Located within the "Bosch Diesel Center Žeravica" in Novo Miloševo, there is a unique collection of tractors, steam and agricultural machinery, artisan workshops, equipment, and household items. Continuing the tradition of his grandfather Milorad and father Milivoje, Čedomir Žeravica transformed the family workshop into a diesel center, which was recognized as the best service of the renowned German company in the former Yugoslavia and Hungary. Within the complex, alongside modern workshops and a school for training and advancing craftsmen, the dominant feature is the Museum "Žeravica."
The year of construction - 1774 is inscribed on the church, which does not correspond to reality. This date originates from 1871 when the church was repaired, and it was found on September 12, 1931. At that time, Novi Becej and its surroundings were hit by a hurricane, which caused great damage and claimed about twenty human lives. A small boat that sailed between Stari Becej and Novi Becej was submerged, and more than twenty people drowned in the Tisa River. At that time, the top of the Orthodox Church in Novi Becej was also demolished.
Novi Bečej is located in the central part of Vojvodina. Its territory encompasses the northwestern part of the middle Banat. Being built near the Tisa River, it belongs to the group of Transylvanian settlements. The geographic center of the settlement is intersected by coordinates 45° 36' north latitude and 20° 9' east longitude. In other words, Novi Bečej is situated 66 kilometers from the confluence of the Tisa River with the Danube.
After the expulsion of the Turks from Buda on September 2, 1686, there were more Serbs than Hungarians in Buda and Pest. For over fifty years, Serbs outnumbered Hungarians in these two cities (then separated cities).
Immediately after the liberation of Buda, the Austrian authorities settled a large number of Germans there. Part of the Serbs, who crossed the Sava and Danube under Arsenije Čarnojević in 1690, settled in Buda. By 1792, Buda was larger than Pest.
When we say that Serbs, immediately after the liberation from the Turks, made up half of the total population in Buda and a quarter in Pest (including Hungarians and Germans), it must be emphasized to obtain a realistic idea of the size, the absolute number of inhabitants in 1720. Buda had 12,138, and Pest 2,706 inhabitants.
Žarko Zrenjanin, known as Uča, was one of the prominent participants in the People's Liberation Struggle (NOB) in Banat, serving as the secretary of the Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia (KPJ) for Vojvodina. He was an organizer of uprisings and a coordinator of partisan resistance. He was born on September 11, 1902, in Izbište near Vršac, into a peasant family.
River passenger traffic held a significant place for Novi Bečej. In addition to the ferry and horse-drawn carriage transport to Stari Bečej, there was a smaller boat that made about ten round trips daily between Novi and Stari Bečej. This boat operated for many years, continuing even after World War II until the construction of the dam on the Tisa River and the bridge for road traffic in 1977. It connected the two neighboring towns of Novi and Stari Bečej and served as an important link between Srednji Banat and Srednja Bačka between the wars.
It is not known where the first church in Vranjevo was, but it is assumed that such a church or place of worship existed as early as 1743. In that year, a cloth - antimins was consecrated by Metropolitan Georgije Popović of Tamiš-Lipova, for the service in the temple of St. John the Baptist in the trench of Bečej. It is incorrect to assume that the antimins was for the church in Bečej, as there was already a small church (monastery) in Novi Bečej by then, which had its own antimins and was dedicated to St. Nicholas, besides Bečej was not a trench. That antimins could only refer to the trench Vranjevo and is kept in the treasury of the Temišvar diocese.
Catholics in Vranjevo did not have their own parish until 1880. They had a filial church that fell under the parish in Novi Bečej. They did not have churches, and they gathered for prayer in a prayer house located in the house of Feješ Janoš until the construction of the present-day Catholic Church in Vranjevo. Only in 1881 was a small church built on the site where the present-day parish of the Catholic Church stands. The building looked the same then as it does today.
Dr. Jene Sentklarai was born on January 21, 1843, in Vranjevo. His father, Naum Nedić, was a grain merchant who, after several business failures, had to abandon trading and spent the rest of his life dealing with estate affairs. His mother, of Hungarian descent, Žofija Salaji, was a housewife from Čantavir. They lived in today's Svetdzara Markovića Street No. 24 in Vranjevo. His baptismal name was Evgenije Nedić.
Pavle Simić was born in Novi Sad into a merchant family. He gained his first knowledge about the art painting from Alojz Kastanj, an immigrant from Italy, who had his workshop in Novi Sad. However, as early as in 1837, Simić was enrolled at the Vienna Academy, where he stayed for five years. In this period, the Academy was led by L. Kupelwieser and J. Führichs, who were completely dependent on the artistic views of F. Overbeck, the main advocate of the German Nazarene painting. The artistic ideal of these painters was the revival of Christian art through the return to the old German painting art (A. Dürer) and, which is characteristic of Overbeck, the return to the Italian Renaissance painting (Perugino,
The Jewish church (synagogue) was built in 1865 and was located at 16 Žarko Zrenjanin Street. Next to it was the building where the cantor (assistant to the rabbi) lived. The synagogue was of modest dimensions, suitable for the number of worshippers from Novi Bečej and the surrounding villages that belonged to the Novi Bečej district.
The Serbian Orthodox Church (Church of Saint John the Baptist) in Vranjevo - Novi Bečej, located at 63 Josif Marinković Street, has been protected by law along with its iconostasis and other items (thrones with choirs, movable icons, chasubles, and others), by the provincial institute for the protection of cultural monuments, according to decision number 939/67 of April 1, 1968, and number 581 of October 7, 1966.
The gullies and pits of Novi Bečej and Vranjevo were particularly alluring landscapes of our fields. One had to experience the clamor: the chirping, twittering, cawing, and the most beautiful songs of songbirds to truly understand the richness of nature and the life within this bird kingdom. Even before approaching these areas, birds could be seen circling high above from a distance, choosing the right spot to land. As we got closer, the joyful noise of birds grew louder, either at dawn or just before dusk wrapped the fields in a misty shroud as the day came to a close.
Karolj Folkman (Voklmann Károly) was born in Turski (Novi) Bečej on November 4, 1847, to father Peter Folkman and mother Aloisia Hanek. Karolj Folkman was married to Josefa Fekete, who bore him two daughters and three sons. An interesting fact is that at the baptism of his daughter Šarolta in 1883, the godfather listed in the birth register was Đula Folkman (Volkman), a photographer from Bačka Topola. On a document dated December 14, 1918, alongside the signatures of Novi Bečej postal officials, is also the signature of Mikloš Folkman (Volkmann), son of Karolj Folkman (Volkmann).
Rozalija Čejtei was born in Novi Bečej on April 28, 1938, and is likely the only female photographer from Novi Bečej. She completed her primary and secondary education in her hometown. From an early age, she showed a penchant for drawing, which her teachers quickly noticed. Rozalija's parents were alerted to their child's artistic talent and were advised to continue her education at an art school for drawing in Novi Sad. However, after passing the entrance exam, her parents redirected her towards photography.
Novi Bečej and Vranjevo had individuals who future generations, not just this one, can be proud of. Unfortunately, their names are not commemorated in today's Novi Bečej, nor are there gatherings dedicated to them and their work.
The only exception is the great Josif Marinković. He has become and remained unforgettable thanks to the efforts and care of Branislav-Bata Kiselički. The people of Vranjevo and Vranjevci honored Marinković by naming their elementary school after him, reminding generations (students) of the immortal giant, cradled in the Vranjevo cradle. Then, there is the main street of Vranjevo, which bears the name of Josif Marinković, as well as a memorial plaque on the house where his birth house once stood, and a beautiful collection of diplomas, articles, speeches, lectures, compositions, and personal items of Josif Marinković.
Lazar Mečkić was born in the village of Kumane on September 8, 1917, and moved to Novi Bečej with his parents in 1928. He completed primary and secondary school in Novi Bečej, and then pursued higher education in economics in Belgrade.
In 1946, he moved to Zrenjanin and began working at the Sugar Factory. Shortly after, he was employed in the Ministry of Industry's office, where he remained for five years before moving to work in Kaštele, then Pančevo, and back to Belgrade in the office of the Federal Chamber of Commerce. He also worked as a representative of the Chamber of Commerce of Yugoslavia in Budapest.
The most significant cultural monument in the territory of the Municipality of Novi Bečej is the Arača Basilica, a cultural asset of exceptional importance for the Republic of Serbia, and of special significance for the Hungarian national minority.
Considering the significance and values of the Arača church, as well as the ancient settlement whose remains have been confirmed by archaeological research, the issue of site presentation is very significant and demanding. The realization of the project requires a multidisciplinary team and a longer time period.
Information about the owner and photographer of the Photo 'Royal' studio has not been found to this day, so during our research, we mainly relied on the accounts of older local residents. Based on this, we learned that, according to some, the Photo 'Royal' studio was located in one of the rooms of the 'Royal' hotel, later the 'Jadran' hotel. According to others, the studio was in a very beautiful courtyard building next to the 'Royal' cinema hall, which burned down in the 1930s. However, we tend to believe that the 'Royal' studio was actually located on the ground floor of the impressive hotel building and had a view of the main street, which was typical for photography studios.
According to the understanding of neo-humanists, aesthetic experience helps a person to develop moral principles within themselves. Schiller believed that aesthetics ensures the ideal development of a person. Therefore, art educates us, whether we want it to or not. Art emits a value system, ideology, or perspective even when the artist has no intention of educating anyone. Art portrays the world through the artist's eyes and thus, even unintentionally, shapes our soul, taste, choices, faith, and influences us in a very special way: if it manages to awaken feelings in us, it simply engraves them deep into our soul, deeper than any communication. It is unnecessary to delude ourselves—the artist's communication will leave an impression on us even when created out of mere boredom.