In 1843, Freiburg businessman Friedrich Mez opened a silk factory in Umkirch. The company started out in a warehouse in the Dachswanger Mill before buying the plot behind what was then the village stream in Umkirch in 1846. The factory employed up to 120 young girls of between 14 and 18 years old, who worked 12 hours a day with just one hour’s break.
Later, Mez moved his business to Freiburg and a tobacco company (Schneider) moved into the ‘Blaues Haus’ until the end of the Second World War. After the war, the business was shut down. The parish bought the building in 1952 and, after four years of conversion work, opened the parish school, which started lessons in 1956. The building soon became too small, and the pupils moved into a new school building in 1972. The ‘Blaues Haus’ now became home to the associations of Umkirch and the local archive. Since 2015, it has housed the ‘Haus am Mühlbach’ care home group.
The Blaues Haus has been used as a silk factory, a cigarette factory and a school. (Learn more)
Umkirch’s Roman history is a long way from being told in full. (Learn more)
The museum in the palace mill showcases local history and relevant social issues. (Learn more)
The Kalkofen (lime kiln) area got its name from the site where one or more lime furnaces once stood. (Learn more)
The building erected by the local rulers served as a guest house, an assembly hall and a lower court room. (Learn more)
The revenue office to manage the Kageneck estate was built in the late 18th century. (Learn more)
The name of the castle comes from the castle of the same name near Basel. (Learn more)
The church in Umkirch is among the oldest in Breisgau. (Learn more)
The mill is a former moated castle. (Learn more)