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All Poland Bydgoszcz The Exploseum

The Exploseum

An abandoned Nazi explosives plant founded by the inventor of dynamite is now an underground museum.

Bydgoszcz, Poland

Added By
Adam Kincaid
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Most of the route visitors take is through eerie, dimly lit underground corridors.   AdamTKincaid / Atlas Obscura User
Most of the route visitors take is through eerie, dimly lit underground corridors.   AdamTKincaid / Atlas Obscura User
Informative exhibitions are sprinkled throughout the rehabilitated buildings.   AdamTKincaid / Atlas Obscura User
One of the rooms has been turned into a small theatre that shows films of atomic weapon capabilities.   AdamTKincaid / Atlas Obscura User
Most of the 1,000 buildings that stood on the site are long gone.   AdamTKincaid / Atlas Obscura User
Walkable ruins are explored throughout the museum route.   AdamTKincaid / Atlas Obscura User
An exhibition on the life of forced laborers.   AdamTKincaid / Atlas Obscura User
Giant holes in the floor are all that remain of massive vats that produced liquid explosives.   AdamTKincaid / Atlas Obscura User
Walkable ruins are explored throughout the museum route.   AdamTKincaid / Atlas Obscura User
The Exploseum is reached through an uneven dirt road on the outskirts of town.   AdamTKincaid / Atlas Obscura User
The ones remaining are mostly just shells of their previous life.   AdamTKincaid / Atlas Obscura User
Guard posts still stand as a reminder of the war time construction and the factory’s use.   AdamTKincaid / Atlas Obscura User
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About

Outside of one of Poland’s largest cities, down an old dirt path in the middle of a forest, are the abandoned remains of one of Nazi Germany’s largest ammunition plants. Today, it’s been turned into an underground museum.

In 1876, Alfred Nobel & Company changed its name to Dynamitaktiengesellschaft (DAG). Alfred Nobel & Co was founded just eleven years prior by its namesake and successfully developed the stable explosive, dynamite, launching Nobel and his company to eternal fame.

Fast forward more than half a century to World War II and the German company’s primary products had switched to explosives and ammunition for the Nazi military. In occupied Poland in 1939, with the aid of Nazi government grants, DAG began construction on a new facility outside of Bydgoszcz with the primary purpose of increasing production and aiding the war effort.

Over the next 6 years more than 1,000 buildings, 400km (250 miles) of underground passageways, and 40km of underground railroads were built over a 23 square acre site. Some 30,000 to 40,000 workers, many from local concentration camps and Poles from surrounding villages, were forced to build the massive compound and its dangerous merchandise.

The spread layout and underground character of the factory had two purposes: to provide camouflage from spy planes and to provide protection and safeguard other buildings in case of an in-line explosion. Many of the underground tunnels and buildings still remain, and have recently been turned into an eerie, walkable museum.

The expansive character of the museum happens along a 2km route and follows dimly lit underground tunnels through various ammunition production facilities where visitors learn about Alfred Nobel, his company, the events leading up to the war and life for Polish residents during German occupation. It continues with exhibits on the forced laborers, weapons used during the war, and a history of major conflicts. One of the final rooms finishes on a somber note as it touches on the future of modern war and the world annihilating weapons that could destroy us all.

Related Tags

Museums Weapons Subterranean Sites Underground

Know Before You Go

The museum is not difficult to get to by car or public transportation by bus. Line 68, runs several times a day. It is a 30 minute ride from the first stop, Leśne, then a 10 minute walk down a dirt road. By taxi from the main station, it should cost 35-45zł with normal rates and takes around 20-25 minutes. A bike path also reaches the entrance from the main town.

It has varying open days and times dependent upon the season. A self guided tour takes approximately 1-2 hours, though most of the signage is in Polish. Guided tours are also available but must be booked in advance. Typically, there are four a day. Small children, under the age of six, are not allowed in the museum compound.

Community Contributors

Added By

AdamTKincaid

Edited By

PrestonW, Martin

  • PrestonW
  • Martin

Published

November 10, 2016

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Sources
  • http://www.academia.edu/6148292/From_Dynamite_Factory_to_Museum_of_Technology
  • http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/en/projects/poland/exploseum-former-german-explosives-factory-turned-into-interactive-museum
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynamit_Nobel
The Exploseum
Alfreda Nobla
Bydgoszcz
Poland
53.070988, 18.07402
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