Bürgerspital

The Bürgerspital, located on Michaelerplatz 2 in the Steyr district of Steyrdorf, dates from the early 14th century.The linked old hospital church (now the vicarage) was erected in 1500.

As early as the 13th century, there existed a facility on the site of today’s public hospital to accommodate the aged, sick, or destitute residents.After it was destroyed by fire in 1302, Elisabeth von Görz und Tirol, lord of Steyr, sponsored its reconstruction in 1305.Endowments were also created by wealthy citizens, such as farms and vineyards.At the time, the hospital could only accommodate 32 patients.Burgrave Otto Scheck gave him the Hofmühle (after Spitalmühle) near the mouth of the Steyr in 1323.The civic hospital was under the ruler’s administration until around 1407.A late Gothic church was built in 1500, and it was converted into a suburban parish in 1785/86.The baroque finish on the tower is also from the 18th century.

The Bürgerspital was extensively renovated between the 16th century and 1761.An internal repair happened in 1924, a renovation occurred in 1952, and a comprehensive outward makeover occurred in 1978 in the twentieth century.From March to October 2011, there was a general restoration that comprised not just the façade but also the floors, vault, and roof.When the roof structure was reconstructed, the historic purlins and rafters were left in situ, and only the battens were replaced.On the north side of the roof, some of the up to 400-year-old red plain tiles were used.The consequence of repair work is a confused picture with bricks of varied shapes and weather conditions.The most of this has vanished.To keep the roof from becoming monotonous, new plain tiles of various shapes were arranged in a random manner.

Needy persons were confined here until the middle of the twentieth century.In 2001, the Bürgerspital hosted the first Austrian Christmas Museum.

The riverfront facade is connected by a Steyr panther painting, and below it is a high water mark with the inscription Wasserhöhe 1572.The flood was the worst in Steyr’s history.