Bought by the Munich brewery family: Nuremberg acquires historic Nazi train station – big plans for site
Created: 08/04/2022, 20:06
By: Nikolas Pelke
By 2024, the dozen pond station is to be converted into a new information point on the former Nazi Party Rally Grounds.
© Nikolas Pelke
Nuremberg celebrates a stroke of luck: the well-known Inselkammer brewery family has sold the old “Dutzendteich” railway station on the former Nazi Party Rally Grounds to the city of Nuremberg.
By 2024, the city wants to turn the old stop into an information center for visitors from all over the world.
Nuremberg – During the Nazi regime, tens of thousands of Hitler supporters used the bus stop to get to the Nazi party rallies.
Every minute the trains stopped here at the dozen pond station in the shadow of the zeppelin grandstand.
The historic train station is currently slumbering behind lock and key in the sun, seemingly lazily.
Even the old beer garden is already closed.
The Franconian restaurant is also closed.
However, the slumber should soon come to an end.
Dozenteich/Nuremberg: Culture Mayor Julia Lehner (CSU) speaks of “a stroke of luck”
The city of Nuremberg recently proudly announced that it had bought the old train station at the dozen pond on the former Nazi Party Rally Grounds.
According to the city's plans, visitors from all over the world will soon be able to obtain exciting information about the Nazi site at the historic train station.
Culture mayor Julia Lehner (CSU) speaks of a "stroke of luck" for the communication of Nazi history.
Mayor Marcus König (also CSU) is also enthusiastic about the new plans.
"The use of the dozen pond station means that we can provide information directly at the historical site and at the same time clarify the function of the station for the entire site."
The station, built in 1871, was rebuilt by the architect Fritz Limpert for the National Socialist Party Rallies after Adolf Hitler seized power between 1934 and 1936 and, like the other Nazi buildings on the extensive site, has been a listed building since 1973.
From 1934 to 1936, the National Socialists had the station expanded with covered platforms for tens of thousands of party participants.
© Nikolas Pelke
According to the city, the dozen pond stop is an example of the “practical aspects” of the National Socialist mass events in the form of the transport infrastructure that was created on the Nazi Party Rally Grounds.
The “functional process” of the party congresses could be explained to visitors even better using the train station.
Nuremberg: How to deal with Nazi buildings?
By the way: Our Nuremberg newsletter regularly informs you about all the important stories from Middle Franconia and the Franconian metropolis. Sign up here.
The Inselkammer family of entrepreneurs from Munich has sold the historic Nazi train station to the city of Nuremberg
The station was last owned by the well-known Inselkammer family of entrepreneurs from Munich.
In 1994, the company took over the Nuremberg Tucher brewery and, after the sale almost ten years later, kept numerous properties in the region.
Now the family, which has made a name for itself with the Augustiner brewery, has apparently been looking for a buyer for the station.
As luck would have it, the city was already looking for a site for an information pavilion as part of the renovation of the Zeppelin Grandstand.
Originally, the city had probably planned a new building near the Zeppelin field.
Now, visitors to the roughly 5,000 square meter station area with the covered area in front of it should be able to find a convenient place to go with information about the history of the Nazi site.
A "basic gastronomic supply" should also be available after the necessary renovation work from 2024.
At the mass events, the trains ran every minute.
Today no more trains stop at the tracks.
© Nikolas Pelke
"When I found out about the city's interest and the idea of converting our restaurant into a kind of starting building for this historical ensemble, I was immediately enthusiastic," said Nicole Inselkammer, who was pleased about the real estate deal, according to the city.
The family would have suspended the already intensive sales activities and instead entered directly into sales talks with the city.
"Now my family and I are all the more pleased that we can make this change of use possible for the city of Nuremberg." Neither side made any statements about the amount of the sale price.
Meanwhile, even after the renovation, no more trains will stop at the station.
Nuremberg: Zeppelin grandstand is to be renovated for 85 million euros
The background is the planned renovation of the Zeppelin Grandstand and the adjacent Zeppelin Field for a whopping 85 million euros.
In 2018, the German Bundestag agreed to cover half of the costs.
A year later, the Bavarian state parliament decided to cover a quarter of the costs.
Nuremberg intends to bear the remaining quarter of the total.
Nevertheless, there were discussions in Nuremberg as to whether a restoration of the dilapidated stone grandstand would make sense.
The investments should certainly pay off.
The Nazi party rally grounds attract hundreds of thousands of people from all over the world to Nuremberg every year.
The associated documentation center in the former congress hall is now one of the most visited museums in the city.
