Guido Mine
Medals available at the main entrance to the ticket counters, next to the gift shop!
The expansion of railway connections from the mid-19th century, enabling the transport of raw materials and finished goods, contributed to the rapid development of Upper Silesian industry. New mines, foundries, and factories were established in the Zabrze area, using steam to power machinery and equipment. This led to a sharp increase in demand for coal, resulting in Count Guido Henckel von Donnersmarck, a magnate and industrialist, founding a hard coal mine in Zabrze in 1855. The mine was named after him—Guido.
Several problems arose during the sinking of the Barbara and Concordia shafts (the latter later renamed Guido). First, quicksand was encountered, followed by the “Saar” fault, which in 1856 forced the abandonment of the shaft after only 30 meters had been dug. Meanwhile, the Guido shaft continued to be sunk, reaching the first extraction level at 80 meters. However, further difficulties arose due to tectonic disturbances, severely hindering extraction. In 1862, at a depth of 117 meters, the Guido shaft breached an aquifer and was flooded. To raise investment capital for further mining work, a partnership was formed with the Upper Silesian Railway Company (Oberschlesische Eisenbahn Gesellschaft). In 1870, efforts began to drain the shaft and extend it to 170 meters, allowing extraction to resume at the 80-meter level in 1872. Simultaneously, work was underway on the “Railway” shaft, which today transports tourists into the mine’s underground. The network of preparatory and extraction workings was expanded, with peak production reaching 312,976 tons of coal in 1885. Between 1885 and 1887, the Guido Mine was purchased by the Prussian treasury and incorporated as the southern field of the state-owned Queen Louise Mine. The accessible resources at the 170-meter level were largely exhausted, and under the Queen Louise Mine, work began to connect to the 320-meter level.
Today, the Guido Mine is the only hard coal mine where visitors can descend and see for themselves what miners’ work underground looks like. There is no other such monument of mining technology in all of Europe! The mine was founded in 1855 by Count Guido Henckel von Donnersmarck, after whom it is named. Coal extraction ended here in 1928, and 89 years later, the mine’s underground was opened to the public. The Guido Mine is a Star of the Silesian Industrial Monuments Trail and an anchor point of the European Route of Industrial Heritage.
Today, instead of coal seams, the Guido Mine extracts tourism, culture, and entertainment—on levels 170 and 320, visitors can enjoy unique attractions found nowhere else. To experience a miner’s work, learn about mining history, and see its modern face, all you need is to put on a helmet, grab a mining lamp, and embark on an underground adventure! Remember to greet every miner you meet underground with the traditional “Szczęść Boże” (God bless).
