Green Velo

The idea of establishing a museum dedicated to the history of the city dates back to the beginnings of museology in Kielce.

The history of the city first appeared at exhibitions and in the collections of Polskie Towarzystwo Krajoznawcze (Polish Tourist Association) whose museum was created in Kielce in 1908. At that time, it referred to Kielce’s oldest museum collections created in the 19^th century at the University of Mining and the Voivodeship School, honouring the activity of the Head of the Kielce District, a collector and art patron, Tomasz Zieliński, as well as the collectors’ passion of the Jaroński family.

Entitled From the history of Kielce, the exhibit confers to us knowledge about the Medieval town, Kielce belonging to the Kraków bishops (until the end of the 18^th century), and then being the capital of the region in the 19^th and 20^th centuries. It is worth to see the restored cabin of the Medieval residents of the settlement, the 18^th century Town Council’s book, the oldest town stamp, accessories of the voluntary Fire Service, the uniforms of officers stationed in Kielce, old paintings depicting city views and various memorabilia from family attics and drawers. All this was complemented by archive materials, maps, old photographs and, finally, multi-media shows that allow visitors to discover the atmosphere of the old town, to stand for a moment on the cobble stones of Wesoła Street, to see important patriotic events, and to face the tragedy of the Kielce ghetto during World War II. When encouraging all those interested to visit the museum, it should be said that the history of Kielce, shown in a nutshell in the permanent exhibition – through symbols and carefully selected  important exhibits – is in sharp focus, has a special dimension, and is the essence of our urban history.