The Lower Town is not only the “District of Factory Chimneys”, but above all, a place inextricably linked to the history of Gdańsk’s milling industry. The Kamienna 28 investment is being carried out by ACCIONA as part of the revitalization of one of the oldest and most important facilities of its kind on the New Motława River. In 1843, this mill belonged to entrepreneur Wilhelm Theodor Behrend. Most Gdańsk residents, however, associate historic buildings with a more contemporary structure – the legendary Batycki Factory. Few people, however, know the full history of the mill, which not only “processed oilseeds into oil” but also “was the first in 19th-century Gdańsk to be equipped with a steam engine.” By the early 20th century, a whole complex of factory buildings operated on this site, in the form of a joint-stock company, which, interestingly, was managed by the merchant and Royal Belgian Consul Eugen Patzig. This is further evidence of how much hidden history lies within the walls of our investment, now being rebuilt. We invite you to read the latest article by Mr. Jacek Górski, which premieres today both on our blog and on the website of our neighbors from the Lower Town History Tellers Association in Gdańsk.

When thinking about mills and the history of milling in the Lower Town, the first thing that surely comes to mind for connoisseurs is the Stone Sluice Mill, built around 1640. It was a so-called reserve mill, supplying flour during the siege of the Gdańsk Fortress, when the Radunia River, which powered the Great Mill’s mill wheels, was cut off. But looking at the territory, this mill stood and still stands (although not as impressive) on the left bank of the New Motława River – and this is no longer the Lower Town. However, the history of mills in this area does not end there. Walking along the right bank of the aforementioned river, leaving Stone Sluice behind and following Dobra Street, you cross Toruńska Street at the roundabout and reach Kamienna Grobla Street. And at its intersection with the nearest crossroads, Śluza, a mill was opened about 200 years later. But of a different type. He did not grind grain into flour, but processed oil plants into oil.

1844
The first mention of the aforementioned oil mill that we managed to locate comes from the 1844 Address Book. At that time, there were only four entries under the letter O. All of them concerned oil factories. The second, third, and fourth entries identify the locations of three companies operating the same business: an oil refinery and a soap factory. These were, respectively, Ogarna, service number 279; Brama Szeroka, service number 1922; and Grobla 1, service number 1114. The list began with a steam oil mill from the Lower Town on Kamienna Grobla Street, service number 486. Wilhelm Theodor Behrend owned it from the very beginning, most likely from 1843. It’s worth noting that this mill was very modern – it was the first in 19th-century Gdańsk to be equipped with a steam engine, a fact emphasized in its name.

1849
In the next available Address Book, you can see the service numbering assigned to individual streets. Kamienna Grobla was then divided into three parts. At the end of the second part (where Primary School No. 65 is now) at number 399 and at the beginning of the third part (where a recycling collection point and car repair shop once stood) the name of the aforementioned merchant, Wilhelm Theodor Behrend, was listed. The previously mentioned oil mill, which he owned, expanded on this street to dual service numberings of 484 and 486. Please remember this arrangement – ​​a row of plots in the 1+2 configuration. It would recur many times in the following years and decades.

1864
Based on subsequent data, service numbers were no longer in effect on Kamienna Grobla Street, and the three plots in question, still owned by Behrend, bore numbers running towards Toruńska Street – 25, 26, and 27, respectively. Since the aforementioned Wilhelm Theodor died in 1851, Felix Adolf Behrend managed the entire property for approximately the next 23 years (1852-1875). Emma (née Struwe), the widow of the previous owner, also lived at number 25 on Kamienna Grobla Street.

1869
It may come as a surprise to learn that the well-known merchant Felix Adolf Behrend, at number 25, was serving as Vice-Consul of Portugal at that time. Plots 26 and 27 were first listed as developed by Steffens & Söhne.

1870
The list of mills in Gdańsk was topped by Feliks Behrend’s steam-powered cutting mill at 25 Kamienna Grobla Street. Steffens & Söhne continued to operate at numbers 26 and 27.

1872
Officially, numbers 26 and 27 were assigned to an oil mill, last operated (according to available data) by Steffens & Söhne.

1874
An oil mill belonging to an international trading company operated at 26 and 27.

1876
The Address Book first mentions Śluza Street running on Kamienna Grobla Street between numbers 25 and 26. Danziger Ölmühle operated as a limited partnership on plots 26 and 27. Interestingly, on the same street at number 21, another steam mill was reportedly operating, owned by Emil Carl Keier, who was associated with the already-familiar Feliks Behrend of Kamienna Grobla 25.

1878
We learn that the Gdańsk oil mill at 26 and 27 Kamienna Grobla had its sales office at 37 Ogarna Street. The name Felix Behrend was then listed next to the steam mill at number 21.

1880
The steam mill at number 21 returns to the list of mills in Kamienna Grobla. The Gdańsk steam oil mill operated at numbers 26 and 27. But that wasn’t the end of it, as at number 6, another steam mill appeared only once during this period, this time run by Max v. Dühren.

1884
The owners of the mill at number 21 were Reichenberg & Döring. Number 25 was the first home of Otto Robert Petschow – a merchant and city councilor who managed the Gdańsk Oil Mill at 25 Kamienna Grobla Street and the chemical factory at 111 Ogarna Street. Interestingly, an 1894 book mentions that the company “Danziger Oelmühle Petschow & Co.” began its operations on July 17, 1875.

1886, 1888, and 1890
The Gdańsk Oil Mill and the oil factory, first mentioned at this location, operated at the now familiar numbers 26-27 in the first year, and later at numbers 26-30. Their owners at the time were Petter Patzig & Co. (the name comes from the surname of the company’s founders, Albert Petter and Eugen Patzig). The previously mentioned Döring, with the initials D. F., at number 17 operated another cutting mill on this street, located not far away, at number 21. For clarity, it should be added that this mill contained the word “wood” (Holzschneidemühle) in its name. Since a lumberyard had operated at this location since 1885, the mill could have been used simply for cutting wood and as a shredder or crusher for wood waste. In the remainder of this paper, we will focus almost exclusively on the oil mill in question.

1894
Thanks to the new articles of association of the joint-stock company “Danziger Oelmühle Petter Patzig & Co.”, published that year and approved at the general meeting on August 17, 1894, we can learn, among other things, what this company was engaged in. The second paragraph describes the company’s objectives. These were: A. Production of oil and other fat products. B. Trade in seeds, oil, and other fats, as well as goods and their by-products, such as cakes, etc. C. Production of flour and starch, as well as by-products. D. Trade in grain, flour, starch, and their by-products.

1896-1899
The oldest mill on Kamienna Grobla continued to operate throughout its expanded area of ​​26/30 ha. The only change occurred in the case of plot 25, which was divided into two separate plots numbered 25 and 25a in the first year.

1900
In addition to the two mills we had known for years in this area, construction work was underway on plot 28/30 on a wheat grain mill and a starch factory.

1902-1911
The situation stabilized. At 26/30 Kamienna Grobla Street (sometimes still described as 26/27), the entire complex of factory buildings belonging to the Gdańsk Oil Mill (a joint-stock company) was now officially operational. At number 25a, the merchant and Belgian Royal Consul Eugen Patzig ran the office of the Patzig & Co. company, which managed the aforementioned mill. It’s worth reading the biographical note about this person, published on Wikipedia and Gedanopedia. Besides our mill and consulate, it mentions such interesting clues as the brewery in Wrzeszcz, the sugar refinery in Pelplin, the Eugenia Masonic Lodge, and the city of Sopot.

1912-1916
The previously mentioned mill management office from 26/30 Kamienna Grobla Street was moved to 74 Chmielna Street. Interestingly, the Belgian Consulate operated at the same address at the beginning of the years in question. Coincidence?… In 1913, the factory in the Lower Town processed 13,000 kg of wheat flour daily into pure, protein-rich starch.

1917-1920
The mill’s office operations returned to 25a Kamienna Grobla Street.

1921
In the location where the Gdańsk oil mill had been bustling for many years, the Gdańsk Margarine Factory of van den Berg began operations. The office operated at 25a Kamienna Grobla Street, while production took place at 26/30 Kamienna Grobla Street. This is a topic for a completely different article, but the story of the titular mill is not over yet.

1922-1941

The Gdańsk Oil Mill (a joint-stock company) operated at the previously familiar address, Chmielna 74. Initially, it housed a edible oil, flour, and starch factory. The plot itself was initially owned by the van den Berg Margarine Factory. However, over the last 15 years, the Gdańsk Oil Mill merely managed the plot, with no record of its production activity. Interestingly, the Gdańsk Oil Mill’s office address on Granary Island remained recognizable throughout, and even other companies cited this location. An example is an advertisement from 1930.

Let’s now return to two basic addresses that recur throughout this study: Steindamm (Kamienna Grobla), numbered from 25 to 30 (in various configurations), and Hopfengasse (Chmielna) 74. On the map, the two locations were separated by the New Motława River. But the aforementioned plots were more or less opposite each other. This is clearly illustrated by a map from 1924. On the right bank of the Motława, you can see the location of the mill at the corner of Kamienna Grobla and Śluza streets. And on the left, at the same height, was the aforementioned Gdańsk oil mill, which occupied 17,500 m² on Granary Island. Factory buildings and warehouses also stood there. The square was connected to the sea by the Motława River, and two railway sidings facilitated the transport of goods to and from the square. Thanks to this spatial arrangement on the map, it is easier to understand the content of the rare photo below showing the facade of the Gdańsk oil mill from the side of Kamienna Grobla, together with the technical bridge that connected this street with Wyspa Spichrzów (Granary Island) visible in the foreground and the areas most likely developed for the above-mentioned mill warehouses and storage yards.

Author of the article: Jacek Górski.

The photo of the mill comes from the book “Danzig und seine Bauten,” published in 1908, page 375, from the collection of the Storytellers of the Lower Town in Gdańsk.
The clipping with the consuls in Gdańsk comes from the publication “Führer durch Danzig und Umgegend: mit Plan und Karte” from 1908.
The statutory data comes from the publication “Neues Statut der Commandit-Gesellschaft auf Actien in Firma: Danziger Oelmühle, Petter, Patzig & Co. in Danzig…” from 1894. Source of the black-and-white advertisement for the best wheat flour – “Pilgrim, a religious magazine for the people 1883 no. 111″, p. 4.
Source of the 1930 press advertisement – ​​”Danziger Wirtschaftszeitung”, issue 4 of January 25, 1930, p. 31.