Wroclaw beer houses in the 1970s [PHOTOS]

We present the photos of Wroclaw 1970s pubs by two Wroclaw photographers, Stanisław Kokurewicz and Zbigniew Nowak. It's part of a photographic collection of the Wroclaw Centre "Pamięć i Przyszłość." See more photos on Facebook: Unforgettable Wroclaw.

Wroclaw historian, Dr. Jaroslaw Maliniak emphasizes that throughout the period of the Polish People's Republic (PRL) drunkenness was a real plague, reaching its apogee in the 70s. In this decade, the average Pole drank 8.6 litres of pure alcohol. A glass of beer on one's way to work (or at work) was quite normal at the time.

Pub behind "Zajazd" in pl. Kromera, May 1976, photo: Stanisław Kokurewicz/"Pamięć i Przyszłość" Centre

"The pub behind "Zajazd" in pl. Kromera was opening as early as 6 am,' says Dr. Jaroslaw Maliniak. 'A few minutes later, there were quite a lot customers already. Half of them were in a hurry to work, and so asked for a pint out of turn. Usually, they were clerks. In the afternoon, the queue outside the pub was as long as several dozen metres. Daily quarrels and brawls lasted late into the evening. Often, they moved also the nearby market.

Pub "Karłowiczanka", May 1976, photo: Stanisław Kokurewicz/"Pamięć i Przyszłość" Centre

Jaroslaw Maliniak enumerates that the infamous Karłowiczanka Pub in ul. Zawalna opened its beer garden at 8 am. Many of its clients were 'recuperating' from their night binges from dawn. 'The barmaid duly sold two pints at a time, but you could get three, if you were one of her friends. Liquors, for which beer was merely a fixative, were frequent.

Intoxicated waste paper and scrap metal collector, 1973, photo: Stanisław Kokurewicz/"Pamięć i Przyszłość" Centre

'In the beer house by the Zwierzyniecki Bridge, open 10 am - 6 pm, the frequenters were students from the nearby dormitories, and workers. The place was a scene for numerous brawls, too, and the passers-by's ears were often insulted by obscenities,' says Wroclaw's historian.

A line in front of the beer house in ul. Grabiszyńska, near the intersection with ul. Zaporoska, August 1975, photo: Stanisław Kokurewicz/"Pamięć i Przyszłość" Centre

'On the other hand, the pen for beer junkies at the bar Wroclawski at ul. Kosciuszki was opened from 8 am. The dirty fenced area deterred both pedestrians and casual amateurs of the golden drink. During the day the beer house Piastowska, in ul. Poniatowskiego was much calmer, however, in the evening it became a lot worse. Several kinds of beer were offered there, which was warm, unfortunately,' says Jarosław Maliniak and adds that in the small pavillion at the intersection of ul. Grabiszyńska and ul. Zaporoska as many as two beer houses operated. Every day, you could see a dense crowd of quite tipsy individuals there. In 1976, however, the pavilion was closed. In Sołtysowice, the Gastronomy Cooperative of Invalids opened a restaurant, "Kasztelanka", in 1976. There, on the ground floor of the premises, a beer house was opened.

An intoxicated man lying under the bench in H. Sawickiej Park (now the Mikołaja Kopernika Park - Staromiejska Promenade), 1977, photo: Zbigniew Nowak/"Pamięć i Przyszłość" Centre

'New tables, tablecloths and curtains were cut in no time, ashtrays chipped, and the front door glass was regularly smashed. Even the toilet bowl was ripped out,' emphasizes Jarosław Maliniak and adds that pub regulars in ul. Obornicka (on the road between the city and Lipa Piotrowska) benefited from an additional convenience. They could literally change straight from the table and their pint of beer, to the city bus, as a city bus stop was located just at the entrance to the premises. A constant crowd of passengers and bike owners roamed there, willingly frequenting the place to quench their thirst, and then driving away, hardly noticed by the local policeman.