Katowice motive power depot, Industrial heritage site in Śródmieście, Katowice, Poland.
Katowice motive power depot is a disused railway depot on Raciborska Street, made up of a double-fan hall with two 20-metre turntables, a water tower and a former metalworking shop. The hall, designed by Lohse and Zebrowski and built in 1899–1900, is one of the few in Poland with two fans.
The facility was founded around 1900 as a locomotive maintenance center during Upper Silesia's rapid industrial growth. It played a key role in supporting the region's expanding mining and steel industries through reliable railway services.
The depot's name shifted from "parowozownia" to "lokomotywownia" as electric locomotives replaced steam engines after World War II. The fan-shaped hall, with its two turntables, was entered in the register of immovable monuments on 16 December 2021, ten years after the last locomotive was serviced there.
The depot stands on Raciborska Street in Śródmieście, on the border with Załęże. It has been closed since 1 March 2011 and is not an active railway facility; the site is unguarded and has been stripped and vandalised, so entry is at your own risk. Parts of the complex were entered in the register of monuments on 16 December 2021.
The depot's western roundhouse was built in 1899–1900 to a design by Lohse and Zebrowski, with two fan-shaped halls and two turntables 20 m in diameter planned for electric drive. It is one of the few roundhouses in Poland with two fans. The site closed on 1 March 2011 and has stood unused since.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 94,430 contributors worldwide.
