the research of the history of architecture – gathering information available in the literature on the subject and archival sources as well as field research. The research material obtained was subjected to analysis and inference.

The article discusses the architectural, functional and construction solutions of the four-family houses. All residential buildings, except for minor differences, have the same solutions. In urban planning, very similar layouts were also used in each of the housing estates. They are the result of the conditions of the epoch. The current state of the housing estates was also analyzed in terms of preserving their historical character. Based on it, it can be concluded that most of the buildings have undergone transformations, often to an extent that makes it impossible to identify the historical form. The housing estates as a whole have lost their important quality, which was the architectural homogeneity of the buildings.

Full article view is only available on bigger screens.

2025

1(81)

Aleksander Owerczuk*

Wooden four-family houses of the interwar period

in Hajnówka and Czarna Białostocka

DOI: 10.37190/arc250101

Published in open access. CC BY NC ND license

Abstract

Wooden architecture, including residential architecture, is an important element of the landscape of Podlasie. Interesting examples of it can be found

in Hajnówka and Czarna Białostocka. Both towns owe their dynamic development in the interwar period to the wood industry. For the rapidly growing

number of residents, new houses needed to be built.

The subject of the study were two housing estates in Hajnówka and one in Czarna Białostocka. The main goal of the author of the article was to

expand knowledge in the eld of wooden buildings of the interwar period in the Podlaskie Voivodeship. The basic task was to describe the architectural

attributes of four-family houses, as well as the urban planning of housing estates. The study uses research methods applied in the eld of architectural

history – collecting information available in the literature on the subject and archival sources, as well as eld research. The obtained research material

was subjected to analysis and inference.

The article discusses architectural, functional and structural attributes of quads. All residential buildings, apart from minor dierences, have the

same attributes. In urban planning, very similar layouts were also used in each of the housing estates. They are the result of the conditions of the epoch.

The current condition of the housing estates was also analyzed in terms of preserving their historical character. On the basis of the recent eld work, it

can be concluded that most of the buildings have been transformed, often to an extent that it is impossible to identify their historical form. The housing

estates as a whole have lost their important value, which was the architectural homogeneity of the buildings.

Key words: wooden architecture, quads, architecture of the interwar period

Introduction

Wooden architecture is represented in large numbers in

the Podlaskie Voivodeship. Above all, sacral architecture

is visible in the landscape – wooden Catholic and Ortho-

dox churches (Pokropek, Pokropek 1996). Houses are also

an important part of the wooden construction stock. They

form an important element not only of rural development,

but also of many cities of Podlasie. They were built during

various periods, including the interwar years, when houses

of both traditional and modern character were being erect-

ed. Many residential buildings of the interwar period are

located in Białystok, the current capital of the Podlaskie

Voivodeship, and then the capital of the Białystok Voivode-

ship (Górska et al. 2020). These include single-family

houses and multi-family buildings. Interesting examples

of residential buildings of the interwar period can also be

found in smaller towns. Hajnówka and Czarna Białostocka

should be mentioned here (Fig. 1). Characteristic among

the buildings found in both of the aforementioned towns

are four-family residential buildings, which are the subject

of this work. These buildings are located in two housing

estates in Hajnówka and one housing estate in Czarna Bi-

ałostocka. The selection of the studied architectural objects

was determined by formal similarities in terms of architec-

tural and urban planning solutions, as well as the fact that

they were constructed during the same time period.

The general objective of the study was to expand know-

ledge in the eld of wooden buildings of the interwar period

in the Podlaskie Voivodeship. The basic task was to describe

the architectural attributes of four-family houses, as well as

the urban layout of housing estates. Due to their similari-

ties, it turned out to be important to study the genesis of the

adopted solutions. The thesis put forward at the beginning

of the study was that the architectural choices and urban

* ORCID: 0000-0002-5803-046X. Faculty of Architecture, Bialy-

stok University of Technology, Poland, e-mail: a.owerczuk@pb.edu.pl

4 Aleksander Owerczuk

planning solutions used were a result of the general condi-

tions of the era and the specicity of the locations chosen.

State of research

Until now, four-family houses in the aforementioned

towns have not been the subject of direct research work.

Although there are no scientic studies on the architecture

and urban planning of the quads specically, the general is-

sue of wooden buildings in Hajnówka have been presented

in some local historical studies (Pater 2013; 2016; 2021).

The knowledge contained in these publications is valuable,

but mostly focused on the history of the town and the lives

of its inhabitants. Apart from passing mentions of the con-

struction of the housing estate, there are no dedicated stud-

ies concerning the housing estate in Czarna Białostocka.

Valuable information on the development of housing in the

interwar period can be found in the book by Małgorzata

Rozbicka (2007). Wooden quads are also mentioned there.

Methods

The study uses research methods employed in the eld

of architectural history – collection of information avail-

able in the literature on the subject and archival sources, as

well as eld research. The obtained research material was

subjected to analysis and inference.

Bibliographic queries (Biblioteka Narodowa [National

Library] in Warsaw, Książnica Podlaska [Podlasie Library]

in Białystok, publications in libraries available online) in-

cluded both published and unpublished works. Among

publicly available sources, historical publications concern-

ing individual towns and regions were of great importance

due to the lack of studies directly related to the subject

being analyzed. Archival queries were carried out in the

Archiwum Akt Nowych [Archives of Modern Records] in

Warsaw (AAN), Archiwum Państwowe [State Archives] in

Białystok (AP) and the photographic collections of the

Miej ska Biblioteka Publiczna [Municipal Public Library]

in Hajnówka (MBP).

An important element of the study was eld research,

which helped to determine the current condition of the fa -

cilities and compare it with information obtained elsewhere.

Photographic documentation was made. During the in situ

esearch, an inventory of one segment of the quads in Czar-

na Białostocka was carried out. Materials obtained as part

of a eld study internship carried out by master students of

architecture in 2022 from the Faculty of Architecture at the

Bialystok University of Technology were also used. Their

study was primarily aimed at documenting the current state

of the buildings (Dokumentacja praktyki 2022). The ob-

tained material was used mainly for comparative analyses

of historical records and the current state of preservation

of the quads. Preliminary research on the topic was carried

out in 2021, the main part of the work was carried out in

2022–2023, and supplementary research in 2024.

Results

The wood industry as the basis

for the development

of Hajnówka and Czarna Białostocka

The dynamic development of Hajnówka and Czarna Bia-

łostocka

in the interwar period had solid economic founda-

tions. Large forest complexes and historical events created

favourable conditions for the development of the wood

industry in the region. In 1915, during World War I, these

areas were occupied by the Germans. The surrounding for-

ests attracted the attention of the occupier and almost im-

mediately the Germans began to obtain raw wood material

on a large scale. For this purpose, sawmills and other wood

processing plants were built. A network of narrow-gauge

railways was created to transport the raw material. After

Poland regained independence, the wood industry contin-

ued to develop. In the entire Białystok Voivodeship, this

branch of industry became one of the most important areas

of the economy and employed the most workers (Kosiński

1962, 79). At that time, Hajnówka and Czarna Białostocka

transformed from rural towns into urban centers.

Fig. 1. Research area

(prepared by A. Owerczuk,

based on the Location map

of Poland 2021)

Il. 1. Obszar badań

(oprac. A. Owerczuk,

na podstawie Location map

of Poland 2021)

–

Wooden four-family houses of the interwar period in Hajnówka and Czarna Białostocka 5

Before World War I, Hajnówka had about 600 inhab-

itants (Pater 2016, 130), and after the events of the war,

fewer than two hundred. Over time, the town gained eco-

nomic importance and became […] the largest center of

the wood industry in north-eastern Poland. Development

is going at such a fast pace that Hajnówka has already

surpassed Bielsk in terms of the number of inhabitants

(Karpiński, Orłowicz 1937, 54). At the end of the 1930s,

Hajnówka was inhabited by several thousand people, with

some sources claiming that in 1939 there were up to 17,000

inhabitants in the town (Pater 2013, 95).

Czarna Białostocka also owes its intensive develop-

ment to the wood industry. In 1915, the Germans built six

sawmills, a woodchip production plant, workshops, a pow-

er plant and narrow-gauge railway lines for transporting

wood in the village near the Czarna Wieś station (Dobroń-

ski 2014, 89). The industrial base left after the German oc-

cupation was expanded after the war and became the main

driving force behind the development of the town. In 1962,

the town was transformed into the city that today is called

Czarna Białostocka.

In the interwar period, as a result of the economic devel-

opment of both towns, there was a large increase in the pop-

ulation and, consequently, a rapid increase in demand for

housing. In order to satisfy the demand, numerous houses

were erected. The construction of new buildings was of-

ten done in a chaotic manner. At that time, Haj nówka was

described as follows: Nevertheless, it has the character of

a semi-rural industrial settlement and is built up quite un-

systematically (Karpiński, Orłowicz 1937, 54). Over time,

housing estates appeared, which were given a uniform

architectural character. Because of their orderly compo-

sition, they tended to stand out in the urban structure of

the town.

The State Forests Company and the quads

An important role in the management of forest re-

sources was played by the State Forests company [Lasy

Państwowe]. It was established in 1924 (Lasy Państwowe,

2024). The nal organization of the company was complet-

ed in 1930. The management of the company was provided

by the General Directorate of the State Forests, established

in 1930 (Broda 2006, 103). It was responsible for the Tech-

nical Oce of the Construction Department, and in the

years 1937–1938 many designs of typical buildings were

developed by this oce. A common feature of these struc-

tures was, of course, the use of wood as the basic build-

ing material. The functions of the buildings correspond-

ed to the needs of the State Forests. Designs for a typical

forestry oce, forest inspector’s lodge, forester’s lodge,

gamekeeper’s lodge, farm buildings and many others were

prepared

. Among them were residential buildings. These

included designs of houses for 20 and 40 seasonal workers,

barracks and 2-, 4- and 6-apartment workers’ buildings.

The four-family houses erected in Haj nówka and Czarna

Based on a query at the AAN in Warsaw, Ministry of Internal

Aairs, le no. 2/9/0/5.5/I 3953-3967.

Białostocka have the same attributes as a typical design of

a 4-apartment workers’ building, marked with the symbol

r2 (Fig. 2).

The typical design r2, developed in February 1938,

was the documentation of a “4-family workers’ building”

with a built-up area of 206.5 m

and a cubic capacity

of 654.2 m

. The designed area of the segment was

43.76 m

. The two-room apartments consisted of a kitchen

(14.51 m

), a room (22.13 m

), a hall (2.86 m

) and

a pantry (4.26 m

). The entrance to the apartment led

through a hallway. From the hall you could go to the kitchen

and pantry. The fa mily room was accessible only through

the kitchen. A ladder through a hatch in the ceiling made

it possible to enter the attic. In addition, there was a cellar

under the pantry, accessible through a hatch in the oor,

and a chute led to it from the outside. The designed build-

ing had a log structure, external walls which were 12.5 cm

thick, internal structural walls which were 10 cm thick, and

partition walls consisting of two layers of boards. The roof

truss had a purlin-tie structure. The purlins were support-

ed by posts. The proposed roof covering was shingles. The

project also provided for the possibility of dierent roof-

ing, which was “dependent on local conditions” (Fig. 2)

A simple, compact body on a rectangular plan was covered

with a hip roof. The roof slope was broken at the eaves.

There were small dormers in the roof to illuminate the attic.

The entrance was accentuated by an open porch.

A typical project can be compared to the completed

quad in Czarna Białostocka (Fig. 3). The materials were

provided by eld research and a measurement inventory

of one segment of the quad. The area of the apartment

is about 43 m

. The apartment consists of the following

rooms: hall (3.2 m

), pantry (3.8 m

), kitchen (14.2 m

)

and room (21.8 m

). The height of the rooms was about

270 cm. From the hall it was possible to go to the kitchen

and to the pantry. A ladder led to the attic. In addition, there

was a small cellar under the pantry. A hatch in the oor

granted access to the cellar from the pantry, and from out-

side the building through a chute. The kitchen had a tiled

kitchen range. The room was accessible through the kitch-

en and was heated by a tiled stove. The architectural form

does not dier from the one proposed in the r2 project

The same or almost the same solutions were used in the

quads in Hajnówka (Fig. 4).

The utility program of the quads was complemented

by farm buildings. They consisted of two large rooms.

One was intended for storing lumber to be used for fuel,

the other for backyard breeding, mainly pigs and chick-

ens (Dużyński 2024). In addition, there were toilets in the

outbuilding. In the case of Czarna Białostocka, they were

placed in the body of the farm building (Fig. 5), while

in Hajnówka they were placed separately from the farm

From the descriptive part of the design of a typical 4-apartment

worker’s building, marked with the symbol r2 (source: Typowy pro-

jekt…, AAN in Warsaw, le no. 2/9/0/5.5/I 3955).

In some buildings, there were slight dierences, e.g., the form

of the window to the vestibule and pantry. Due to the reconstruction

of most buildings, it is dicult to determine in which buildings which

solutions were adopted.

6 Aleksander Owerczuk

Fig. 3. Czarna Białostocka, residential building:

a) general view, 2023 (photo by A. Owerczuk), b) plan (drawing by A. Owerczuk)

Il. 3. Czarna Białostocka, budynek mieszkalny:

a) widok ogólny, 2023 (fot. A. Owerczuk), b) rzut (rys. A. Owerczuk)

a b

Fig. 2. A typical design of a 4-apartment workers’ building, marked with the symbol r2:

a) view of the façade, b) plan of the ground floor and foundations

(source: Typowy projekt…, AAN in Warsaw, file no. 2/9/0/5.5/I 3955)

Il. 2. Typowy projekt budynku robotniczego 4-mieszkaniowego, oznaczonego symbolem r2:

a) widok elewacji, b) rzut parteru i fundamentów

(źródło: Typowy projekt…, AAN w Warszawie, sygn. 2/9/0/5.5/I 3955)

Wooden four-family houses of the interwar period in Hajnówka and Czarna Białostocka 7

Fig. 4. Hajnówka, Czworaki housing estate, residential buildings:

a) general view of one of the buildings, 2019 (photo by A. Owerczuk),

b) fragment of a building finished with plaster, 2022 (source: Dokumentacja praktyki 2022, photo by A. Łaska)

Il. 4. Hajnówka, Osiedle Czworaki, budynki mieszkalne:

a) widok ogólny jednego z budynków, 2019 (fot. A. Owerczuk),

b) fragment budynku wykończonego tynkiem, 2022 (źródło: Dokumentacja praktyki 2022, fot. A. Łaska)

a b

Fig. 5. Czarna Białostocka, outbuilding:

a) general view, 2023 (photo by A. Owerczuk), b) plan (drawing by A. Owerczuk)

Il. 5. Czarna Białostocka, budynek gospodarczy:

a) widok ogólny, 2023 (fot. A. Owerczuk), b) rzut (rys. A. Owerczuk)

a b

building (Fig. 6). Slightly dierent solutions were used in

the design of farm buildings developed for the State For-

ests (Fig. 7a), although the utility program was the same

(“lumber storage”, “pigsty” and “toilet”).

The chronology presented in the literature on the sub-

ject raises some doubts. According to some studies, the

rst quads were erected in Hajnówka before 1938. The

buildings in the Kolejki Leśne housing estate were erected

in 1934 (Gryc 2007, 48). The rst houses in the Czworaki

housing estate, on the other hand, were built in 1933 (Pater

2021, 217) or 1934 (Gryc 2007, 276). This suggests that

documentation analogous to the r2 project was used earli-

er, before 1938. It is dicult to determine this at present.

This does not change the fact that the r2 project and the

implementation of four-family buildings in Hajnówka and

Czarna Białostocka, apart from minor dierences, are ba-

sically identical.

Urban planning solutions

of the researched housing estates

In 1937, the Chief Directorate of the State Forests de-

veloped a “typical project for the layout of plots of work-

ers’ housing estates” (Fig. 7b). The model plot had an area

of 600 m

and the shape of a rectangle with dimensions of

20 × 30 m. Located on the plot were: 1/4 of the quad and

1/4 of the outbuilding. In the case of the outermost plots,

the outbuilding served two properties.

In both villages, the urban planning of the housing es-

tates and the location of the facilities on the plots were very

similar to the proposals developed by the General Director-

ate of the State Forests. The plots had the shape of a rectan-

gle similar to a square. The majority had an area of about

600 m

. The outermost plots were larger. Areas that dif-

fered from this norm were a result of individual conditions,

8 Aleksander Owerczuk

e.g., irregular boundaries of the housing estate. The plots

formed lines of buildings, and access to them was provided

by streets running along the length of the buildings. They

were supplemented by perpendicular streets.

Each four-family house was located at the junction of

four properties and “marked” the layout of the apartments

with four perpendicular boundaries of plots coming out

of the centre of the building. Entrances to the apartments

were located on the side of the street. The development of

the plot was complemented by farm buildings. In the case

of properties within the development line, they were locat-

ed on the border of four plots, while on the outermost

plots,

Fig. 7. A typical design of the layout of plots of workers’ housing estates together with designs of farm buildings:

a) plan of the farm building, b) layout of plots (source: Typowy projekt rozplanowania…, AAN in Warsaw, file no. 2/9/5.5/I 3960)

Il. 7. Typowy projekt rozplanowania działek osiedli robotniczych razem z projektami budynków gospodarczych:

a) rzut budynku gospodarczego, b) rozplanowanie działek (źródło: Typowy projekt rozplanowania…, AAN w Warszawie, sygn. 2/9/5.5/I 3960)

Fig. 6. Hajnówka, Kolejki Leśne housing estate, outbuildings:

a) one of the buildings, general view, 2019 (photo by A. Owerczuk), b) one of the buildings, general view, 2019 (photo by A. Owerczuk),

c) gable façade, d) side façade (source: Dokumentacja praktyki 2022, drawings by S. Goliszek, W. Markowska, P. Mieteń)

Il. 6. Hajnówka, Osiedle Kolejki Leśne, budynki gospodarcze:

a) jeden z budynków, widok ogólny, 2019 (fot. A. Owerczuk),

b) jeden z budynków, widok ogólny, 2019 (fot. A. Owerczuk),

c) elewacja szczytowa, d) elewacja boczna (źródło: Dokumentacja praktyki 2022,

rys. S. Goliszek, W. Markowska, P. Mieteń)

a c

b d

Wooden four-family houses of the interwar period in Hajnówka and Czarna Białostocka 9

farm buildings, common to two apartments, were located

on the border of two properties and were moved away

from the outer border.

Housing estates in Hajnówka

The main elements of the urban layout of Hajnówka

were shaped in the late 1930s. This was the result of the ac-

tivities of the Construction Department of the Voivodeship

Oce in Białystok and the Bureau of Measurements and

Buildings of the Cities of the Białystok Voivodeship, es-

tablished in 1935 (Pater 2021, 20). The street layout creat-

ed at that time is clear to this day. The street grids included

buildings of various character. Among them, housing es-

tates with their orderly urban composition stand out. These

include: Siwa and Biała Kolonia, Urzędnicze housing es-

tate, Judzianka (located outside the boundaries of a previ-

ous building complex), Kolejki Leśne and Czworaki hous-

ing estate. The buildings of the rst three housing estates

were made up of two-family houses. On the other hand, the

Czworaki and Kolejki Leśne housing estates were built up

with four-family houses.

The smallest of the four-family housing estates is the

Kolejki Leśne housing estate. It is located on the eastern

edge of the city. It consisted of six four-family houses with

home gardens supplemented by farm buildings. The urban

layout of the buildings was simple. The quads were located

in two rows of three buildings each. The plots formed lines

of buildings, and access to them was provided by streets

running along them, as well as streets that ran traverse to

the buildings. The plots were of various sizes. The small-

est, located in the middle of the estate, were about 400 m

The largest, outermost plots were about 1000 m

each.

The Czworaki housing estate was built by the Wood

Works. It was located in the central part of the city, on one

of the main streets (Piłsudskiego Street) running through

the city. The rst 17 buildings were commissioned in 1933,

the next three in 1937, and the last two in 1940 (Pater

2021, 217) (Fig. 8). As in the case of the previous housing

estate, the urban composition was very simple. It consisted

of four rows of buildings with ve quads and two addition-

al quads on the north-east side, totalling 22 quads. The area

of the plots ranged from about 600 m

to about 900 m

in the case of the outermost plots (Fig. 9a). Water intake

points served several properties (Dużyński 2024).

Fig. 8. Hajnówka. The first four-family house under construction

(source: MBP in Hajnówka, file no. 00074)

Il. 8. Hajnówka. Pierwszy czworak w budowie

(źródło: MBP w Hajnówce, sygn. 00074)

Fig. 9. Surveyed housing estates:

a) Hajnówka, Czworaki housing estate, urban inventory, 1951 (source: AP in Białystok, file no. 4/149/0/28/WZAB52),

b) Hajnówka, Czworaki housing estate in its current state, visible lack of some buildings and transformed original outlines of building plans

as a result of extensions (elaborated by A. Owerczuk, materials from: geoportal.gov.pl, accessed: 3.06.2024),

c) Czarna Białostocka, urban inventory, 1969 (source: AP in Białystok, ref. no. 4/1449/0/-/2/16/2010 and 4/1449/0/-/2/25/2010)

Il. 9. Badane osiedla:

a) Hajnówka, Osiedle Czworaki, inwentaryzacja urbanistyczna, 1951 (źródło: AP w Białymstoku, sygn. 4/149/0/28/WZAB52),

b) Hajnówka, Osiedle Czworaki, stan obecny, widoczny brak części budynków oraz przekształcone oryginalne zarysy rzutów budynków

w wyniku rozbudów (oprac. A. Owerczuk, wykorzystano materiały z: geoportal.gov.pl, dostęp: 3.06.2024),

c) Czarna Białostocka, inwentaryzacja urbanistyczna, 1969 (źródło: AP w Białymstoku, sygn. 4/1449/0/-/2/16/2010 i 4/1449/0/-/2/25/2010)

a b c

10 Aleksander Owerczuk

Four-Family Housing Estate

in Czarna Białostocka

The housing estate is located in the eastern part of the

city, on the edge of its urban zone. It consists of 15 quads

with outbuildings (Fig. 9c). The main part of the estate is

located along several parallel streets. There is a total of

12 quads in three lines of buildings with four quads each.

The urban layout of the estate is complemented by a trans-

verse street. Behind it are the other three quads. The layout

of the plots is actually the same as in the housing estates

discussed in Hajnówka. A standard plot has an area of

600–650 m

. The area of the largest outermost plot reaches

about 800 m

State of preservation

The four-family housing estates are an important part of

the interwar development of the researched towns. Their

main advantage was spatial order. In terms of urban plan-

ning, this was achieved through a simple, somewhat sche-

matic composition. The use of one type of housing and sev-

eral variants of farm buildings with a unied form created

a homogeneous architectural expression of the whole. The

reasonable size of the estate, the small scale of the build-

ings, the simple body with diverse architectural elements

and the greenery on the properties meant that despite the use

of such unsophisticated means, the housing estates did not

seem monotonous. That is why the housing estates, along

with several other complexes built in the 1930s, stood out

against the background of the somewhat chaotic placement

of other buildings in the town. Today, they remain as a tes-

timony to the history of the town’s development. Unfortu-

nately, they have not survived in their original form.

An example of the transformation that has taken place

can be seen at the Czworaków Housing Estate in Hajnów-

ka. The rst signicant changes appeared in the 1970s.

They were related to new investments. The residents of the

quads were given two options. The rst was to move into

new blocks; the second was the purchase of the real estate

with the right to any development (Dużyński 2024). During

this time, ve quads were demolished for the construction

of a kindergarten and a cooperative housing estate (Pater

2021, 218). Then another building was demolished. Out of

a housing estate of 22 four-family buildings, 16 remained

(Fig. 9b). Currently, most residential buildings have been

renovated or extended (Figs. 9b, 10). The scope and nature

of the changes vary. This concerns the transformation of

the body, as well as the change of roong and façade ma-

terials and the replacement of woodwork. Changes have

been made in an individual, uncoordinated way, usually

without awareness of the value of the quads and the hous-

ing estate as a whole. As a result, many buildings have lost

their original architectural form.

Adopting specic criteria as to the preservation of the

historical form, the state of preservation of the entire hous-

ing estate was assessed (Dokumentacja praktyki 2022). The

assessment took into account individual residential seg-

ments separately, as each had been renovated independent-

ly. In total, 64 apartments were studied. Three groups of

segments have been distinguished: 1) those with a legible

historical form, 2) those with a partially legible historical

form, 3) those with an illegible historical form. A legible

historical form is one that has be

en preserved in its original

state or has undergone minor changes that do not signi-

cantly aect the historical form. There were 18 such build-

ings. The next group consists of structures with a partial-

ly legible historical form, i.e., those that have undergone

signicant transformation, but the historical form is still

legible. Nine buildings were assigned to this category. The

last group was assigned 37 buildings. The scope of their

transformation made the historical form illegible. In other

words, only 30% of the residential segments have a clear

Fig. 10. Hajnówka, Czworaki housing estate, transformations of buildings:

a) in the foreground a quad with added porches naturally fitting into the architecture of the building, post-war period

(source: collection of the MBP in Hajnówka, file no. 00479),

b) a building with a practically illegible historical form, 2022 (source: Dokumentacja praktyki 2022, photo by N. Kupińska)

Il. 10. Hajnówka, osiedle Czworaki, przekształcenia budynków:

a) na pierwszym planie czworak z dobudowanymi gankami wpisującymi się naturalnie w architekturę budynku, okres powojenny

(źródło: zbiory MBP w Hajnówce, sygn. 00479),

b) jeden z budynków, praktycznie nieczytelna forma historyczna, 2022 (fot. N. Kupińska, źródło: Dokumentacja praktyki 2022)

a b

Wooden four-family houses of the interwar period in Hajnówka and Czarna Białostocka 11

historical form. The estate as a whole has lost one of its

most important qualities – the architectural homogeneity

of the buildings. And thus, it has lost its former importance

in the city’s landscape.

Quads in Hajnówka and Czarna Białostocka

against the background of the epoch

A typical r2 design of a wooden residential house for

four families was also used in other towns. On the basis

of this design, as part of the activities of the Directorate

of State Forests in Radom, in the years 1938–1939, hous-

ing estates were built near sawmills in Kielce, Zagożdżon,

Zag nańsk, Garbatka and Zawadówka (Rozbicka 2007, 382,

383). T

he form of the building was in accordance with

the design, but in these cases corrugated asbestos-cement

panels were used for roof covering

The architectural, functional and urban solutions used

in the housing estates are typical of the interwar period.

Their genesis dates back to the end of the 19

century. Pro-

posals for a housing estate of four-family buildings supple-

mented with farm buildings were described and illustrated

with drawings in a publication by Kazimierz Obrębowicz,

describing new plans for rural construction at that time

(Obrębowicz 1886). In the exemplary layout of the plots,

the buildings were included in a rigid compositional sys-

tem, more or less the same as was used in Hajnówka and

Czarna Białostocka (Obrębowicz 1886, 67). Similar ur-

ban planning solutions were used in the railway colony

in Nowy Sącz. The estate mainly consisted of two-fam-

ily houses supplemented with outbuildings. Outbuildings

were located in various places on the border of plots and

“served” from one to four apartments (Kühnel 1918, 77).

Economic factors spoke in favour of building two-family

and four-family houses. In the interwar period, great atten-

tion was paid to this, regardless of the type of buildings

and architectural forms used. Preference was given to solu-

Based on advertising materials showing a photo of a quad cover-

ed with corrugated asbestos-cement panels (Widok kilku budynków…

1939, 236).

tions in which attempts were made to provide maximally

functional ats in a small area (Brukalska, Brukalski 1937,

16–21). At the beginning of the 1930s, according to one of

the studies, the cheapest house was a one-storey building

with four two-room ats (Chojecki 1932, 19). The cheap-

est material was wood. A factor in favour of the use of

wood in the construction of houses was also the shorter

construction time. An interesting example of a housing es-

tate of multi-family wooden houses is the Feliks Warburg

colony in Brest on the Bug River. It was built with wooden

buildings consisting of eight apartments each. Their form

can be described as a large house covered with a hip roof

with dormers (Pszczółkowski 2016).

Summary

The housing estates in Hajnówka and Czarna Białos-

tocka are examples of developed architectural and urban

planning solutions of the interwar period, resulting from

the conditions of the epoch. These consisted of general

views on the problem of satisfying the demand for housing,

the activities of the State Forests company and enterprises

related to the wood industry, as well as economic consid-

erations. In the Podlaskie Voivodeship, they are a valuable

example of interwar architecture, still in need of research.

The need for more scientic research concerns the devel-

opment of residential buildings, which is often underesti-

mated as less “impressive”. Wooden four-family houses

of the interwar period, especially in the case of Hajnówka,

are an important testimony to the development of the town.

During their existence, they have undergone signicant

transformations. As Danuta Kłosek-Kozłowska stated: It

should be agreed that almost every violation of the building

or shape of the urban structures of the city can also change

the spatial content and meaning once given to them (2007,

112). In the examples discussed, this has already happened.

We just have to hope that this process will not continue.

Translated by

Aniela Staszewska

Acknowledgements

This research was carried out as part of work WZ/WA-IA/2/2023 at the

Białystok University of Technology and nanced from a research subsidy

provided by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of Poland.

References

Broda, Józef. “Rozwój organizacyjny i ustawodawstwo dotyczące lasów

państwowych.” In Z dziejów Lasów Państwowych i leśnictwa pol-

skiego. Tom 1: Okres międzywojenny, edited by Jerzy Wiśniewski.

Centrum Informacyjne Lasów Państwowych, 2006.

Brukalska, Barbara, and Stanisław Brukalski. “Nasza praca nad mieszka-

niem robotniczym.” In Osiedla robotnicze. Studja i doświadczenia

pierwszego dziesięciolecia, [n.e.], Polskie Towarzystwo Reformy

Mieszkaniowej, 1937.

Chojecki, Zygmunt. Budownictwo mieszkaniowe w Polsce i akcja bu-

dowlana w 1932. [n.p.], 1932.

“Czarna Białostocka, inwentaryzacja urbanistyczna”. [n.p.], 1969. [Ma -

nuscript in: AP, Białystok, sygn. 4/1449/0/-/2/16/2010 i 4/1449/0/-

/2/25/2010].

Dobroński, Adam Czesław. Miasta województwa podlaskiego. Fundacja

Sąsiedzi, 2014.

“Dokumentacja praktyki badawczej, kierunek architektura, studia II

stopnia”, elaborated by Kamil Barszczewski, Karolina Agnieszka

Chrośnińska, Michał Fiłonowicz et al. Wydział Architektury Poli-

techniki Białostockiej, 2022. [Manuscript in: Wydział Architektury

Politechniki Białostockiej].

12 Aleksander Owerczuk

Streszczenie

Drewniane czworaki okresu międzywojennego w Hajnówce i Czarnej Białostockiej

Architektura drewniana, w tym mieszkaniowa, jest ważnym elementem krajobrazu Podlasia. Interesujące jej przykłady znajdują się w Hajnówce

i Czarnej Białostockiej. Obie miejscowości swój dynamiczny rozwój w okresie międzywojennym zawdzięczają przemysłowi drzewnemu. Dla szybko

zwiększającej się wówczas liczby mieszkańców powstawały nowe domy.

Przedmiotem badań były dwa osiedla czworaków w Hajnówce i jedno w Czarnej Białostockiej. Głównym celem autora artykułu było poszerzenie

wiedzy w zakresie zabudowy drewnianej okresu dwudziestolecia międzywojennego na terenie województwa podlaskiego. Podstawowym zadaniem

stało się więc opisanie rozwiązań architektonicznych domów czterorodzinnych, a także rozwiązań urbanistycznych osiedli. W opracowaniu wyko-

rzystano metody stosowane w badaniach z zakresu historii architektury – gromadzenie informacji dostępnych w literaturze przedmiotu i źródłach

archiwalnych oraz badania terenowe. Otrzymany materiał badawczy poddano analizom oraz wnioskowaniu.

W artykule zostały omówione rozwiązania architektoniczne, funkcjonalne i konstrukcyjne czworaków. Wszystkie budynki mieszkalne, poza mało

istotnymi różnicami, mają takie same rozwiązania. W urbanistyce w każdym z osiedli także zastosowano bardzo podobne układy. Są one wynikiem

uwarunkowań epoki. Poddano także analizie aktualny stan osiedli pod kątem zachowania ich historycznego charakteru. Na jej podstawie można stwier-

dzić, że większość budynków uległa przekształceniom, często w stopniu uniemożliwiającym identykację historycznej formy. Osiedla jako całość

utraciły swój ważny walor, jakim była jednorodność architektoniczna zabudowy.

Słowa kluczowe: architektura drewniana, czworaki, architektura okresu międzywojennego

Dużyński, Tadeusz. “Hajnówka – relacje.” Accessed April 12, 2024, at

https://tduzynski.pl/polska?anchorElement=element_2399.

geoportal.gov.pl. Accessed June 3, 2024, at https://mapy.geoportal.gov.

pl/imapnext/imap/index.html?moduleId=modulGiK&mapview=52.

731890%2C23.590686%2C5000s.

Górska, Iwona, Joanna Kotyńska-Stetkiewicz, Aneta Kułak, Grzegorz

Ryżewski, and Wiesław Wróbel. Architektura drewniana w Białym-

stoku. Urząd Miejski w Białymstoku, Departament Kultury, Promo-

cji i Sportu, 2020.

Gryc, Alla, ed. Hajnówka w starej fotograi. Miejska Biblioteka Pu-

bliczna im. Dr. Tadeusza Rakowieckiego w Hajnówce, Towarzy-

stwo Przyjaciół Hajnówki, 2007.

“Hajnówka, Osiedle Czworaki, inwentaryzacja urbanistyczna.” [n.p.],

1951. [Manuscript in: AP, Białystok, sygn. 4/149/0/28/WZAB52].

Karpiński, Jan Jerzy, and Mieczysław Orłowicz. Białowieża i Hajnówka.

Wydawnictwo Związku Popierania Turystyki Woj. Białostockiego,

1937.

Kłosek-Kozłowska, Danuta. Ochrona wartości kulturowych miast

a ur banistyka. Ocyna Wydawnicza Politechniki Warszawskiej,

2007.

Kosiński, Leszek. Miasta województwa białostockiego. PWN, 1962.

Kühnel, Artur Antoni. Zasady budowy miast małych i miasteczek. B. Po-

łoniecki, 1918.

Lasy Państwowe. “Historia.” Accessed June 3, 2024, at https://www.

lasy.gov.pl/pl/nasza-praca/pgl-lasy-panstwowe/historia.

“Location map of Poland.” Elaborated by Hiuppo. Accessed April 17, 2021

at https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plik:POL_location_map.svg#lehistory.

Obrębowicz, Kazimierz Jan. Krótki zarys budownictwa wiejskiego. Dru-

karnia Noskowskiego, 1886.

Pater, Ryszard. Encyklopedia Hajnówki. Wydawca Ryszard Pater, 2013.

Pater, Ryszard. Dawna zabudowa ulic w Hajnówce. Wydawca Ryszard

Pater, 2016.

Pater, Ryszard. Dawna Hajnówka. Zabudowa, obiekty imprezy, mieszkań-

cy. Urząd Miasta Hajnówka, Kresowa Agencja Wydawnicza, 2021.

Pokropek, Marian, and Wojciech Pokropek. Tradycyjne budownictwo

drzewne w Polsce. T. 2. Budownictwo sakralne. Cz. 1. Bóżnice, me-

cze ty, moleny staroobrzędowców oraz podlaskie cerkwie unickie

i pra wosławne. Neriton, 1996.

Pszczółkowski, Michał. Kresy nowoczesne. Architektura na ziemiach

wschod nich II Rzeczypospolitej 1921–1939. Dom Wydawniczy

Księ ży Młyn, 2016.

Rozbicka, Małgorzata. Małe mieszkanie z ogrodem w tle w teorii i prak-

tyce popularnego budownictwa mieszkaniowego w międzywojennej

Polsce. Ocyna Wydawnicza Politechniki Warszawskiej, 2007.

“Typowy projekt budynku robotniczego 4-mieszkaniowego r2.” [n.p.],

[n.y.]. [Manuscript in: AAN, Warszawa, sygn. 2/9/0/5.5/I 3955].

“Typowy projekt rozplanowania działek osiedli robotniczych OR.”

[n.p.], [n.y.]. [Manuscript in: AAN, Warszawa, sygn. 2/9/5.5/I 3960].

“Widok kilku budynków krytych płytami falistymi azbestowo cemento-

wymi Evenitas.” Przegląd Budowlany, 3 (March 1939): 236.