Fužine is a municipality in Gorski kotar, in the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. It is located on the southern shore of Lake Bajer. To the west is Benkovac Fužinski, to the northeast are Vrata and Belo Selo, to the east is Lake Potkoš, to the south are Banovina and Lič. The altitude of the settlement is about 720 m.
Fužine is a relatively young settlement that
originated in the 17th century when the Zrinskis started digging
iron ore there. Due to unprofitability, the job was soon abandoned,
but Fužine had a name from that time. "Fužinarstvo" is a term for
excavation and processing of (iron) ore, and the root of the word
probably comes from the Italian term "fucina" or the German
"fusioniren". The settlement then developed on Karolinska cesta
(1726 - 1737) which connects the interior and the sea, later on the
Zagreb-Rijeka railway (1873) and today on the Rijeka-Zagreb highway
(1995) with the junction in Vrata.
Sights and events
Among
the tourist attractions in Fužine are a total of three accumulation
lakes: Bajer - built in the fifties, Lepenica (1988) and a smaller
lake Potkoš. The most important natural monument is the Vrelo cave,
discovered in the 1950s when stone was extracted for the
construction of a dam and a road. Church of St. Anton Padovanski is
the largest sacral building in Gorski kotar. The church is decorated
with beautiful marble altars, valuable paintings and crystal
chandeliers. It was built for a full 25 years, from 1808 to 1833 on
the site of a former chapel and the first ironworks cemetery. Among
the original works in the church is the "Last Supper" above the
altar, which has been restored, the original Way of the Cross and
frescoes painted by the famous Croatian painter Antonini in the
early 20th century. The church is dedicated to the patron saint of
Fužine, St. Anton of Padua, dominates the settlement and night
lighting gives it a special character. About ten kilometers from
Fužine is the cowboy town of Roswell.
Regular annual
events:
Summer in Fužine
Western days