The historical memory of the municipality: Alois Spies has created countless folders on almost every topic and archived them so that they are easy to find. © Bb
For 22 years he took care of sorting and documenting Kirchheim's history. Now municipal archivist Alois Spies is retiring, albeit somewhat wistfully.
Kirchheim – When Alois Spies (80) retired in 2001, the calm did not last too long. Because he had always been interested in history, the then town hall press spokeswoman asked him if he would like to take over the office of municipal archivist. And that's exactly what Spies did, for 22 years. But now it's over. Retirement. That's right.
On 1 May 2001, he took over the position of municipal archivist and local history curator. "Actually, 22 years is enough – but I would have liked to have opened the archive in the new town hall," says Spies. The new community headquarters is currently being built. However, the 80-year-old is not taking part in the move. "There were a few things I didn't like at all, so I'll stop now," regrets the sprightly pensioner. In addition to his dog Coco, he has numerous hobbies: model railways, coins, stamps. "So I certainly don't get bored," says Spies.
"There was absolutely nothing sorted or even stored according to years or topics"
The position of archivist was vacant in Kirchheim for many years, and the state archive curator had repeatedly called for the position to be filled. "In the basement of the old town hall and above the building yard on Florianstraße there were countless large cardboard boxes – all filled to the brim with papers and folders. There was absolutely nothing sorted or even stored according to years or topics," Spies recalls. Everything was criss-crossed in the boxes, especially many files before the merger of the villages of Kirchheim and Heimstetten, which were independent until 1978.
Actually, Spies wanted to set up the archive in the new town hall himself. Now he leaves his successor only notes to be observed. © Bb
Spies was given a room with a computer above the building yard, where all the bulging moving boxes were transported. He attended some archivist courses to learn how to file everything in a comprehensible way. In his work for the Munich public transport company, he had already documented the deeds of graffiti sprayers. Nevertheless, the start was not easy. "I didn't even know where to start, it was so much material," says Spies.
From day one, however, it was clear to him that useless things had to be thrown away, the rest had to be filed away as logically as possible and, above all, scanned and thus digitized. "I wrote my own program, my Excel-based finding aid, and I wrote everything down there electronically." Minutes of meetings, motions, resolutions were all repealed in the original – but what could go? "It took many years until I finally cleared out all the boxes, filed the papers into folders according to years and topics and scanned them. But new material is added every day."
"The archive is important for every community, but it has no significance."
Spies had a contract for marginal employees, every Tuesday and Friday he could be found in the archive, eight hours a week it should be. "I was always there longer because I never ran out of work and I had a lot of fun doing it." From his hobby, photography, he also created countless picture portfolios for almost every construction site, inauguration and festivity in the village. "I don't think anyone does that anymore," says Spies. Ex-mayor Heinz Hilger let him "do as I pleased", but he never visited Spies in the archive.
Spies has known today's mayor Maximilian Böltl for ages, "Maxi often played railroad at home". But even he visited him only once as a local councillor. "The archive is important for every community, but it has no significance." The mayors only got in touch when they urgently needed something, local councillors never, but the clubs at anniversaries.
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Alois Spies played a key role inshaping the plans for the new archive. © Bb
Over the years, Spies has not only created countless folders and illustrated books, filed files and documents and digitized them. With his help, the community chronicle was created, he was responsible for the "photo album 1878 to 1978 for Kirchheim, Heimstetten and Hausen". For a short time, there was a regular page in the community paper, "which was quickly discontinued, although many citizens were happy about it, allegedly because the effort was too great," says Spies.
He would have liked to have continued for another year, opening the spacious archive in the new town hall. "That's what I helped plan." But since October, he has had to stamp his working hours – "although I've always said I won't do that. Besides, I was always in the archive for many more hours than required." In addition, his working hours and wages were reduced, so he stopped to everyone's surprise. "There were a few more things I didn't like," Spies says, without wanting to go into detail. Nevertheless, he leaves "with his head held high, satisfied, but already a bit sad".
More news from Kirchheim and the district of Munich can be found here.
