Villas: Szczecin

Villas in Szczecin: a dozen historic houses along Wojska Polskiego Avenue and in Pogodno, from Lentz Villa to Martin Quistorp Villa.

Most of Szczecin's villas are schools, offices or public institutions today, so you admire them from the pavement. Twelve addresses join up into routes by district, mainly in Pogodno and along Wojska Polskiego Avenue (Aleja Wojska Polskiego).

Where are the villas in Szczecin and how do you walk them?

Most villas stand in Pogodno, which has six, and in Śródmieście-Północ, which has three. Single addresses lie in Łękno, Podjuchy and Dąbie. Give one afternoon to one district.

The street layout gives you a ready route: Wojska Polskiego Avenue links house numbers 70 to 164, and the side streets Solskiego and Konopnickiej add more. A wider plan is helped by the overview of villas in the region and by things to do in Szczecin.

Which villas on Wojska Polskiego Avenue should you see first?

Start in Śródmieście-Północ, where three houses with numbers 70, 76 and 84 stand close together.

August Horn Villa at number 70 dates from 1871-1872 and is one of three surviving timber homes in central Szczecin. Next door but one, at number 76, is Hoerder Villa, an eclectic house from 1896-1897 that now houses a secondary school. The most open to visitors is Lentz Villa at number 84: after a renovation completed in 2019 it became a municipal cultural institution with exhibitions, access to the interiors and events.

Further along the avenue, in Łękno, is Georg Grawitz Villa at number 115. The eclectic house, built at the end of the nineteenth century, shows off a sundial and a sailing-ship cartouche, and pupils of a music school have studied inside since 1951.

What can you see in villa-lined Pogodno?

Pogodno has the densest cluster on the list: six addresses within a few streets.

Two large houses stand on the avenue. Martin Quistorp Villa at number 160 is an eclectic house from 1899 on the corner of Solskiego, designed by Heinrich Hölling. A little further, at number 164, is Wegner Villa, neoclassical with a Doric portico, now used by a private secondary school.

On Solskiego two different houses stand side by side: Krahnstöver Villa at number 3, Art Nouveau and restored, and the villa at Solskiego 4, built of brick with echoes of the Swiss style and northern Renaissance. At Konopnickiej 27 stands Herman Schultz Villa from 1902, and at Hoene-Wrońskiego 1 a villa from 1910-1911 that now serves as the head office of the city library. The history of the whole district is told in Pogodno: a villa district and Quistorp's work on the hills of Szczecin.

Are there villas on the right bank of the Oder?

Yes, two, but both are in poor condition, so view them from outside and with care.

Borchert Villa at Żaglowa 2 in Dąbie dates from 1916-1917 and used to house the Scouts' Maritime Centre, now in poor condition. In Podjuchy, at Niklowa 11, stands the director's villa of the Pomeranian Chamotte Factory, a brick house of the former factory management that was damaged by fire.

Frequently asked questions

Is it possible to enter Szczecin's villas?

On this list, Lentz Villa offers guided access to its interiors. The other houses work as schools, offices or institutions, so you usually see them from outside. Two villas on the right bank of the Oder are in poor condition.

Where are most of Szczecin's villas?

Mostly in Pogodno, which has six of the twelve addresses, and in Śródmieście-Północ with three. In both districts the walk between houses takes a quarter of an hour or so.

Which villas are on the heritage register?

Among others Krahnstöver Villa, Quistorp Villa, Wegner Villa and the villa at Solskiego 4.

Which villa on the list is the oldest?

August Horn Villa, built in 1871-1872. It is a half-timbered wooden house, one of three that survive in the city centre.