Niwiska, Subcarpathian Voivodeship

Infobox Settlement
name = Niwiska
settlement_type = Village
total_type =


image_shield =


subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = POL
subdivision_type1 = Voivodeship
subdivision_name1 =
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name2 =
subdivision_type3 = Gmina
subdivision_name3 = Niwiska
established_title = Established
established_date = 1575
area_total_km2 = 23.87
population_as_of = 2007
population_total = 1542
population_density_km2 = auto
timezone = CET
utc_offset = +1
timezone_DST = CEST
utc_offset_DST = +2
latd = 50 | latm = 15 | lats = | latNS = N | longd = 21 | longm = 46 | longs = | longEW = E
postal_code_type = Postal code
postal_code = 36-147
area_code = +48 17
blank_name = Car plates
blank_info = RKL
website = http://www.niwiska.pl/
latd = 50
latm = 13
lats =
latNS = N
longd = 21
longm = 26
longs =
longEW = E
pushpin_

pushpin_label_position = bottom
elevation_m =
website = http://www.niwiska.pl/

Niwiska IPA-pl| [|n|i|'|w|i|s|k|a|] is a village and the seat of the rural gmina (administrative district) of Gmina Niwiska (Niwiska Commune) in Kolbuszowa County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland.

Beginnings of the village

The village was founded in 1575 by Stanisław Tarnowski. In 1893 Zofia Tarnowska of Mielec founded the first church in Niwiska in thanks for her conversion from arianism. It burned down in 1876. On its ashes a stone and plaster church was built (1880). The first school in Niwiska existed in 1602, and a hospital (for the poor) in 1728. Until 1912 many people were employed at the Niwiska Glass Works.

World War II

During the German occupation residents of Niwiska and surrounding areas were evicted from their homes. Most of the village's buildings were destroyed. Germans evacuated Niwiska and the neighbouring village of Blizna in order to test their experimental V-1 and V-2 missiles there. The seclusion of the area made it a perfect place for such tests. Throughout the war the same seclusion led refugees and partisans to the Niwiska Forest for a place to hide and conduct subversive activities. Fr. Jan Kurek, a chaplain for the local Home Army ("Armia Krajowa") together with forester Henryk Augustynowicz, played an instrumental role in the decoding of information found on bits of shrapnel and rockets, which assisted the Allies.After August 3, 1944 the Red Army established there a military hospital and a Soviet airstrip.

Present day

Today, Niwiska has two schools, a civic center, a health clinic, a fire station and a post office. The village covers an area of convert|23.87|km2|sqmi, and as of 2008 its total population is 1,542.cite web |url=http://www.stat.gov.pl/broker/access/prefile/listPreFiles.jspa |title=Central Statistical Office (GUS) - TERYT (National Register of Territorial Land Apportionment Journal) |date=2008-06-01 |language=Polish]

Historic buildings

* Manor house from the end of the 19th century, which belonged to Dr. J. Hupka (Secession style wall-paintings from 1909, painted by Karol Frycz; administrator's house, Neo-Gothic granary and park)
* St. Nicholas parish church (1880) – Late-Baroque altar with rococo elements and cemetery chapel (1874)

References