Călan

Călan (deprecated Criseni; Kalan German, Hungarian Pusztakalán ) is a small town in the district of Hunedoara in Transylvania, Romania.

The place is also known by the German name Klandorf and the Hungarian Kalán.

Geographical location

The small town Călan located in the southern half of the circle Hunedoara on Strei ( Strell ) - a tributary of the Mureş ( Maros ) - in which Hatzeger valley floor ( Depresiunea Haţeg ). Simeria is located approximately 14 kilometers north, the county capital Deva ( Deva ) some 25 kilometers northwest of Călan.

History

The oldest archaeological evidence of settlement in the region date back to the Neolithic period. On the territory of the present town there was a Dacian settlement called ydata that persisted at the time of the Roman Empire under the name Aquae.

Călan was first documented in 1387. The name may be traced back to a bishop Calanus, who owned land in the vicinity of the place. 1760 demonstrated the Hungarian name Pusztakalán. During this time, one began in Călan with the smelting of iron, which increased in the second half of the 19th century in importance. In 1869 the first blast furnace. In the hitherto rural place workers' estates were built. After the Second World War, Călan developed - with the metallurgical plant "Victoria" - a center of metallurgy in Romania. On the right side of the Strei the settlement Nou Călan arose. 1961, the site was declared a city. Other important sectors are the textile and construction industries. After the 1989 revolution, some steel mills were shut down, so that today (2010) resembles the work of a ruin; several industrial areas must be rehabilitated. In the former steelworks are only 250-300 people - mostly to wax protection tasks - busy.

Population

1850 were in the region of today's 5,474 residents registered, of which only 165 were living in Călan, the remaining 5,309 in today's incorporated villages. Approximately 97 % were Romanians. The economic development led to the influx of other nationalities, particularly from Hungary. When - however controversial - Census in 1910 the population had risen to 7,272, of which 5,807 identified themselves as Romanians, 1,110 as Hungary and 285 as German. In Călan even then lived 1,024 people. By 1992, a further population increase was recorded ( 14,738 ). Since then, the population has been declining slowly. As of the 2002 census lived in Călan 13,030 people, including 9,359 in the city proper, and 3,671 in the local villages. 11,965 identified themselves as Romanians, 800 as Hungary, 174 as German and 67 as Roma. Furthermore described themselves in almost every shot, some as Slovaks ( the highest number 1930) and Serbs ( the highest number in 1966 ); 1956 Ukrainians were ( the highest number in 1977 ) registered.

Traffic

Călan is located on the double track and electrified railway Simeria - Petrosani. In Călan including high-speed trains, in Călan Bai only local trains. There is a regular bus service to Deva and Hunedoara. Through the city, the National Road (drum National) DN 66 - a north-south direction - Simeria after Filiaşi ( Kr Dolj ), the European Route 79 corresponds here.

Attractions

• The Roman Bath ad Aquae, carved in the 3rd century in a rock, has a circumference of about 94 m, 14.2 m long, 7.5 m wide and 4 m deep. Called by the locals " Lingura " ( spoon ), the bathroom was supplied by three sources with water at a temperature of 23-24 ° C. After commissioning in 1980 of the third blast furnace at the smelter, the bathroom was covered in soot, ash and coal dust, thus rendered unusable. The bathroom is a listed building.
• The Reformed Church, 1895 built.
• The Orthodox Church, built in 1938.
• The Orthodox Church Sf. Gheorghe built in Streisangeorgiu in the 13th century, was a foundation of the family Cîndea (Hungarian Kendeffi ). The oldest layer of the wall painting from 1313 of the master painter Teofil is detected at the niche of the altar. 1409 restored, this is a listed building.
• A hydroelectric power plant in Streisangeorgiu - towards Boşorod - built in the late 19th century, is a historical monument.
• The Orthodox Church Adormirea Maicii Domnului in Strei in 13-14. Century built, is a listed building.

Pictures

Blast furnace in Călan, 1896

Ruins of the ironworks

New district

Church in Streisangeorgiu

Hydropower plant in Streisangeorgiu

Personalities

• Gheorghe Barbu ( born 1951 ), Romanian Labour, Family and Social Affairs