Rekownica (german: Großwalde) is a

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

in the administrative district of Gmina Jedwabno, within

Szczytno County __NOTOC__ Szczytno County ( pl, powiat szczycieński) is a unit of territorial administration and local government (powiat) in Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, northern Poland. It came into being on January 1, 1999, as a result of the Polish local go ...

, Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, in northern

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

. It lies approximately south-east of

Jedwabno Jedwabno is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Lubicz, within Toruń County, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, in north-central Poland. It lies approximately north of Lubicz and east of Toruń )'' , image_skyline = , i ...

, south-west of

Szczytno Szczytno (german: Ortelsburg) is a town in northeastern Poland with 27,970 inhabitants (2004). Szczytno is situated in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodship (since 1999), but was previously in Olsztyn Voivodship (1975-1998). It is located within the h ...

, and south-east of the regional capital

Olsztyn Olsztyn ( , ; german: Allenstein ; Old Prussian: ''Alnāsteini'' * Latin: ''Allenstenium'', ''Holstin'') is a city on the Łyna River in northern Poland. It is the capital of the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, and is a city with county rights. ...

. The village was created by a fisherman named Eugen Gross or Grosz, who on 12 March 1710 received 16 łans and 8

morgen A morgen was a unit of measurement of land area in Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Lithuania and the Dutch colonies, including South Africa and Taiwan. The size of a morgen varies from . It was also used in Old Prussia, in the Balkans, Norway ...

of land from a local forest master Rudolf Wilhelm von Lüderitz. The village was conveniently located close to the shores of three lakes: Głęboczek, Rekowe and Bakola (the latter ceased to exist some time in the 19th century). The village was created in accordance with the mediaeval

Kulm law Kulm law, Culm law or Chełmno Law (german: Kulmer Recht; lat, Jus Culmense vetus; pl, Prawo chełmińskie) was a legal constitution for a municipal form of government used in several Central European cities during the Middle Ages. It was initia ...

and was exempted from taxes for some time, to attract more settlers, mostly from northern Masovia. A 1780 census listed 12 peasants living in the village, two years later a Prussian village inventory recorded 26 houses in Rekownitza. By 1817 the village grew to 158 inhabitants. In 1858 the village had 42 houses and covered the area of 81.5 łans. In 1923 the local inhabitants started a volunteer fire service, in 1941 a new fire station was built. In 1939 the village included 57 farmsteads (90 buildings altogether), including 13 larger ones. There were 385 inhabitants in 1939. During World War II the village was badly damaged by warfare in 1944 and 1945. After the war it was partly rebuilt, nowadays its permanent population does not exceed 76 people, many more go there during the summer months.

References

Rekownica {{Szczytno-geo-stub