Kecskemét

Kecskemét, a town of Hungary, in the county of Pest-Pilis-Solt-Kiskun, 65 m. S.S.E. of Budapest by rail. Pop. (1900), 56,786. Kecskemét is a poorly built and straggling town, situated in the extensive Kecskemét plain. It contains monasteries belonging to the Piarist and Franciscan orders, a Catholic (founded in 1714), a Calvinistic and a Lutheran school. The manufacture of soap and leather are the principal industries. Besides the raising of cereals, fruit is extensively cultivated in the surrounding district; its apples and apricots are largely exported, large quantities of wine are produced, and cattle-rearing constitutes another great source of revenue. Kecskemét was the birthplace of the Hungarian dramatist József Katona (1792-1830), author of the historical drama, Bánk-Bán (1815).