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Airplane traditions
Lajos Ős produced the first operational model of the helic-
opter in 1909. Only a few years after the historic flight of the
Wright Brothers, András Kvasz participated in the produc-
István Nattán introduced gliding flight in Békés County. Traditions
tion of the first Hungarian aircraft (Kvasz and Zsélyi, 1908).
Printing traditions
Th e first printing house of Békéscsaba, owned by János
Dobay, started to operate on 21st September 1873 in Bé-
késcsaba. Our town’s most important printers were the
members of the Tevan family. In 1903, Adolf Tevan took
over the Lepagne bookstore and the Tevan printing and
publishing company was started, which, during its forty-
six years of operation, and while Andor Tevan was work-
ing, played a prominent role in renewing Hungarian book
culture.
Vineyard traditions
The rich gastronomic offerings of Békéscsaba do not only
include Csaba sausages, Slovakian dishes, and good pálinka
(the traditional spirit). The Csabagyöngye grape variety
started its journey to world fame from Békéscsaba. Adolf
Stark was not only an expert in the improvement of grape
varieties, but also in business matters. He sold his improved
grape varieties from a catalogue from Canada to Siberia.
Stark won the Zsolnay vase, donated by Vilmos Zsolnay as
the special prize at the Paris World Exhibition, which now
decorates the mayor’s offi ce.
White Horehound candy
These lozenges became popular at the beginning of the
twentieth century. Béla Réthy, a pharmacist in Békéscsaba,
and one of the iconic specialists of the country, created the
White Horehound candy. It was made from five kinds of
herbs and soon gained a national reputation.
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