Hosiery Factory

Discover the history

After Karol Hielle and Karol August Dittrich took over the Żyrardów Works from the Bank of Poland, a period of rapid modernisation and expansion of the factory began. In 1870, a three-storey brick hosiery factory was built on the former Długa Street, now Bolesława Limanowskiego Street. The original complex consisted of the main building, a dispatch building and a warehouse.

In the late 1870s, another wing was added, and around the turn of the 20th century the works were significantly expanded. New wings were built around an internal rectangular courtyard, which could be accessed through gates from the north and south-east. In the early 20th century, until around 1910, the Żyrardów Hosiery Factory was the largest factory of its kind in the world and employed more than 1,500 people.

The building suffered damage during the wartime destruction of 1914, including damage to the southern part of one of its wings. During the interwar period and again after the Second World War, the complex was rebuilt and modernised several times.

In 1967, the company was given the name “Stella”. It produced mainly cotton hosiery and underwear. Production continued until the first years of the 21st century, and after it ended, part of the complex remained unused for many years. Today, the former Hosiery Factory is undergoing redevelopment, with plans to adapt part of the historic building for public services serving residents of the district.

Architecture

The former hosiery factory complex was laid out on a U-shaped plan, with a longer eastern wing enclosing an internal courtyard. It consists of three interconnected wings, partially built over a basement. The western and northern wings were originally three storeys high, while the eastern wing had four storeys. In the 1970s, part of the western wing was raised by an additional floor.

The building is constructed of red brick. Inside, it features a variety of structural systems, including segmental brick vaults supported by steel beams and floors carried on distinctive cast-iron columns. The individual wings are covered by roofs of different forms, reflecting successive adaptations to the changing needs of the factory.

The brick façades are arranged in regular bays and articulated by horizontal string courses and vertical pilaster strips (lesenes). Their richest decorative details are concentrated on the upper storeys, where arched blind panels, biforia (paired arched windows), oculi, and decorative brick friezes create an elegant composition. The windows on the lower floors are topped with segmental arches, while the gateway on the northern façade is framed by a brick archivolt. Despite numerous alterations over the years, the complex has retained the defining characteristics of late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century brick industrial architecture.