Nowa Sól

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Coat of Arms of Nowa Sól

Nowa Sól (German Neusalz) is a town on the river Oder (Polish: Odra) in western Poland, in Lubusz Voivodeship, in Nowa Sól County of which it is the capital. It has 40,616 inhabitants (2004).

The history of Nowa Sól goes back to the 14th century. The name Neusalzberg was first mentioned in documents of around 1585 and is derived from salt mining that was the basis of the town's wealth up until the Thirty Year's War (1618–1648). After that, Nowa Sól slowly regained its position as a trading town and river port, and finally was chartered as a town in 1734. The modern industrial development began in the 19th century when new factories (especially thread manufactures) and steelworks were opened. At the beginning of the 20th century shipyards on the river and new railroads made the town prosperous place in Lower Silesia, Prussia. During World War II Neusalz was the site of a labor camp belonging to the concentration camp of Groß-Rosen. Since 1945 Nowa Sól is part of Poland and is the capital of the Nowa Sól district of the Lubusz Voivodeship (since 1999; 1975-1998 Zielona Gora Voivodeship).

This town is featured in the documentary 5000 Miles, about a family from Wisconsin in the United States wishing to adopt a polish child.