Appreciation for the history workshop
Created: 2022-06-04 07:42
By: Claudia Schuri
"The prize is a big surprise for us!" Project manager Annegret Braun (centre, red jacket) together with the honorary historical researchers.
© farewell
It is a special award: The history workshop receives the Bavarian Homeland Prize.
Dachau
– The work is a bit like a jigsaw puzzle: At the beginning it is full of little things, riddles and individual parts.
"And then everything comes together to form a big picture," says Thomas Schlichenmayer from Ampermoching.
“It brings you very close to your homeland.” The 71-year-old is one of around 30 volunteers who research local history in the Dachau district at the Dachau History Workshop.
Acquired special services to culture, homeland and customs
Now the project has been awarded the Bavarian Homeland Prize for special services to culture, homeland and customs.
On June 21, the ceremonial award ceremony will take place in the All Saints' Court Church of the Munich Residence by the Bavarian Minister of Finance and Homeland, Albert Füracker.
Every year, two prizewinners from each administrative district receive the honor for providing “outstanding service to their Bavarian homeland”.
"For us, the prize is a big surprise," says cultural scientist Annegret Braun, who heads the project.
"It's an appreciation and recognition of the work of the people who help out."
The history workshop was founded around twelve years ago by Norbert Göttler.
After a ten-month course, the first employees first researched the post-war period in the district communities.
The results were presented in a traveling exhibition and a volume of essays.
A project during the 1950s and the economic miracle followed later.
There is currently an exhibition in the district museum on the motto "Working worlds - history(s) about crafts and trades".
A new project is expected to start in November.
"It's about how the landscape and nature in the district are changing and what that means for the people who live there," reveals Braun.
It starts with a course in which the volunteer researchers get an introduction to the topic and learn how historical work and research work.
"We welcome anyone who wants to take part," she says.
A new project starts in November
Previous knowledge is not necessary, migrants and locals are equally welcome.
The helpers explore stories from their home communities and interview contemporary witnesses.
"There are so many people who have interesting things to say," reports Braun.
"Most of them are very open and willing to talk." If no one listens to their stories, their valuable knowledge may eventually disappear forever.
Local historian Thomas Schlichenmayer, who has been with the history workshop from the start and is responsible for the towns of Ampermoching, Hebertshausen and Deutenhofen, has already learned a lot of exciting things.
His findings range from the American tank that slipped into the Sietenbach in Ampermoching in the winter of 1954 to one of the first marriages of a local, Catholic farmer's daughter with a Protestant refugee from the Ukraine in the 1950s.
"There are some parallels to today," he says.
"Many stories are very moving."
This also applies to the project "The camp and the district" by Sabine Gehardus.
"The life stories of people from the district who were in the concentration camp are being worked out," says Braun.
Dachau students are also involved.
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Historical time travel
The Dachauer Nachrichten has been publishing articles from the history workshop in a series for two years.
A selection of the articles has already appeared in two special issues of the Dachauer Nachrichten.
You can read more news from the Dachau region here.
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