Pfronten

Basic data
State :	Bavaria
Administrative region :	Swabia
County :	Ostallgäu
Height :	853 m above sea level NHN
Area :	62.28 km 2
Residents:	8348 (Dec. 31, 2019)
Population density :	134 inhabitants per km 2
Postal code :	87459
Area code :	08363
License plate :	OAL, FÜS, MOD
Community key :	09 7 77 159
LOCODE :	DE PFR
Community structure:	13 parts of the community
Address of the ; municipal administration:	Allgäuer Strasse 6 ; 87459 Pfronten
Website :	rathaus.pfronten.de
Mayor :	Alfons Haf (Pfrontner List)
Location of the municipality of Pfronten in the Ostallgäu district

St. Nikolaus in Pfronten-Berg

Pfronten is a municipality in the Bavarian-Swabian district of Ostallgäu and is located in the southwest of Bavaria directly on the border with Tyrol ( Austria ).

geography

1957

2013

View from the Breitenberg to Pfronten

Pfronten is one of a total of 45 cities, markets and communities in the Ostallgäu district .

location

Pfronten is located on the northern edge of the Allgäu Alps in the Pfrontener Valley . The municipality is traversed by the Vils . It is at an altitude of 853 m above sea level. NN at the foot of Edelsberg , Kienberg , Breitenberg and Falkenstein . The highest point of the municipality is in the far south of the summit of the Aggenstein ( 1986 m above sea level ) on the Tyrolean border, which belongs to the Tannheimer mountains . The lowest point in the municipality is on the Vils on the border with Austria at approx. 830 m above sea level .

Neighboring communities

Neighboring communities of Pfrontens on the German side are the city of Füssen , the community of Eisenberg and the market of Nesselwang . In Austria, the country town of Vils and the Tannheimer Tal with the communities of Grän , Tannheim , Schattwald , Zöblen and Jungholz are neighboring .

Community structure

The municipality consists of the districts Bergpfronten and Steinachpfronten.

The community has 13 districts.

Pfronten is also known as the 13-village community. All of these places have certainly formed a single parish since the late Middle Ages .

The case mill belongs (Achtalstraße 62) for the district village of Falkenstein (hotel and castle ruins ) to the district Meilingen.

history

Until the church is planted

A Roman supply road led through Pfronten from the south to Cambodunum (today's Kempten). A Roman settlement of the valley is not guaranteed.

However, the name Pfronten cannot be explained from the German language . The best interpretation suggested so far is based on a Romance name frontone , which means "large, mighty forehead" or "front" and should probably designate the "forehead of the Alps". It could also be understood as the equivalent of today's name Breitenberg .

The Christian provincial Romans who remained in the Ostallgäu ( Tegelberg Roman settlement ) gradually settled in pagan Alemanni . Around the year 800 the “Roman” language had died out in the area. In the now Frankish-Carolingian area, the population had merged into a unit with German language and Christian faith.

From the early 14th century, all of Pfronten belonged to the bishopric of Augsburg , the secular territory of the Augsburg bishops. With the secularization of the bishopric, Pfronten also fell to the Electorate of Bavaria in 1803 . In 1818 the parish was formed.

19th and 20th centuries

In 1865 the former parish of Pfronten was divided into Pfronten-Berg (Bergpfronten) and Pfronten-Steinach (Steinachpfronten). Each of the two new communities had its own administration and accounting. On March 31, 1935, both parishes were reunited to form the parish of Pfronten.

Population development

The population figures from 1840 onwards relate to today's municipality area (status: 1987).

Population development
year	1840	1900	1939	1950	1961	1970	1987	1991	1995	2000	2005	2010	2015	2017
Residents	2506	2746	4404	6553	6127	6595	7058	7722	7699	7546	7874	7933	8221	8235

Pfronten grew by 768 inhabitants or around 11% from 1988 to 2008. Between 1988 and 2018 the community grew from 7,121 to 8,267 by 1,146 inhabitants or by 16.1%.

politics

Municipal council

Local council Pfronten distribution of seats
choice	CSU	SPD	FW	Pfrontner list	Active for Pfronten	Our Pfronten	Total seats
03/15/2020	5	1	-	11	2	1	20th
March 16, 2014	6th	2	2	6th	3	1	20th
03/02/2008 ^[6]	7th	3	3	7th	-	-	20th

The mayor Alfons Haf is also a member of the municipal council. He has been in office since March 2020.

mayor

Mayor of the municipality of Pfronten
Term of office	mayor	Political party
2020–	Alfons Haf	Pfrontner list
2013-2020	Michaela Waldmann	CSU (nominated as candidate for mayor by all parties represented in the municipal council)
1995-2013	Josef Zeislmeier	SPD
1978-1995	Franz Berktold
1967-1978	Josef Kiefl
1948-1967	Franz Keller
1946-1948	Johann Schneider
1945-1948	Anton Schneider
1935-1945	Martin Haff

coat of arms

The municipality was granted permission to fly a flag by resolution of the Bavarian State Ministry of the Interior on February 14, 1955. The coat of arms in the upper part symbolizes the Falkenstein as a landmark of the Pfrontener valley. The two stripes in the color sequence white-red stand for the former affiliation of the community to the bishopric of Augsburg .

Town twinning

A partnership with the French municipality of Thoiry has existed since 2002 .

Culture and sights

Pfronten-Ried and Pfronten-Berg with the parish church of St. Nikolaus. View from the east

Museums

The Heimathaus Pfronten houses a local history exhibition. The focus of the collection is on tools and household items in the 19th and 20th centuries. Century. In the house of the guest in the former Karzer works by Pfronten artists are exhibited and the hay museum shows equipment for the extraction of mountain hay. Over 450 species of plants can be viewed in the alpine garden

Buildings

Pfronten - View from the cemetery (2017)

The Falkenstein castle ruins , located on the Falkenstein mountain at an altitude of 1,268 meters , are the highest castle ruins in Germany. A building project by King Ludwig II failed due to his early death.

The parish church of St. Nikolaus in the Berg district is well worth seeing with a striking tower and splendid furnishings with frescoes and altars.

Most of the other historical sacred buildings in the Pfronten Valley were also furnished by local artists and craftsmen. In Pfronten-Heitlern, St. Leonhard holds numerous works by the Heel family of artists . In Pfronten-Ösch is the St. Koloman chapel with frescoes by Bartholomäus Stapf. St. Michael in Pfronten-Steinach has a remarkable rococo high altar, which originally comes from Immenstadt in the Allgäu . Pfronten-Kappel ( St. Martin ) and Pfronten-Meilingen ( Chapel of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary ) also offer the visitor places of worship that are interesting in terms of art history. The districts of Rehbichel ( St. Anna ), Kreuzegg ( St. Cross and Brother Georg Chapel ), Weißbach ( St. Sebastian ) and Röfleuten ( St. Johannes Evangelist ) have other chapels with works by Pfrontener artists .
The Church of the Resurrection and the cemetery chapel are available to the evangelical congregation as places of worship.
In the Gottesackerkirche of Pfronten-Berg there is a dance of death cycle of 36 (originally 37) color lithographs, which is part of the interior of the small church built in 1841 in neo-Gothic style, which the Evangelical community today serves as a chapel for the dead . The dance of death is a joint work of the Schaffhausen-born painter and illustrator Hans Bendel and the Pfronten-born printer and publisher Thomas Driendl. The pictures from 1848/49 are presented today in the following, probably not original, order: child, youth, man, old man, usurer, beggar, astrologer (missing in Pfronten), nobleman, knight, baron, count, sinner, farmer, orphan , Merchant, duke, elector, king, emperor, councilor, mayor, procurator, minister, pope, cardinal, bishop, secular chaplain, religious, nun, general, captain, doctor of law, doctor of medicine, quack, pharmacist, grave digger and death . All pictures had a frame drawn in Renaissance forms, decorated with symbols of growth and decay. The title is given above each picture; underneath is the accompanying text in a cartouche.

Numerous farms dominate the villages, such as the under monument protection standing Villa Gold Uncle and the Heimathaus Pfronten . The "Alte Schule Ried", now the guest house , has also been placed under monument protection .

About four kilometers to the northeast, the Hohenfreyberg - Eisenberg group of castles that dominates the landscape provides a comprehensive all-round view of Pfronten, Falkenstein Castle, the Tannheimer and Nesselwanger Mountains, the Ammer Mountains and the hilly Alpine foothills.

Sports

Pfronten has an ice rink with an area of 1,800 m². There are also numerous ski lifts, for example in Röfleuten and Steinach and on the Breitenberg. In 2011, a mountain bike marathon with three route lengths was held for the 8th time (all three routes lead up to the Breitenberg) and for the 3rd time the folding (mountain) cycling world championship. Also traditional is the paragliding competition for the Breitenberg Cup, which took place for decades between the local Stratos association and members of the hang-glider and paraglider pilots from Marktoberdorf and has been organized by the Ostallgäu paragliders since 2018 under the new name Ostallgäu-Cup .

societies

There are numerous sports clubs with the associated sports facilities. The ice hockey club EV Pfronten also plays here . There are also two traditional costume clubs in Pfronten. The Heimatverein Pfronten is committed to researching local history and maintaining nature and culture.

Pfronten mountain
Heimathaus in Pfronten-Berg
View from the Breitenberg to the Falkenstein ruins
View from Edelsberg to Pfronten from the west
Engetal with Aggenstein

Schalengge run in Pfronten-Kappel
Aggenstein and Breitenberg
Heinzen in Pfronten-Steinach
Vilstal

Economy and Infrastructure

traffic

Pfronten is located directly on the Ausserfernbahn , a railway line that connects Kempten (Allgäu) with Reutte and further with Garmisch-Partenkirchen .

line	course	Clock frequency
RB 39	Ausserfernbahn : Kempten (Allgäu) main station - St. Mang - Durach - Sulzberg - Bodelsberg - Zollhaus-Petersthal - Oy-Mittelberg - Wertach-Haslach - Maria Rain - Nesselwang - Pfronten-Weißbach - Pfronten-Ried - Pfronten-Steinach (- Schönbichl - Vils - Ulrichsbrücke-Füssen - Musau - Pflach - Reutte )	Every hour to Pfronten-Steinach every two hours to Reutte

Economy (history)

In the early modern era, the Pfronten economy was strongly influenced by agriculture. Livestock and flax cultivation played a major role. The trade in wood from the wooded region also brought the population an additional income. At times the logging was so great that forests had to be put under the spell and thus protected.

Another mainstay was the salt trade. The Pfronten rod people, together with their neighbors in Vils , were allowed to pick up salt barrels in Reutte and had to transport them to Oy, where the next salt deposit was. A few residents also had a share in the lucrative long-distance trade as carters. At times, all four concessions of the so-called Kempten relay were awarded to Pfrontener. They served the route from Venice via the upper road to Ulm. According to an old report, they had 30 to 40 horses. A carter with three horses loaded 50 to 60 quintals.

At the end of the 18th century, eleven gypsum mills were gradually built along the rivers, in which calcined limestone was crushed using water power. The gypsum, which at that time was mainly used as building material and fertilizer, was transported in barrels to Kempten and Augsburg.

With Carl Hirnbein , who learned how to make Emmentaler in Switzerland, the landscape of the Allgäu changed in the 19th century. With the introduction of dairy farming, the blue flowering flax was replaced by green meadows .

At the same time, with the Pfronten watchmaker Thomas Haff (1775-1859), industrialization finally found its way here. During the Napoleonic era, Haff adjusted and repaired surveying instruments for the Bavarian geometers and got to know the production of mathematical instruments. His sons then founded the HAFF brothers company in 1835. Many precision mechanics were trained here, who themselves founded companies here and thus made Pfronten a center of the precision engineering industry and mechanical engineering.

Hermann Wetzer (1847–1914), who learned his trade at Haff, founded a company for the manufacture of telegraphs in Pfronten-Steinach in 1872 . The telegraph factory first supplied the Bavarian Post and from 1878 the Prussian State Railways and numerous foreign railway companies. In 1941 the company structure was changed from the sole proprietorship “Hermann Wetzer Telegraphenfabrik” to the limited partnership “Hermann Wetzer KG”. Due to the economic crisis, Wetzer was taken over by the Endress + Hauser Group in 1973 .

Towards the end of the century, more and more spa guests came to Pfronten in summer. At first they stayed in rather modest quarters. When the "Beautification Association" founded in 1883 began its work, the number of overnight stays rose. Even before 1905, a “very beautiful bathing establishment” was built in the “Upper Weidach”, the pure mountain water (slightly tempered by a preheater) is extremely refreshing. (Men's and women's pool, single cabins). Numerous, pretty benches in the shady area. "

tourism

View of the Breitenberg and Pfronten ski areas

Pfronten has the title “climatic health resort” and is licensed as a “European hiking village”. Three tours of the Allgäu hiking trilogy have Pfronten as a stage.

In 2012 there were 4,458 guest beds available in Pfronten. At that time, 579,113 overnight stays by 112,881 guests were registered. For 2017, the municipal tourism statistics recorded 122,432 guests and 592,540 overnight stays. 4,529 guest beds were available for this.

There is also a parking space for mobile homes in Pfronten-Weißbach and a campsite in Pfronten-Steinach.

The Breitenbergbahn takes visitors to the Breitenberg and thus to the Pfrontener Hochalpe. This is used by visitors as a hiking area in summer and as a ski area in winter.

Companies

Resident company in Pfronten
Company name	Branch	Head office
Lid Maho Pfronten GmbH	Manufacturing and worldwide sales of milling machines	Bielefeld
Bavaria Digital Technik GmbH	Automation and process control technology	Pfronten
HAFF Feinmechanik GmbH	Manufacturer of mathematical instruments (compasses, measuring magnifiers, planimeters, as well as subcontracting)	Pfronten
Sparkasse Allgäu	Bank	Kempten
VR Bank Kaufbeuren-Ostallgäu eG	Bank	Marktoberdorf
HypoVereinsbank Pfronten self-service location	Bank	Munich
St. Vincent Clinic Pfronten	Acute clinic, medical care center and rehabilitation clinic	Pfronten
Specialist Clinic Allgäu	Specialist clinic for psychosomatics and pulmonology	Pfronten
Korian ( Curanum ), House of St. Vinzenz Pfronten	Elderly Care Center	Munich
Feneberg food	Food	Kempten
V MARKET	Food	Mauerstetten
Norma	Groceries (discounter)	Nuremberg
Pfronten jewelry	Jewellery	Pfronten
Pfronten Tourism	Tourist services and experiences	Pfronten

Former company in Pfronten
Company name	time	Relocation / closure	Today's beach town
Hermann Wetzer KG		move	Nesselwang
Lindauer DORNIER GmbH	2010	Factory closure
Besel and Schwäller Schaltanlagenbau GmbH	2019	move	Feet
Eco Bau GmbH & Co. KG		Company closure

St. Vincent Clinic

media

The transmitter Pfronten is located on the eastern slope of the Breitenberg .

education

In terms of educational institutions, Pfronten has a primary school and a middle school with an M-train in the Heitlern district. A very well-stocked community library is available in the Heimathaus in the Berg district.

Personalities

Born in Pfronten

Artist

Anton Keller (* 1775), painter
Alois Keller (1788–1866), painter
Johann Baptist Babel (1716–1799), sculptor
Nikolaus Babel (1643–1728), altar builder and picture carver
Syrius Eberle (1844–1903), sculptor and painter
Johann Heel (1685–1749), painter
Peter Heel (1696–1767), sculptor
Maximilian Hitzelberger (1704–1784), sculptor
Johann Sigmund Hitzelberger (1745–1829), sculptor
Joseph Keller (1740–1823), painter
Mang Anton Stapf (1701–1772), sculptor
Joseph Stapf (1711–1785), sculptor and building surveyor
Bonaventura Stapf (1665–1747), painter and gilder

Others

Georg von Pfronten-Kreuzegg (1696–1762), Capuchin
Alois von Hermann (1801–1876), administrative officer
Karl Haff (1879–1955), legal scholar
Franz Xaver Mayr (1887–1974), Roman Catholic theologian, university professor and fossil collector
Klaus Mayr (* 1940), ski racer and ski trainer
Walter Nadler (* 1946), politician (CSU)
Paul Hoyningen-Huene (* 1946), philosopher
Gerhard Köpf (* 1948), literary scholar and writer
Peter Neher (* 1955), theologian, President of the Caritas Association
Franz-Rasso Böck (* 1957), historian, city archivist of Kempten (Allgäu)
Georg Holzmann (* 1961), ice hockey player and coach
Martina Hefter (* 1965), writer
Andreas Volland (* 1965), ice hockey player
Christina Manhard (* 1990), ski crosser

Associated with Pfronten

Johann Georg Fischer (1673–1747), Baroque builder; expanded the St. Leonhard branch church in Pfronten-Heitlern in 1729 and built the St. Koloman chapel in Pfronten-Ösch in 1730
Heinrich von Vietinghoff (1887–1952), Colonel General; died here
Tommy Kent (* 1942), pop singer, actor, painter and architect; has his workplace and gallery in Pfronten
Julia Manhard (* 1987), former ski crosser
Florian Eigler (* 1990), ski crosser

Trivia

Pfronten was one of the locations of the resulting film 1963 Escape ( The Great Escape ) with Steve McQueen in the main role. The final part of the film, the escape through Europe, was filmed in Pfronten as well as in Füssen, Schwangau and Hopfen am See, each with the participation of the local population.

The film Hurray, the Swedes are there was shot in 1978 in Pfronten and Füssen. Original locations such as the Bavaria Hotel, as well as the hairdresser building, or the village center still exist today.

literature

Johann B. Doser: Pfronten in the past and present - a contribution to local history . Pfronten-Ried 1925
Simone Haf, Alison Feller: Pfrontener impressions . Horb am Neckar 2002. ISBN 3-89570-791-0
Ludwig Holzner: History of the community Pfronten. published by the municipality of Pfronten in 1956
Anton H. Konrad, Annemarie Schröppel, Adolf Schröppel: Pfronten (Swabian art monuments, 34). Weissenhorn 1986
Pfrontener Bilderbogen 86 . Pfronten 1986. ISBN 3-925407-03-0
Annemarie Schröppel, Adolf Schröppel: Alt-Pfrontener photo album . Pfronten 1984
Annemarie Schröppel: Pfronten churches and chapels and their pastors . Pfronten 2002
Thaddäus Steiner / Bertold Pölcher / Municipality of Pfronten (ed.): Pfrontener field names . Pfronten 2010 ISBN 978-3-00-032977-7

Web links

Commons : Pfronten - collection of images, videos and audio files

Tourist website of the municipality
Entry on the coat of arms of Pfronten in the database of the House of Bavarian History

Pfronten: Official statistics of the LfStat (PDF; 1.05 MB)

Individual evidence

↑ "Data 2" sheet, Statistical Report A1200C 202041 Population of the municipalities, districts and administrative districts 1st quarter 2020 (population based on the 2011 census) ( help ).
↑ Richard Knussert , Das Füssener Land in earlier time, p. 40 (illustration after p. 48)
^ Albrecht Greule : Contributions to name research . Vol. 41, 2006, p. 477
↑ Pfronten community archive, community accounts
^ Wilhelm Volkert (ed.): Handbook of Bavarian offices, communities and courts 1799–1980 . CH Beck, Munich 1983, ISBN 3-406-09669-7 , p. 468 .
↑ official homepage of the community
^ Heimatverein Pfronten eV: The mayors of the municipality of Pfronten. (PDF 32.78 KB) Retrieved May 19, 2019 .
↑ Ludwig Holzner: History of the community Pfronten , community Pfronten (ed.) 1956, p. 4
↑ Hans Georg Wehrens: The dance of death in the Alemannic language area. "I have to do it - and don't know what" . Schnell & Steiner, Regensburg 2012, ISBN 978-3-7954-2563-0 . Pp. 266-271.
↑ Dieter Ulshöfer: Stratos Pfront'ner paraglider. 25th anniversary , in: DHV-Info , No. 184 (November / December 2013), p. 74.
↑ Ostallgäuer Gleitschirmflieger eV: Ostallgäu-Cup , in: DHV-Info , No. 213 (September / October 2018), p. 72.
↑ Ostallgäuer Gleitschirmflieger eV, announcement and archive for the Ostallgäu-Cup: https://www.oal-gs.de/sport/ostallgaeu-cup/
^ Website of the Heimatverein Pfronten , accessed on January 28, 2014
^ Reports of Count Zinzendorf on his study trips through Switzerland on trade policy, 1764 , in: Basler Zeitschrift für Geschichte und Altertumskunde , Basel 1936
^ 150 Years of Haff, History of the Haff Brothers House, Festschrift
^ Fritz Wetzer: Hundred Years of Wetzer 1872–1972 (Festschrift)
↑ From the foundation of the company until today , Endress + Hauser Wetzer
↑ 100 years of Pfronten tourism , Festschrift 1983
↑ Illustrated guide through Pfronten, 1924
↑ Archived copy ( Memento from December 19, 2013 in the Internet Archive )
^ Announcement from Tourismus Pfronten

[Metadaten_Einwohnerzahl_DE-BY-1] "Data 2" sheet, Statistical Report A1200C 202041 Population of the municipalities, districts and administrative districts 1st quarter 2020 (population based on the 2011 census) ( help ).

[2] Richard Knussert , Das Füssener Land in earlier time, p. 40 (illustration after p. 48)

[3] Albrecht Greule : Contributions to name research . Vol. 41, 2006, p. 477

[4] Pfronten community archive, community accounts

[5] Wilhelm Volkert (ed.): Handbook of Bavarian offices, communities and courts 1799–1980 . CH Beck, Munich 1983, ISBN 3-406-09669-7 , p. 468 .

[6] ↑ official homepage of the community

[7] Heimatverein Pfronten eV: The mayors of the municipality of Pfronten. (PDF 32.78 KB) Retrieved May 19, 2019 .

[8] Ludwig Holzner: History of the community Pfronten , community Pfronten (ed.) 1956, p. 4

[9] Hans Georg Wehrens: The dance of death in the Alemannic language area. "I have to do it - and don't know what" . Schnell & Steiner, Regensburg 2012, ISBN 978-3-7954-2563-0 . Pp. 266-271.

[10] Dieter Ulshöfer: Stratos Pfront'ner paraglider. 25th anniversary , in: DHV-Info , No. 184 (November / December 2013), p. 74.

[11] Ostallgäuer Gleitschirmflieger eV: Ostallgäu-Cup , in: DHV-Info , No. 213 (September / October 2018), p. 72.

[12] Ostallgäuer Gleitschirmflieger eV, announcement and archive for the Ostallgäu-Cup: https://www.oal-gs.de/sport/ostallgaeu-cup/

[13] Website of the Heimatverein Pfronten , accessed on January 28, 2014

[14] Reports of Count Zinzendorf on his study trips through Switzerland on trade policy, 1764 , in: Basler Zeitschrift für Geschichte und Altertumskunde , Basel 1936

[15] 150 Years of Haff, History of the Haff Brothers House, Festschrift

[16] Fritz Wetzer: Hundred Years of Wetzer 1872–1972 (Festschrift)

[17] From the foundation of the company until today , Endress + Hauser Wetzer

[18] 100 years of Pfronten tourism , Festschrift 1983

[19] Illustrated guide through Pfronten, 1924

[20] Archived copy ( Memento from December 19, 2013 in the Internet Archive )

[21] Announcement from Tourismus Pfronten