Up to the Second World War, like many other cities in Europe, Częstochowa had a significant Jewish population: according to Russian census of 1897, out of the total population of 45,130, Jews constituted 12,000 (so around 26% percent).
Med največjimi investicijami v tem obdobju je bil tovarna jekla "Huta Częstochowa", ki jo je zgradil Bernard Hantke ter nekaj papirnic in tkalnic.