Knurów's history as a city is relatively short, as it only became a town in 1951, when also the settlements of Krywałd and Szczygłowice [pl] were included within its town limits as districts. However, Knurów's existence can be traced back as far back as ca. 1295–1305, when it was mentioned in the Liber fundationis episcopatus Vratislaviensis chronicle, and was part of Piast-ruled Poland. It was then mentioned as Knauersdorf or Cnurowicz, and later on mostly appeared in documents under its current name. Later on, it was also part of Bohemia (Czechia), Prussia and Germany. Throughout centuries, Knurów was a private village, and among its owners were the Goszycki, Węgierski and Paczyński families.[2] The town rapidly grew at the end of the 18th century as the Industrial Revolution came and vast coal reserves were found in the area. In the late 19th century, the settlement had a population of 776.[3] In 1904, the first mine shaft was opened, and in 1908-1909 a railway line connecting Knurów with Rybnik was built.[2] In 1912, the first strike took place at the local mine.[2]
After World War I, in 1918, Poland regained independence, and following the Polish Silesian Uprisings Knurów was reintegrated with Poland. In the interwar period, Knurów developed intensively. New schools, stadiums, a pipeline connecting with Bełk and the first synthetic ammonia plant in Poland were built.[2] In 1923, a monument to the participants of the Silesian Uprisings was unveiled.[2] The coal industry continued growing well in the 20th century, and doubled its output with a new mine being built in 1961 in Szczygłowice.
In 1951, Knurów was granted town rights.[6] Several new schools were opened between 1964 and 1991, and new Catholic parishes were established in 1977–1983.[2] More recently, in May 2015, riots ensued in the town after a Concordia Knurów fan was shot dead by police during a football match.
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The town is usually associated with coal mining, as it lies in the Upper Silesian Coal Basin. The coal mine was established in 1903 in Knurów on the initiative of Gustav von Velsen, who was a ministerial director at the Department of Mining in Berlin. In 2019, the mine was connected to the Szczygłowice Coal Mine.[8]
Sport
The town is home to Concordia Knurów, a lower league football club which was founded in 1923, and famously where Jerzy Dudek started his career. Another famous athlete Agnieszka Dubiel, was a professional sailor for many years. She managed to stay in National Sailing Team and represent Poland on many European and World Championships. Her best result was 21st on Youth World Championship 2014.
^Słownik geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i innych krajów słowiańskich, Tom IV (in Polish). Warszawa. 1883. p. 199.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^Wardzyńska, Maria (2009). Był rok 1939. Operacja niemieckiej policji bezpieczeństwa w Polsce. Intelligenzaktion (in Polish). Warszawa: IPN. p. 277.
The list includes the 107 urban municipalities governed by a city mayor (prezydent miasta) instead of a town mayor (burmistrz) · Cities with powiat rights are in italics · Voivodeship cities are in bold
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