Štěpánov nad Svratkou

Štěpánov nad Svratkou (until 1951 Štěpánov; Stiepanau) is a market town in Žďár nad Sázavou District in the Vysočina Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 700 inhabitants.

Administrative parts
The village of Vrtěžíř is an administrative part of Štěpánov nad Svratkou.

Geography
Štěpánov nad Svratkou is located about 29 km east of Žďár nad Sázavou and 36 km northwest of Brno. It lies in the Upper Svratka Highlands. The highest point is at 643 m above sea level. The built-up area is situated in the valley of the Svratka River and its tributary, the Hodonínka Stream.

History
The first written mention of Štěpánov is in a deed of Bishop Dětřich from 1285. The village was founded by Štěpán of Medlov between 1234 and 1256. Silver, copper and iron ore were mined in the area from the 13th century and Štěpánov became an industrial centre of the estate. It was first referred to as a market town in 1551, but it was not officially promoted to a market town until sometime between 1561 and 1584. During the 18th century, mining has stopped.

In 1951, Štěpánov was merged with the neighbouring municipality of Olešnička (today an integral part of Štěpánov) and the name of the settlement and the municipality was changed to Štěpánov nad Svratkou.

Transport
The I/19 road (the section from Žďár nad Sázavou to Blansko District) passes through the market town.

Sights
The main landmark of Štěpánov nad Svratkou is the Church of Saints Peter and Paul. The original medieval church from the second half of the 13th century was destroyed by a fire in 1917. The current church was built in the Cubist style in 1923–1924.

Among the protected cultural monuments in the municipality are an architecturally valuable rectory, a cast iron cross from 1761 and a Baroque statue of St. John of Nepomuk from 1896.