History of Sucha Beskidzka

In the early 17th century Sucha belonged to the Komorowski family. The village remained in private hands until 1939, as the so-called “Sucha State” (panstwo suskie). Among its owners were the Wielopolski family, the Branicki family, and the Tarnowski family. In the 1610s, Piotr Komorowski funded here a parish church, and vastly expanded the castle of Kasper Suski, turning it into a residence. Furthermore, Sucha was a center of early industry, with glass works, watermill, brewery, and iron works. Due to several royal privileges, Sucha emerged as a local trade center; the village prospered under Anna Konstancja Wielopolska, who owned it in 1693 – 1726. The area of Sucha was one of centers of the Bar Confederation, and in 1772, the village, with the population of 3,000, became part of Austrian province of Galicia.

In the 1840s, Sucha was purchased by the Branicki family, Korczak Coat of Arms, which opened a large library together with a museum in the Sucha Castle. The village already had ironworks, which operated until the 1880s. In the same period, Sucha received a rail station, along the Galician Transversal Railway. Here, a northwards connection with Kraków was added in 1884, after which Sucha became an important rail junction. In 1896 Austrian authorities finally granted town charter to Sucha. In 1895 – 1907, a new church was built, and in 1910, new building of Bank Spoldzielczy. In the Second Polish Republic, Sucha belonged to Krakow Voivodeship, and was part of Żywiec County (later the town was transferred to Wadowice County). In 1922 - 1939, the castle belonged to the Tarnowski family. In 1939, population of the town was 6,200.

On September 3, 1939, Sucha was captured by the Wehrmacht. In the late 1939, the town was annexed by the Third Reich, and was located near the border with