Mordki Helmana Tenement House

The tenement house at Piotrkowska 109 in Łódź stands on a plot that in the 19th century bore the mortgage number 755. Earlier owners of the plot included the weaver Jan Gottlieb Schubert, who took it over in 1833 and also owned a mill in the village of Zarzew near Łódź, and the engraver Ignacy Hortich, who died prematurely at the age of 40 in 1863. In 1889, the then owner Hugo Hermann erected a single-storey building with an attic, but the property owes its present form to the next owner.

Construction for Mordki Helmana

In the first half of the 1890s, the property passed into the hands of Mordki (Mordechaj) Helmana. For him, a three-storey, basement tenement house with an attic was erected, along with two outbuildings and a single-storey utility building. The project was prepared by architect Gustaw Landau-Gutenteger, and the building plan was approved in 1893. The building has retained this form to this day, on one of the more densely built stretches of Piotrkowska.

Lithographic workshop and printing house

In 1897, a lithographic workshop operated by Lew (Leon) Krukowski was established in premises rented from Mordki Helmana. A Kimball gas engine with a power of 3.5 horsepower was installed there, driving printing machines. Krukowski's printing house itself operated in the tenement courtyard in the years 1897-1906. Other craftsmen and entrepreneurs also rented rooms in the building, including the men's tailoring workshop of Józef Lichmaniaka and a drawing and painting school run by J. B. Kacenbogena.

Subsequent owners

From the second half of the 1890s, at least until the 1920s, the property was owned by Fajga Magazanik. The subsequent history of the building after this period is not described here, nor is its current function.

Piotrkowska in this location

The tenement house stands in the immediate vicinity of several other historic buildings in this part of the pedestrian mall. A short distance further stands Lejzera Dawida Rosenthala Tenement House, and nearby are Ferdynanda Endego Tenement House and Alberta Böhme Tenement House. On the other side of the street, at number 104, stands Tuwim Bench, one of the recognisable stopping points on Piotrkowska.

Practical information

• Address: ul. Piotrkowska 109, Łódź.
• Getting there: on foot or by public transport to the city centre; the building stands directly on the pedestrian mall.
• What to expect: the elevation of a three-storey factory tenement house from the 1890s, a good point on a walking route along Piotrkowska.