Tomaszów Mazowiecki (pronounced [tɔˈmaʂuf mazɔˈvjɛt͡skʲi] ⓘ, Yiddish: טאָמעשעוו or Tomashuv) is a city in central Poland with 60,529 inhabitants (2021).

The town is situated on the banks of three rivers, the Pilica, Wolbórka, and Czarna Bielina, and is near the Sulejow Reservoir and the edge of the Puszcza Spalska wilderness area.

Tomaszów Mazowiecki was founded in 1788 by Count Tomasz Adam Ostrowski when iron ore was discovered there.

[13] During the January Uprising, on July 12 and September 1, 1863, clashes between Polish insurgents and Russian soldiers took place.

During World War I, Tomaszów was occupied by Germany, which policies led to poverty and hunger among the population.

[15] During the war, local Poles organized secret resistance in the town, including the Polish Military Organisation.

[16] After the war, on November 11, 1918, Poland regained independence, and the Poles disarmed German troops, who afterwards left the town.

[13] On 1 September 1939, the first day of the German-Soviet invasion of Poland that started World War II, the Germans air raided the town twice, killing seven people.

[13] Before the Polish Independence Day (11 November), in 1939, the German police carried out mass arrests of about 300 Poles, including priests, teachers, doctors, judges, workers and activists.

[23] The victims were then interrogated by the Gestapo, and most were afterwards deported to the Sachsenhausen, Ravensbrück and Buchenwald concentration camps, while some were murdered on the spot.

[27] In 1944, even 12-year-old Polish children were used as slave labourers to build fortifications in the area in preparation for the advancing Eastern Front.

[28] In 1944, during and following the Warsaw Uprising, the Germans deported thousands of Varsovians from the Dulag 121 camp in Pruszków, where they were initially imprisoned, to Tomaszów Mazowiecki.

[30] The reserve is situated near the end of Saint Anthony Street (in Polish: ulica świętego Antoniego) that begins in the centre of Tomaszów Mazowiecki, in proximity to the central Kościuszko Square.

In the 20th century – thanks to Tomaszów's Artificial Silk Factory – one of the largest European centers for the production of fibers and plastics.

[31] The city is home to a variety of industries: ceramics, construction, chemicals, plastics producers, electrical machinery manufacturers, upholstery, food, logistics and service.

[37] Major chemical companies in Tomaszów include Sicher Bautechnik which is a producer of construction chemicals,[38] EcoHydroCarbon which specializes in polymer waste processing[39] and Toma a plastics processing company[40] that also operates a private clinic at its plant for employees to use.

[41] The Japanese car manufacturer Toyota has a base in Tomaszów, specializing in the production of upholstery for its range of premium vehicles.

Additionally, Las Vegas is a producer of energy drinks where the group also own the "Bulwary" shopping center in the city.

[50] During the occupation of Poland in World War II, several strategic bunkers were built by Nazi Germany near Tomaszów Mazowiecki.

The shelters in Konewka and in Jeleń, built of reinforced concrete, served as unloading stations for military cargo.