Kecel

Kecel is a town in Bács-Kiskun county, in southern Hungary.

Kecel
Town
Aerial view of the town and military park
Flag Coat of arms
Kecel Location of Kecel
Coordinates: 46.533°N 19.25°E / 46.533; 19.25
Country	Hungary
County	Bács-Kiskun
District	Kiskőrös
Area
• Total	114.48 km2 (44.20 sq mi)
Population  (2008)
• Total	8,892
• Density	78.42/km2 (203.1/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	6237
Area code	(+36) 78
Website	kecel.hu

Croats in Hungary call this town Kecelj.^[1]

History

The first documents mentioning Kecel date back to 1198. Like many other Hungarian towns, Kecel has lost its population during the Turkish Conquest. On April 22, 1734 Gábor Patachich, the bishop of Kalocsa issued papers reestablishing the town of Kecel. At the time, most people made their living by herding. However, the rising population made this extremely hard, so people committed themselves to farming which still remains the main industry in Kecel. In 1802 a number of new buildings were built including: the Roman Catholic church, the Town Hall, the first school, post office, and the police and fire stations. The railroad also reached Kecel.^{[citation needed]} Kecel received town rights in 1993.

The town was served by the Kiskőrös–Kalocsa railway line, operated by MÁV, until its closure in 2007.

The Pintér Művek Military Museum and Park (Hungarian: Pintér Művek Haditechnikai Park), which houses a large collection of military equipment and vehicles, is located on the outskirts of the town in the territory of a metal works factory of the same name.^[2][3]

Demographics

As of the census of 2001, there were 9,259 people and 3,600 households.

Twin towns – sister cities

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Hungary

Kecel is twinned with:^[4]

• Schwarzenbruck, Germany (1991)
• Lupeni, Romania (2009)