Żyrardów, Industrial municipality in Mazovia, Poland
Żyrardów is a municipality in Mazovia voivodeship, situated about 45 kilometers southwest of Warsaw. The town preserves a complete ensemble of factory buildings, workers' housing, and civic facilities that all developed around the former linen mills.
The Łubieński brothers founded a flax-spinning mill in 1833 in the rural area west of Warsaw to serve the growing market for linen fabrics. By the end of the 19th century the small factory had become one of the largest linen production sites in Europe.
The name Żyrardów honors Philippe de Girard, a French inventor of flax-spinning machines whose technology shaped the local textile industry. Today visitors walk through streets lined with workers' houses and factory halls that still define the appearance of a 19th-century industrial settlement.
Travelers reach the town by regional trains from Warsaw Zachodnia station, with the trip lasting less than an hour. From the railway station most factory buildings and former workers' settlements are within walking distance, and a stroll through the center reveals the entire layout of the industrial town.
The museum administration maintains original machines and looms that visitors can see in operation, showing how linen fabrics were made in the 19th century. In some streets the workers' houses still stand as close together as they did when the factory was founded.
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