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Weinhaus Julius Renner

Restaurant Bahnhof

Die Burg

Silberner Stern

Haus am Berg

Gaisbacher Hof

Hotel Bahnhof Oberkirch

Obere Linde (Upper Linde)

The Linde restaurant and hotel (Hauptstraße 25, 27), whichwas located outside of the city wall, was also destroyed inthe fire of 1689. The half-timbered houses that stand heretoday were built in 1692 and 1702.A corner beam in the smaller and older one of the two housesindicates the year of construction. The house stands onthe old foundation from 1659. The inscription on the gableside tells us the names of the owners since then.In 1872 the town of Fernach to the west became a part ofOberkirch. Because this town also had a restaurant known asthe Linde, the two became known as the Fernach Linde, orLower Linde and the Linde im Loh or Upper Linde.Emperors and revolutionariesThe Linde has hosted many illustrious visitors over the years.In 1847, the democrats from Baden met here to prepare theirmeeting in the Salmen in Offenburg, where Friedrich Heckerproclaimed the 13 demands of the people, which are consideredthe basis for the German constitution. The Linde’s owner,Hermann Geldreich, was active as a commander in the militaryfor the Revolution and was sentenced to prison after theirdefeat.In 1879, the German Emperor Wilhelm I dined at the Linde.He was the commander-in-chief of the Prussian troops whenthey brutally crushed the May Revolution in Baden in 1849.Do you think he knew he was staying at the inn of a formerrevolutionary?

s'freche hus - Oberkirch

The freche hus (Apothekergasse 7) has become a venue forcultural events since its renovation by the city of Oberkirch.It was named after the Frech family.The house was built by the tanner Matis Gebert in the decadeafter the city fire of 1689. The corner beam pointing inthe direction of the Mühlbach indicates as much. In 1876the pharmacist Friedrich Frech bought the property.Next to the northern entrance of the house there are twokeystones made from old archways. One of them shows thenumber 15 as the first two digits of a year along with thetanners’ guild sign, two crossed knifes. A mythical creatureis depicted on the other door lintel.

Mühlbach Stream - Oberkirch

For centuries, the water in the Mühlbach Stream drove thewheels of the grain, oil, saw and paper mills as well as thoseof the blacksmith and the grinding machines. Since the beginningof the 20th century, turbines have used the falls forthe production of electricity.Sewage used to be disposed of in the Mühlbach. The butcherthrew the guts of the slaughtered animals in the stream. Thetanner dumped the stinking contents of his tanning tubs inthe water. At the back of some of the houses you could finda privy which jutted out above the water.The Mühlbach is diverted from the Rench River by a dam justabove the swimming pool. All along the stream you can findlovely half-timbered houses.According to the corner beam, the house on the corner ofBahnhofstraße (Bachanlage 2) was built in 1709 by Johannesand Anna Maria Braun. Braun was a butcher, as we cantell by the guild sign, which depicts an axe. A different guildsign – a bull’s head – can be found two houses down (Bachanlage6).One of the oldest buildings along the Bachanlage streamsystem is the house at the corner of Schlossergasse and Gerbergasse(Gerbergasse 2). A beam bears the year 1696. Thehistorical company sign reminds us of the Hodapp smitherythat used to be located here.

Mühlbach Stream - Oberkirch

In the 19th and 20th century there was a bakery located at Bachanlage6. As the story goes, the owner instigated a boy in 1849to call out to the Prussians as they were marching in: “Heckerand Struve were right when they said all princes should bebaked like bread. And with ministers spike them well. And sendthe whole lot right to hell.“ The boy was promised a bread roll.The enraged Prussians threw the lad in the Mühlbach streamand the baker Bach gave him an extra bread roll.

Walachia fountain - Oberkirch

Along the Bachanlage stream system you will find theWalachia fountain, which is worth a visit.Oberkirch’s city center is called Walachia (in German: Walachei).When the Walachians celebrate their Carnival, they wearfunny fish hats just like the Walachian family in the fountain.The curved forms above and below the Walachian family symbolizethe waves of the Mühlbach Stream. On the trough of thefountain, a human bottom is symbolized. The Walachians aretelling the residents of the other parts of the town to kiss theirbottoms. This is, of course, not to be taken too seriously.Which of these Walachian heads portray older people andwhich portray younger ones? Are you good at making faces?Go ahead and try to imitate the Walachian grimaces!

Tannery Building - Oberkirch

In addition to butchers, tanners used to live and work alongthe Mühlbach.The frame house at the western end of Gerbergasse (Löwengasse1) was built in 1707. The year of construction andthe initials HAP are embedded next to a little window onthe ground floor. The builder was most likely Hans AdamProkopp. Up unto the 20th century, a tannery was locatedin the building.Because the building fills a gap between the city wall, theMühlbach and Löwengasse, it has a somewhat odd floorplan. The front gable end is 17 meters wide and the backgable end is only 7 meters wide. The Madonna on the frontgable side was created by the Oberkirch sculptor MichaelHuber in 1986.

Hospital - Oberkirch

The Oberkirch Hospital was located at Löwengasse 2.The building was built after the city fire of 1689. One archbears the inscription 1701. The hospital was put out of usein 1890 when the new hospital on Gaisbacher Straße wasbuilt.For the sick, sinecures and the poorThe purpose of the hospital was not solely to cure the sick. Thepoor and sinecures, or benefices, were also housed here. Thesinecures received room and board for the rest of their lives inexchange for giving their assets to the hospital.According to a report from 1861 there were ten beds available.A live-in director and his wife were in charge of the care. Thesick were cared for by a local doctor.

Administration - Oberkirch

The Administration Building (Hauptstraße 48) was the administrativeseat of the Bishops of Strasbourg for the Oberkirchterritory.It was established around 1700 by the civil servant JohannEvangelist von Bodeck and his wife, Anna Maria von Scharpfenstein.They had restored the previous building in 1688and “brought it to perfection“. But the year after, the housebecame a victim of the fire of 1689.The owner’s coat of arms can be found above the entranceto the building. The sandstone mitre on the gable above itsymbolizes the dominion of the bishops. Around 1759 thebishop’s mint was housed in the administration building andat the end of the 18th century it was a military hospital. Afterthe secularization in 1803, the administration of Badenmoved into the building. Today there is a police station andthe district court located in the building.From the administration building you have a view of the Lutheranchurch. It was built in 1866 on the site of the formerCapuchin Monastery.

Zum Greiff House and Mersi House - Oberkirch

The Zum Greif House, or Griffon House, at Hauptstraße 57was built in 1738.Two griffons can be seen on the beam above the upper floorand the year of construction can be found on the cornerbeam. Up until 1919, the building was an inn and was ownedin the end by the local Oberkirch brewery Schrempp andGugelmeier. In 1919 it became a drug store and in 1975 apharmacy.The neighboring house (Hauptstraße 55) belonged to thewoodturner family, the Mersis, for generations. It was builtin the year 1691 and was the first-known house built afterthe city fire.

Lion Fountain - Oberkirch

The Lion Fountain was a gift from the Bishop of StrasbourgJohann von Manderscheid-Blankenheim to the city of Oberkirch.The lion has been able to watch the goings-on along Hauptstraßefrom many different perspectives over the years.When the fountain was constructed in 1570 it was locateddirectly on the street. It was here that the market took place.In 1864 the fountain was removed and the lion was placedin front of the Old City Hall. In the 1950s it was run overby a truck and a reconstruction of the fountain was placedin front of the Griffon house. When the Hauptstraße wasredesigned in 2016/17, the lion was returned to his originallocation.

St. Cyriak Catholic Church - Oberkirch

The church was built in a neo-Romanesque style between1863 and 1866.The pastor had complained as early as 1830 that the oldchurch was too small. The church was “so full of people”during the masses that it was “impossible to maintain disciplineand order”.The new church, made of sandstone from the Moos River,was not built on the exact location of the old church. On thesouthern part of the Church Square you can see the outlineof the original building embedded in the plaster. The oldchurch tower remained standing at first. But in 1871 duringthe victory celebration after the French-German War, itburned down and was later replaced by a new building. Thebottom part is all that remains of the old church.

Sonne Restaurant - Oberkirch

The Sonne Restaurant (Hauptstraße 34) was badly damagedduring the fire in Oberkirch in 1689.Parts of the building remained standing however, such as thearchway from 1619 on Bahnhofstraße and the coat of armsabove the door on Hauptstraße from 1629. On the cornerfacing Bahnhofstraße is an elaborate tavern sign.Knight – Civil servant – InnkeeperThis used to be the location of the so-called Neuensteiner Hof.The coat of arms at the entrance reminds us of its noble owners:Johann Adam von Neuenstein and his wife Anna MariaZornin von Bulach. The Knights of Neuenstein had their headquartersin a castle in Hubacker southeast of Oberkirch. Justlike the Knights of Schauenburg, they left their castle and movedto a town house.In 1682, the Neuensteins sold the property to the civil servantof the Strasbourg Prince-bishop, Johann Evangelist vonBodeck. He kept it until 1687. The innkeeper, Peter Mast, tookover the property and turned it into a restaurant. The city firejust two years later must have been a tough blow for him, asit was for all the citizens of Oberkirch. But Mast dared to startagain and the ensuing restaurant and inn remained in his familyfor generations.

Old City Hall - Oberkirch

The Old City Hall (Hauptstraße 32) was built at the beginningof the 19th century. The massive ground floor restsupon cellar walls which are up to several meters thick. Thefloors above are made of plastered half-timber framework.Originally the building was used as a city hall and schoolhouse. In 1842 three teachers taught 313 children here. Theground floor contained a hall where the grain market washeld. A resident of Oberkirch who was born in 1865 remembered:“There were large containers in which the millers andtraders from far away used to store their crops. There was alarge door facing Hauptstraße, where the middle window is.This is where the town messenger made his announcementsafter mass on Sundays.“After the city administration moved out, the city opened amuseum in the Old City Hall.

City Castle - Oberkirch

The civil servant of the Bishop of Strasbourg, Heinrich Fischer,had the baroque palace built in 1743 (Hauptstraße22). Matthias Fuchs, who also built the City Hall in Offenburg,was the architect. The iron lattices date back to theorigins of the building.The Fischer Family was exceptionally well off. Family membersheld influential positions in the administration, wereinnkeepers or followed careers in the church. In the firstquarter of the 19th century at the latest, a pharmacy wasopened in the house by Raimund Fischer. In the 1960s itmoved into the annex.

Schauenburg Castle - Oberkirch

These castle ruins are Oberkirch’s landmark. The castle wasbuilt in the 11th century by the Zähringer Family.Later the castle was owned by the Count of Calw, then by theHouse of Welf and finally by the Count von Eberstein, whoused the castle as a fiefdom. The Schauenburg family hasbeen the fief holders since the 12th century.They have not lived in the castle constantly since then. Littleby little, they bought more comfortable properties in thevalley. It is not known exactly when the Schauenburg castlewas destroyed. In 1731 it was considered ruins and was usedas a quarry in the following years.The castle is surrounded by a moat. Although it is dried outnow, it used to be fed by rain water, sewage and a stream.It also used to be deeper than it is now. The Schauenburg isprotected by a 3.7 meter thick shield wall on the mountainside. Large parts of this wall remain intact, as do a well, acellar and the rest of two towers which served as keeps, orresidential towers. You can reach the location of the castle’schapel by a spiral staircase

Gaisbach - Oberkirch

Stop in Gaisbach on your way back. There you can see theSchauenburg Family Castle, the St. Georg’s Chapel and the SilbernerStern Restaurant where Grimmelshausen was the innkeeper.

Fruit Stand - Oberkirch

Fruit Stand - Oberkirch

Schnapsfountain - Oberkirch

Cafe Gmeiner - Oberkirch

Restaurant Barrique

Cafe Steffen Feines - Oberkirch

Bakery Dreher - Oberkirch

Lui e Lei - Oberkirch

Cafe Meyers - Oberkirch

Restaurant da Salva - Oberkirch

Renners Weinstube - Oberkirch