Sărmașu


Sărmașu is a town in Mureș County, central Transylvania, Romania. It administers seven villages: Balda, Larga, Moruț, Sărmășel, Sărmășel-Gară, Titiana, and Vișinelu.

Geography

The town lies in the Transylvanian Plain, at an altitude of, on the banks of the rivers Pârâul de Câmpie and Frata. It is located in the western part of Mureș County, northwest of the county seat, Târgu Mureș, on the border with Cluj and Bistrița-Năsăud counties.
Sărmașu is bordered to the north by Budești, Bistrița-Năsăud; to the east by Sânpetru de Câmpie and to the southeast by Miheșu de Câmpie ; to the west by Cămărașu and to the northwest by Mociu.
Sărmășel-Gară village is crossed by national road, which connects it to Cluj-Napoca, to the west, and to Reghin, to the east. The town has two train stations, both serving the CFR Line 405, which starts in Deda, Mureș and ends in Ocna Mureș, Alba County.

History

The town is the site of the Sărmașu massacre, which occurred between 5 September and 10 October 1944, when Sărmașu came under the occupation of the Nazi-aligned Hungarian troops. During this period, Hungarian gendarmes and members of the Hungarian National Guard killed 126 local Jews, as well as 39 Romanians, the latter primarily prisoners of war captured during the Battle of Turda.

Demographics

At the 2021 census, Sărmașu had a population of 6,186, of which 63.32% were Romanians, 17.73% Hungarians, and 12.38% Roma. According to the 2011 census, the town had 6,833 inhabitants, divided among the following ethnic groups: Romanians, Hungarians, and Roma.

The Sărmașel gas field

On the present-day territory of Romania, the first natural gas deposit was discovered in 1909, in Sărmășel. The Sărmașel gas field was developed by Romgaz. The first gas production was used to power the steam boilers in Sărmășel and the gas lighting of the alleys in Bazna resort. In 1914 the first gas pipe was finished, spanning from Sărmășel to Turda and on to Ocna Mureș, with a length of and diameter; in 1916, Turda became the first city in Europe to have public street lights fueled by natural gas. In 1927 the first natural gas compression station in Europe was built in Sărmășel.

Natives