It was an important element of the main street in the Jewish district - Złota Street - and also enabled communication with the city center, from the direction of the Main Market Square/City Hall, toward the Piskorzewie district. It was built in the 19th century. It was dismantled by the Germans after they filled in the Babinka Canal during World War II, between 1941 and 1942.

(more information under the photos ↓)

Bridge over the Babinka Canal on Złota Street. Source: Archiwum Państwowe w Kaliszu

Bridge over the Babinka Canal on Złota Street, 1914. Source: Muzea Wielkopolski, MOZK.

Bridge over the Babinka Canal on Złota Street. Source: Archiwum Państwowe w Kaliszu

Bridge over the Babinka Canal on Złota Street. Source: M.Kurzajczyk archive

Bridge over the Babinka Canal on Złota Street. Source: M.Kurzajczyk archive

Bridge over the Babinka Canal on Złota Street, 1914. Source: Muzea Wielkopolski, MOZK.

It was one of five bridges crossing a branch of the Prosna River – Babinka (look for a separate plaque providing information about it). The bridge played a key role as a crossing connecting two parts of the Jewish district, forming part of the main axis and the busiest artery of this part of the city – streets known as Żydowska, followed by Złota. Although this version of the bridge was built in the early 19th century, its predecessors must have existed on this site at least three centuries earlier, coinciding with the development of the Jewish district on the other (northwestern) side of Babinka. The bridge's significance was further heightened by its proximity to the synagogue and the Jewish school. The Babinka Canal was filled in by the Germans during World War II, marking the end of this and the other bridges that had crossed the canal. Information about them can be found on plaques on Narutowicza Street, Kanonicka Street, Kiliński Square, and Aleja Walecznych in the park.

The three-span bridge was built across the Babinka in the mid-19th century, although there had likely been makeshift footbridges there earlier. Its construction was tied to the city's expansion northwestward and the rapid development of that part of the Jewish district, followed by the establishment of several factories – including Fibiger grand and upright piano factory, lace and knitwear workshops, soapmakers, and slaughterhouses in the Piskorzewie district. The bridge does not appear under a specific name in historical sources, though one publication referred to it - significantly - as the "Jewish" bridge. It provided a convenient crossing for pedestrians and horse-drawn carts and was slightly longer than the Ogrodowski Bridge on Narutowicza Street. It was approximately 20 meters long, with openwork wooden railings on the sides.

From the city center side, Żydowska Street led to the bridge, originating at the corner of the Main Square. Later, a dual name emerged: Żydowska-Złota, and beyond the city walls and the bridge, the street became Nowa Street, renamed P.O.W. in the interwar period, and later I. Daszyński Street. After 1945, the entire (rather long) street was named after F. Dzierżyński, but after 1989 its name was reverted to Złota.

Before the bridge, to the left of the Main Square, there were prestigious buildings for Kalisz’s Jewish community – the synagogue and schools, complemented by the tenement houses of wealthier citizens. Behind the synagogue, at the intersection with Złota Street, there were small stalls selling kosher meat. The name of one of the streets, Piskorzewska, likely derives from loaches (piskorze) – a type of fish caught in the floodwaters of the expansive fields beyond the city walls. This is also the etymology of the entire district’s name. Although the street ended with a gate, beyond it there was no crossing – the river was forded or crossed by boat, as seen on a map of the city from 1785. Piskorzewska Street was known for the wooden manor house of the town executioner. Called “the little-better one,” he lived next to the Piskorzewska Gate, already outside the city walls, since people generally avoided social interactions with him. The executioner also acted as a knacker, removing animal carcasses from the city, which were abundant in this area. Wooden houses stood nearby, including a military infirmary. There was once also an old shooting range of the sharpshooters’ guild here, later leased out as a slaughterhouse.

Just beyond the bridge stood stately tenement houses, but further along Złota Street – and on the streets perpendicular to it, such as Ciasna and Chopina – there were more modest, mostly wooden houses inhabited by Jewish people. The street bustled with activity almost all day. Market stalls were located here, with Jewish vendors calling out to sell herring, pickles, and other delicacies. During World War II, with the filling in of Babinka, the bridge on Złota Street was also dismantled. The Jewish world of Kalisz, one of the main sources of the city’s multicultural character, disappeared from its streets forever.

Author of the text:

Piotr Sobolewski

Project partners:

Archiwum Państwowe w Kaliszu

Muzeum Okręgowe Ziemi Kaliskiej

Miejska Biblioteka Publiczna