Gyomaendrőd

Gyomaendrőd is located is Békés County on the left side of the river called Hármas-Körös (triple, circular and bending river). The surrounding left-side area partly belongs to the tableland of aeolian soil called Békés-Csanádi. Its height above sea-level is 85 m. The position of the right-side area is much lower; with its 84 m it forms part of the deep flood-area lying by the rivers Körös. Hármas-Körös took its final, recent physiognomy on the base of the regularizational plan of 1879. The cross-cuts that had been started earlier were widened and the embankments were rebuilt six hundred meters from each other. The work was finished in 1894.

The Gyomaendrődian waterbank of Hármas-Körös, especially the sections of it that belong to Sebes- and Kettős-Körös (sharp and double Körös), is the most beautiful and most romantic water-bank of Körös-district. Despite of the fact that it is an artifical environment, the original fauna and flora of Körös country settled here, thus the spirit of the ancient Great- or Joint-Körös is preserved here.

The average distance between the two opposite levees is six hundred meters, and woods of bushy undergrowth interspersed with grassy openings cover the flood area. The water-plane is one hundred metre wide, and the average depth of the river is six metres.

Because of the dam built in 1942 at Békésszentandrás, the water level is always the same from spring to autumn. It especially sheds a good influence on the fauna in the flood area, thus it is in full bloom of fresh green even in the case of the greatest drought.

A section of 17-20 km of the flood area of Hármas-Körös belongs to Körös-Maros National Park. There is an area called Csejt-puszta on the north-west and west outer part of the town that is preserved by the order of the local government of March 1996, since strictly preserved bustards, which take nourishment and brood on wild greensward, live there.

The park called Erzsébet located in the centre of the town is also preserved for environmental reasons, first of all because of the oaks plante here at the beginning of the 20th century. The 68 sweet chestnut-trees standing by the inside bank of Torzsás-nook are accounted to be unique in the droughty climate of the Great Plain.

Gyomaendrőd is a young settlement, as it came into being in 1982 when Gyoma and Endrőd united, but both of them have been inhabited since the earliest ages. According to Archaelogical Topography of Hungary there were traces of settlements from the ages of Avar and the Arpads discovered next to Gyoma in Körös-valley, mainly by the banks of old branches. A very rich archaeological site from lat bronze age was found in the southern part of the town that belongs to the confines of the ancient talus pile of the river Maros. A large Sarmatian settlement was found in 1961 north of the man-made riverbed of Hármas-Körös, next to the railway line to Dévaványa. Outstanding findings of Körös civilisation were discovered at the confines of Endrőd.

The cultural life of the town is sponsored by several civil organisations and foundations. There are some private galleries, museums in the town. Honti workshop-gallery belongs to these, for example, where pictures of a graphic artist, Antal Honti, are located. In the Motorcycle museum, unique in Europe, established and owned by Elek Soczó who lives in Gyomaendrőd, a collection of about 180 restored motorcycles of 1885-1989 are on show.

Kner Printing Museum, also unique in Hungary has been awaiting the visitors since 1970. It was renovated in 1982, the centenary of the foundation of Kner Printing House. The museum is located in Imre Kner's and his family's former home built in 1925 designed by Lajos Kozma. The Country House is well worth seeing in Endrőd, which built in 1864. The peasant cottage typical of the middle of the last century was restored on the base of National Ancient Monument Commttee's. plans. The arrangement of the rooms is typical of that period, and it is furnished with pieces of peasant furniture from that period.

The Town Galery has been opened to the public since 1993. The art lovers can see pictures by Margit Corini, Béla Vidovszky and Zoltán Illésy or János Pásztor's statues.

A great number of tourists come here thanks to first of all Liget Fürdő (spa and lido), where the guests bathing can cure themselves in the medicinal water while enjoying bathing. Liget Spa was opened in the park of about 8-hectare called Erzsébet (Elisabeth) in 1954 with one bathing-pool, and it was planned to be supplied by water coming from Körös. Hot water of 62 degrees of Celsius was found springing from a depth of 1000 metres. It was declared to be medical water by Ministry of Health in 1960. In Liget Spa there are swimming-, bathing-, medicinal-, and child basins. In the therapy's building there are medicinal basin, swimming-pool, carbonic bath, tangentor, sauna, elektrotherapy, massage, medical treatment, cosmetics, hairdresser's, manicure, chiropody. The medicinal water is taking effect to rheumatism, nerve inflammation, after-treatment of accident.

Beside the cultural insitutions mentioned above there are some buildings of historic monument character and monuments promising tourists sights worth seeing. The catholic church of late baroque style in Endrőd is one of the examples. The foundation of the protestant churh in Gyoma was laid in 1791, dhe designer was an Austrian military engineer. The woodcarvings of the doors made of oak-wood and the design of the front side of the organ is a great achievement of Zsigmond Papp, a presbyter of Gyoma in the first half of the 20th century.