Description

Crossroads Ustroń Polana. The name Polana comes from a clearing in the forest by the Vistula River, where the first inhabitants settled ("...12 zahradnikuw kterech mam na polanie ..." - from the first mention of Polana in 1607). The settlement belonged to Mikolaj Rudzki, from whom it was bought in 1633 by Duchess Elisabeth Lucretia of Cieszyn. Later, Polana was a part of Ustroń Górny (Upper), which was a separate village until 1839, when Ustroń Górny and Ustroń Dolny were merged.

In 1792 a paper mill was established there by Prince Albert Sasko-Cieszyński. It belonged to a piece of an adjacent meadow by the Vistula, which was necessary for bleaching in the sun the linen rags, which were then used to make paper.

In 1837 the paper mill was moved down the Vistula River to Hermanice, where it operated with breaks until 1933. Axles and carts fittings were forged there. The power of the hammers was provided by the Młynówka river flowing through it. In 1899 the forge in Polana was liquidated and a water turbine was installed in the building, which supplied the forge in Ustroń with electricity and operated until the 1960s. In addition to the building of the former paper mill forge, there is also a weir on the Mlynowka River with ponds, allowing the regulation of water level in the nearby artificial reservoir with the area of 0.65 ha.