Dolina Miłości [Love Valley]

Supposedly in 1850 at the entrance to the hills there was a banner with the following content: “Welcome to the valley created by love”. In such a way Anna welcomed her husband Carl Philipp Humbert.

Apart from the banner, Annie Humbert prepared the entire park. Alleys were paved, bridges over streams were built, arbours were constructed and artificial ponds were created. There were more than 7 000 trees (including cherries, plane trees, fir trees and ash trees). For several dozens of years the Humbert family took care of the park established by Anna. In the mid-nineteenth century the garden became a place accessible to the general public, and up until the 2nd World War it was a favourite place for lovers.

In the 60’s of the 19th century on one of the slopes, near the ponds, pheasant breeding was established.  In the same period of time, on the cliff going down to the river a viewpoint was created which was surrounded by a balustrade. In the 80’s of the 19th century in the southern part of the park on a so called ruin hilltop, ruins of a Greek temple were built which also become scenic viewpoint. The structure was made of wood and it is not survived until current times.

In the second half of the 19th century the park landscape was slightly shaken by the nearby mines. In 1873 the son of Anna and Carl Philipp, Nery von Humbert purchased one of them and stopped the exploitation works. In the same year also the other mines were closed due to their unprofitability. The former mine areas were not managed, therefore left to nature they overgrew after some time. Only in the former house of the foreman a restaurant was created and it started operating in the 80’s of the 19th century. The restaurant “Leśny Kocur” was attached to the garden by alleys.

At the end of the 19th century the grandson of Anna and Carl – Rene von Humbert – started to take care of the garden. In this period of time Dolina Miłości gained popularity, as tourists from Szczecin, Berlin and Schwedt came to visit this place. There were special connections by water transport activated which constitutes an additional attraction for the visitors.

Rene von Humbert placed two Baroque sculptures on islands of two ponds. Coming from a castle in Schwedt, they represented Apollo and Venus and they were created by Carl Philipp Glume, the court artist of the King of Prussia. In this period also the so called devil’s bridge was constructed, the water flow in Clotilde (Rene’s mother) stream was improved and new fruit trees were planted.

In 1907 the peasantry was closed and its buildings were demolished. During the 1st World War a part of the park was neglected. Ordering works were related to 1927, which was the 100th anniversary of the Humbert family taking over the property in Krajnik Górny. The tradition of setting commemorative stones was started at that time. The first ones were placed on Wzgórze Uciech and they were dedicated to Carl and Sophie von Humbert. Others were placed in different parts of the park. The largest cluster of commemorative stones was established in 1930 on the hill which was easily accessed from Krajnik Górny. Sixteen stones with famous names, such as Mozart, Beethoven and Bach, were placed there.

In the interwar period the park became an even more public space. In 1945 the Germans living in these areas had to escape the Soviet troops – unfortunately the last descendant of Anna and Carl - Rene von Humbert did not manage to escape and he was killed by the Soviets. After the war, the neglected park decayed and the buildings were ruined.

A resident of Szczecin, Ryszard Matecki, became interested in the park and his goal was to restore the greatness of the park.

At the first stage of restoration works which were conducted between 2005 and 2006 a naturalistic park was restored on a surface area of 80ha. Four sheds, two arbours and four sets of tables and benches were constructed, two places for bon fires were organized and rubbish bins were provided. Fourteen didactic boards and twelve signposts were placed along the educational trail. Moreover, the area of Dolina Miłości was ordered, the viewpoint over the panorama of the Oder Valley was restored. The stones memorizing important personas of politics and art were also renovated.