Select property
In 2022, we celebrated the 85th anniversary of the establishment of the Gromada National Tourist Cooperative . The anniversary was an opportunity, among other things, to take a stroll down memory lane and reminisce about the history of the Cooperative. Additionally, during the anniversary year, new information was unearthed about the history of the locations where Gromada hotels were opened. Wishing to continue this historical theme, we turned to the members of OST Gromada to share the materials relating to the 85-year history of Gromada that were in their possession.
What is the first story we like to share about the location on which the Gromada Hotel in Łomża was built? We tell it based on a conversation we had in this hotel with an eye witness of its history - our guest is Father Jan Bońkowski. You could say that he is our neighbor, as he is from the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin, which is located near the Gromada Hotel in Łomża. We met with Father Jan to talk about the changing history of the location where the Gromada Hotel currently stands. As it turned out, this area has a very long history. Łomża is located on seven hills, and one of them, where the Gromada Hotel is currently located, was called "Popowa Mountain". The name "Popowa Góra" probably comes from the colloquial language of the early inhabitants of Łomża, who customarily called every clergyman, regardless of denomination, a pope. Before 1396, the Masovian Duke Janusz I founded here (in the courtyard in front of the current church of the Minor Capuchin Brothers) the first church in Łomża. It was named after St. Peter, Paul and Andrew, as well as the Dissemination and Catherine. And it was there that the Płock bishop Jakub of Korzkiew presented a constructiion document of the first Łomża parish on February 3, 1410.

History and present

In 1731, on the escarpment near the New Market (currently Kosciuszko roundabout-square), thanks to the efforts of the Łomża starost Jan and Ewa Szembek, the construction of the Jesuits' brick church was completed. The church occupied a large plot of land that included the green space and the parking lot in front of today's Gromada Hotel. In 1774, the church was taken over by the Piarists. The temple was very large. It was supported by pillars, and consisted of three spacious aisles. The church had two tall towers, and on one of them was a clock.
In August 1853 the decision was made to hand over the heavily ruined Popijarski church to the Evangelical Church. In the following years, the Evangelicals built a carriage house (for hearses and funeral equipment) next to the church. Additionally, they purchased two houses and plots for a pastor's house and a parish school. The school began operating in 1860. The church was destroyed in 1944 by the retreating Germans - only ruins and foundations remained. On the square directly adjacent to the area of the ruined and demolished church, the Polonez hotel was built by the Gromada National Tourist Cooperative. It became operational in 1975. In 1999, after changes to the internal structure of the Cooperative, the name was changed to Gromada Hotel Łomża. We sincerely thank Father Jan for this interesting story, as well as for the invitation and opportunity to tour the Monastery of the Capuchin Friars Minor.