Built in 1807 as a production building for Friedrich Weinbrenner’s stoneware factory

1817 - ca. 1820 Conversion to a palace as a country residence, also used as a summer and hunting lodge

1864 Addition of the southern portal with Tuscan columns

1991 - 1995 fundamental renovation by the city of Gaggenau to become the State Academy for School Art, School and Amateur Theatre

Gaggenau

Inscription on the Gernsbach town hall:

Built in 1617/18 in the late Renaissance style according to plans by the Heidelberg court architect Johann Schoch (1550-1631). The builder was Johann Jakob Kast, an important timber merchant and member of the Murg shipowners' association.

The building is one of the most important residential buildings of that era in southern Germany.

Used as the town hall of Gernsbach from the late 17th century until 1936.

Renovated and remodeled inside from 1975 to 1979.

Today it serves as a venue for cultural events and is a popular venue for civil weddings.

Houses the Iselin winery and the "Museum of Harmony" of the Jan Brauers Foundation.

Old Town Hall

Due to the authorities' efforts to expand their influence on economic life, from the middle of the 16th century onwards the Murg shipowners were no longer represented by four, but only by a single chief shipmaster. Jakob Kast held this office from 1587 until his death in 1615. He exercised a state trade monopoly for decades, sharing half of the net profit with the margraves. He had rafts as far as Holland. The proceeds from this business made him very rich. His contemporaries accused him of exploiting the other Murg shipowners. He increased his fortune further through credit transactions, leaving behind around 500,000 guilders. His eldest son Johann Jakob Kast had the Old Town Hall built in Gernsbach, and his second eldest son Philip Kast succeeded Jakob as chief shipmaster. ... (from Wikipedia)

Alter Amtshof -

Former official winery of the Speyer Cathedral Chapter for the administration of wine tithes. Built around 1556

The foundation walls date back to the High Middle Ages. The Franconian half-timbered building has remains of wall paintings inside.

Structurally altered around 1700 and used for various commercial purposes since then.

Completely renovated in 1987/1990 in accordance with monument protection regulations.

One room is also used for public exhibitions.

From Gernsbach the road goes via Loffenau up to the so-called Teufelsmühle, 908 m above sea level; the road is partially tolled and difficult to drive on in winter. Of course we can also get to the Teufelsmühle via the Gaistal, the Schweizerkopf and thus the Westweg. The hostel is open there on Saturdays and Sundays; washing facilities are only available in the courtyard, as there is no water supply!

The legend of the devil's mill

"A poor miller, who was eking out a poor living in the Alb valley, met the devil one night. The devil told him about the windmills that would produce a much better yield if they were standing on the hill. After some hesitation, the miller was ready for the pioneering project. But how was he supposed to get the building materials up the steep mountain ridge? The devil said: If you sell me your soul, I will build you the most beautiful mill on the mountain top by tomorrow morning, which everyone else will envy you for. No sooner said than done. However, when dawn broke, the devil (for whatever reason?) had not managed to finish the mill. Out of sheer anger at the lost soul, the devil threw the huge chunks of building material to the ground, where they still lie in the way of hikers today."

Legend, history, reality? - But there is another story about the "Devil's Mill":

Many, many years ago, god stones once stood on the "Steinsberg", the Devil's Mill near Loffenau. They were huge, unworked pillars, the likes of which could not be found on other mountains far in the country. They were set up as a sun cross and marked the midday and midnight lines, and were also a sundial, because the time of day could be read from their shadows and the season from the length of the shadows. Other rocks were arranged in a circle as orientation aids for observing the stars, just like the rocks of Carnac in Brittany, which served the same purpose. ...

from "Friedrich Kübler - Legends, Stories, Customs - Bad Herrenalb and the Northern Black Forest"

Printing: Heinrich Ecker Printing House, Bad Herrenalb - Page 47

A donkey’s head commemorates the former Linde Inn.

- On the board it says:

"A donkey only drinks when he is thirsty,

The men, on the other hand, don't care."

      ...

Forbach

The Murgschifferschaft is a cooperative-based timber trading company in the northern Black Forest that has existed since the late Middle Ages. It is based in Forbach (originally in Gernsbach) and manages forests in the catchment area of the upper Murg. Its first recorded order dates back to 1488. The Schiffer part of the name refers to what was once the most important method of transporting timber, rafting.

A visit to "Café Henriette" is always worthwhile! Here is the address: 76596 Forbach Klammstr. 1 (closed Tuesday Wednesday)

"When the French invaded the country in 1688 during the War of the Palatinate Succession:

The old castle of Baden-Baden was destroyed. The margrave's government had to flee to Eberstein Castle. But since the arsonists also moved here, they fled to the upper Murg valley to Forbach, which was surrounded by dense forests and difficult to access. - Even during the war of 1796, many inhabitants of (Baden-) Baden found a safe haven here. In gratitude for the friendly reception, the city of Baden later had a cemetery chapel built in Forbach."

( from Humpert/Feyel, pp. 121, 135 )

Café ERLE Opening hours: Tuesday - Saturday 9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Familie Barth Murgtalstrasse 195 | 5 minutes from the S-Bahn station

Baiersbronn

People have long been arguing about the question:

Who has the largest marketplace in Germany -

Freudenstadt or Heide? Probably both are right, because both cities have really big market places;

one is on a slight slope, after all FDS is in the Black Forest; there are two markets there, an organic market in the upper part and a French one in the lower part; the other in Heide is completely flat, because the North Sea is not far away; but sometimes they even sell pigs there.

The Venus is a bronze figure by the Freudenstadt sculptor David Fahrner from 1954. It was created to commemorate the destruction and reconstruction of Freudenstadt after the Second World War. It is also called the "Mortgage Venus" because the reconstruction of the city was associated with considerable debt. The figure reaches into a better future with one hand, while with the other hand it pushes away the evil of the past.