Čierny Balog

History

The first written record of the settlement in the area dates back to 1607 when the Emperor Rudolf II. issued a decree to regulate the growing timber industry in the region. Čierny Balog arose in 1888 through a merger of thirteen villages, i.e., Balog, Krám, Dobroč, Dolina, Fajtov, Jánošovka, Jergov, Komov, Látky, Medveďov, Pustô, Vydrovo, and Závodie. Until 1918, it belonged to Austria-Hungary as part of Zólyom County (: Zvolenská stolica). It played an important role during World War II as one of the centers of the anti-Fascist Slovak National uprising, and in the Battle of Čierny Balog. By 2024 the largest village in the Banská Bystrica Region, it punches well above its weight due to the number of notable natives, as well as its cultural and natural heritage such as the Čierny Hron Railway and Dobroč Primeval Forest.