St Anne's Church in Ustroń-Nierodzim

On the northern edge of Ustroń, in the Nierodzim district, a dark, shingle-clad church dedicated to St Anne stands among old trees and gravestones. In summer it is easy to miss, yet it is the oldest church in Ustroń. The present building is more than 250 years old, and the painting in its altar is several decades older still.

History: from Protestant chapel to Catholic church

Nobody knows when the first church was built here, because the records burned in the great fire of nearby Skoczów on 3 April 1713. The only trace is a church inspector's report from 1688, describing a wooden chapel of St Anne built by Protestants, with a single altar, a plain pulpit and a small bell in a turret. Catholics took it over on 18 April 1654. By the mid-18th century the building was close to collapse, so a new one was erected on the same spot.

All the oak timber was donated by Antoni Goczałkowski, owner of the Hermanice estate, to which Nierodzim then belonged. The church was blessed in 1769 by the parish priest of Skoczów, Józef Nepomucen Waldera. For two decades it had neither a floor nor pews – these arrived only after 1789, when Duke Albert of Cieszyn became its patron. The tower was raised in 1938, and major restorations took place in 1965–1966 and 1998–1999.

What to see

• The log construction clad in shingles, with the chancel facing west – the opposite of most churches.
• The high altar with figures of God the Father and Saints Joseph and James, framing a painting of St Anne with the Virgin and Child from 1704. An inscription in Czech records that it was donated by Andris Lukas of Skoczów.
• The Rococo pulpit from the third quarter of the 18th century, with allegories of Faith, Hope and Charity on its canopy.
• A painting of St Christopher on the wall between the windows on the left side of the nave.
• The tower's onion dome and lantern, best seen from the churchyard.

Tripto tip

This is a working parish church with no visiting hours. The easiest way to see the interior is around a service: Sunday Masses are at 7:30, 9:30 and 11:30. Otherwise you can view the exterior from the churchyard and arrange access with the parish (ul. Zabytkowa 23, tel. +48 33 854 24 43). Half an hour is enough. The church lies on the Silesian Wooden Architecture Route, on its Beskid loop.