Historical Marks
The oldest living traces on the present territory of Zalau date back from the Age of Middle Neolithic (4,000 - 2,7000 B. Ch.). Since then until the present times the existence of human settlements is confirmed almost contoinously, with the exception of the transition period to the Brazen Age (1,800 - 1,700 B. Ch.).

The first written notice about Zalău is from the end of the Ixth century, when it was mentioned in "Gesta Hungarorum" of Anonymus. Another important moment in the life of the city was the day of 1dt august 1473 when Zalau was given the right to hold fares. In 1979, Zalau became a municipality.

Despite its long existence, the architectural heritage of the city is not very rich and it also suffers from a lack of preservation. The historical centre also contains modern buildings. Even so, in the last years efforts have been made to make the most of what remained from the historical centre.

The Transilvania Building is probablly the most important and most valuable of the historical buildings from Zalau.

Considering the layout of the spaces and they style, the Transylvania Building was constructed in 5 stages. The eastern section was the first to be erected, forming the Wesselenyi house (the second half of the 19th century - the present section „A"). The construction was built after a plan specific to the first half of the 19th century, decorated in baroque style.

During the second stage, the western part of the building was constructed, the one facing Gh. Doja Str. This aisle was probbaly built during 1836 and 1838 as a city office. This section of the building was also constructed in several stages.
In the thirth stage and fourth stage the building gets to its present shape. The central part is erected in order to host the City Theatre.

The Building Programe, from April 29 1894 referring to the central part of the city containes information about plans to extend the central part of the building towards the present C. Coposu Str, the new aisle having one level.

The program also mentioned the purpose of the spaces from Transylvania Building: restaurant, coffee shop, a small hotel, dwellings, a ball room that could also be used as a theatre hall and which shoulb have windows towards the street. The dimensions of the ball room are also mentioned: between 300 and 350 sq meters, including the theatre stage and the necessary dressing rooms. In order to assure the good functioning of the restaurant and other activities, the layout of the building stipulated the existence of a kitchen, store room, basement, summer garden and a stable for carriage horses.

Based on the pictures from that time, we can say that in 1901, the building was finished in its current shape.

Functions of the building
Transylvania Building was meant to have more than one function. Until 1920, the spaces were used as initial planned in the arhitectural plan:

Ground floor:

• A tavern, later transformed first in a beer house and then in a coffee house;
• A barber's shop, subsequently transformed in a butcher's, then in a fruit and vegetable shop;
• A glassware shop, becoming later a textiles shop and today - a tourism company;
• A sweet shop and a pub, recently transformed in a public library for children;
• A printing house, later a pub (1944 - 1948) and then a department store and a grocery shop. Now it hosts the headquarter of a political party;
• A restaurant and the attached offices, called "Transylvania", switched in 1986 in an art gallery and presently in a public library;
• A drugstore which later became a second - hand bookshop;
• A tobacconist's - the only space which maintained the original destination until 1995, when it was turned into a dispatcher's oftice;
• A butcher's, becoming after 1944 a pub and later a bookshop.

The first floor:

• The town administrative offices, transformed in 1958 in a boarding school and in 1960 in dweilings. Since 1980 some of these spaces hosted the Public Arts Schools, while the others were used for storing ethnographic and archeological artifacts.
• The dancing hali, also used for theatre performances and for various celebrations, public meetings and New Year's Eve parties. Between 1940 and 1944 the headquarter of the Hungarian army was located here and, after the WW II, these spaces were transformed in a theatre (the "Carol" City Theatre until 1962) and cinema (until 1990). The hall has oil painted ceiling carried out at the beginning of the 20th century, this being the most beautiful ornament in this building.
• In the eastern section: in 1930, rooms were rented by "Astra Cultural House" Cultural Society, used as a library with a reading room and club. Between 1940 and 1944, the Prefecture of Sălaj County was hosted here. After the WW II, until 1990 all the rooms were reconverted to dweilings.

The Transylvania Building hosted during its long existence a lot of events. In september 1927 a conference took place in the theatre hall with the participation of the historian, member of the Romanain Academy and university professor, Nicolae Iorga. In august 1940, another important historian, Constantin Daicoviciu, held a conference. Opera concerts were also organized in this special place, as it was the one from november 1926 held by Septimiu Ghe. Chirvai, first-bassist of Vienna Opera. Theatre companies from Bucharest, Cluj Napoca, Satu Mare had shown in Transylvania Building. The ball room was perfect for dancing and ... balls, of course. Tango, slow fox, vals and foxtrot were the dances most heard in by the walls of this building. The press articles from that time mentioned the Red Cross ball, the masqed ball of the 7th Batallion of Mouintain Huntsmen, or the balls of the Society for the Protection of War Orphans, of the Ortodox Church, the Doctors ball.

It is clear that Transylvania Building had an important cultural role and it represented the centre of the cultural life in Zalau!