Kaiserslautern American
Page 6
December 2, 2022
TALK OF THE TOWN: Union Community Baumholder by Gina Hutchins-Inman 86th Airlift Wing Public Affairs Many members of the Kaiserslautern Military Community have found temporary or even permanent homes in one of the many villages and towns surrounding Kaiserslautern or in the heart of the Palatinate Forest. Talk of the Town is a series highlighting the union communities within the Kaiserslautern Military Community. The series aims to inform American service members and their families about the communities they’re joining during their time in the KMC. A Union Community is an administrative territorial community composed of a group of individual towns or villages. Each month we feature a different community and provide facts about its history, heritage, and the local experiences it offers. The last stop in our series will lead us to the District of Baumholder, located within the County of Birkenfeld. Baumholder is the furthest outpost within the Kaiserslautern Military Community and is geographically separated from all the other union communities. The county seat is in the City of Birkenfeld and the District of Baumholder lies in the Westrich region. Once again, we invite you to discover interesting and maybe not-so-well-known facts about your home away from home. Altstadt Baumholder Kennedyallee
The District of Baumholder consists of the 13 the individual towns and villages of Berglangenbach, Berschweiler, Eckersweiler, FohrenLinden, Frauenberg, Hahnweiler, Heimbach, Leitzweiler, Mettweiler, Reichenbach, Rohrbach, Rückweiler, Ruschberg and the administrative seat in the City of Baumholder. The total District community has about 9,700 residents and an additional 8,500 Baumholder Military Community members also call it their home, making up a remarkable 47 percent of the population. Mayor Bernd Alsfasser has been in office since 2016 and would like to extend a warm welcome (see Page 7). Early history Baumholder was first officially mentioned as “Bemondulum” in a documentary in 1156 and was then held by the Bishop Albert of Verdun. Up until the French Revolution, Baumholder was under the ownership of the Duke of Zweibrücken. Although town rights were never explicitly granted, Baumholder acquired a number of privileges over the ages, such as market rights and a fortification. From 1816 on Baumholder, along with the rest of the Principality of Lichtenberg, belonged to an exclave to SaxeCoburg-Saalfeld, which is located in today’s Thuringia/SaxonyAnhalt and then sold to the Kingdom of Prussia in 1834, a
year later it was permitted to call itself a city. In 1880 there was a tremendous fire and a great part of the middle age structures were destroyed, but small parts of the city wall and some buildings are still intact for a visit. From a Garrison to a Boomtown In the early 20th century, Baumholder became a garrison town when the Wehrmacht built its barracks and a military training area. In order to do so, several thousand inhabitants were forcefully resettled. Between 1941 and 1945, a part of themilitary training area was used as a prisonerof-war camp for Soviet, Polish and other prisoners. Thus, Baumholder has played a significant role as a strategic military installation for over a century. After World War II, Baumholder was part of the French occupational zone and French forces were stationed there until 1951 when the U.S. Army took over the barracks buildings. This later developed into one of the largest U.S. garrisons in Germany and Smith Barracks is still home and duty post to U.S. Soldiers and their families today. Economic upswing and a breath of America The small town of Baumholder experienced a considerable economic upswing in the 1950s when bars, dance and music halls popped up one after the other. Local residents found job opportu-
nities in their war-torn region and many a farmer or house owner became a landlord or lady overnight to house the over 20,000 members stationed at Baumholder at that time. But, not all was fun and games and “Boomtown” Baumholder quickly became known for its wild nightlife and bar fights far beyond the region. Although it was never stated by name, the town gave inspiration to a trilogy on German television in 2021 entitled “Ein Hauch von Amerika” (A breath of America). The series tells a story of struggle, farmers protesting to keep their fields, misunderstandings between the local population and the “occupants,” but also of mutual respect, friendship and love between Germans and Americans. Many GermanAmerican friendships or even marriages have lasted throughout the decades and it is said that numerous former soldiers come back to visit every year. A Golden Angel and an Oven Museum Baumholder has a lot to offer when it comes to military history. An interesting place to visit is the regional museum “Goldener Engel,” which presents photographs, music, press articles and artefacts depicting how the “American way of life” was brought to a small agricultural town. Moreover, it displays rich regional history throughout the centuries Golden Angel exhibition
and is housed in a former bar, hotel and theater. English group tours are available upon request, please contact: IGSchwertnter@tonline.de or visit https://www. vgv-baumholder.de/de/tourismus/ kultur-aktiv/museen/regionalmuseum/ A further place of interest is in Reichenbach, in particular with winter coming around the bend. The Ofenmuseum (oven museum) displays 40 antique wood fired ovens from three centuries. This is a great place to visit and warm up on a dreary winter day, and upon prior request coffee and cake is also on sale. You may have the chance to chat with the passionate collectors and initiators Maria and Wolfgang Lengler, who opened the museum in 2013. There is also a special exhibition that focuses on the time of the plague that wiped out about half of the population and the obscure means of trying to combat the pandemic, such as doctors wearing leather masks, during those times. https://www. vgv-baumholder.de/de/tourismus/ kultur-aktiv/museen/ofenmuseum-reichenbach/ Women power — Loretta and Elisabeth Countess Loretta von Sponheim, widow of Count Heinrich II von Sponheim, and a very courageous woman, lived at Castle Starkenburg with her son. Around 1326 Archbishop Balduin of Trier claimed rights to an area