Museums In Steyr
Steyr, a town in Upper Austria, is home to numerous museums that showcase its rich heritage and explore various themes. The Stadtmuseum Steyr, located on Grünmarkt square, showcases the city’s history from the Middle Ages to the present, including trade, crafts, industry, religion, art, and culture. The museum features a reconstructed medieval living room, iron clocks, and a gallery of paintings by local artists.
The Museum Arbeitswelt, located in a former factory building on the Steyr river, focuses on the history of working life, focusing on labor, technology, and democracy. The museum offers various exhibitions, educational programs, and engaging programs for visitors of all ages.
The 1. Österreichisches Weihnachtsmuseum, located in the Christkindl district, is an ideal destination for exploring Austrian Christmas traditions. The museum features a diverse collection of nativity scenes, ornaments, cards, and toys, as well as a miniature train that guides visitors through three floors of festive scenes.
The Steyrtalbahn, the oldest museum railway in Austria, stretches from Steyr to Grünburg, following the beautiful Steyr valley. The railway offers a charming journey through the countryside, showcasing breathtaking views of the river, mountains, and quaint villages. The railway operates on specific days between May and October, as well as during festive seasons like Christmas and Easter.
Stadtmuseum Steyr
The Stadtmuseum Steyr, located in Steyr, Austria, has been open since 1913 and houses its treasures in the Innerberger Stadel and the adjacent Neutor. The Innerberger Stadel was originally built as a storage facility for food in the 16th and 17th centuries, but was renovated for the Upper Austrian State Exhibition 2021. The museum’s vast storage chambers recall its previous use, which was the center of the iron trade north of the Styrian Erzberg.
Until 2018, the museum showcased the “Folklore Collection” and the “Lamberg Nativity Scenes,” featuring apothecary pots, reverse glass paintings, farm furniture, and works by master steel cutter Michael Blümelhuber. In addition, a large Petermandl knife collection and a nail forge were stored. Karl Steinparz’s ornithological collection was housed in the Neutor, along with a weapons hall with exhibits on Werndl and the armaments complex.
The Upper Austrian State Exhibition 2021 modified the exhibits, telling the “story of Steyr and its people.” The museum also presents a variety of exciting, surprising, and contradictory stories from Steyr’s eventful past, dealing with hopes, longings, fears, progress and failure, pioneering spirit, and inventiveness.
The museum offers German and English audio guides and public tours. It also provides two programs for primary schools: one that learns about the museum’s founder, Marianne Kautsch, and its areas of responsibility, and another that explores the city’s historical circumstances. An interactive session is provided for children aged 10 to 14, covering museum chores and professional groups needed to put on an exhibition.
Museum Arbeitswelt Steyr
The Museum Arbeitswelt Steyr, situated in beautifully restored manufacturing facilities from the mid-nineteenth century along the picturesque Steyr River, delves into the transformations in living and working conditions brought about by industrialization. Since its establishment in 1987 as part of the Upper Austrian state exhibition “Work, Man, Machine: The Road to Industrial Society,” this cultural and event center has gained global recognition.
The museum showcases a wide range of exhibitions, projects, and events that delve into socially significant issues. The display area was severely impacted by the Steyr floods in 2002, yet it was eventually reconstructed. The museum places a strong emphasis on cultural mediation, providing seminars that cover a wide range of important topics including democracy, racism, migration, and participation.
The “Politics Workshop” has been providing workshops on various topics including democracy, racism, migration, and participation since 2009. The museum offers a range of cultural and educational activities, including the remembrance tunnel and the “Forced Labor and Concentration Camp in Steyr” museum. This museum delves into the history of the Steyr resistance and the community’s response to Nazism during the years 1938 to 1945. The project was initiated by the Mauthausen Committee Steyr, with the preservation of it being the responsibility of the Museum Arbeitswelt.
Stollen der Erinnerung
Stollen der Erinnerung (Tunnels of Remembrance) is a permanent exhibition in Steyr, Austria that presents the history of forced labor and concentration camps. The exhibition is situated in a former air raid shelter that was constructed in 1943 by forced laborers from the Steyr-Münichholz concentration camp. The Mauthausen Committee Steyr is responsible for overseeing the exhibition, which has been carefully curated by historian Regina Wonisch and designed by a team of talented curators. The museum also offers educational support through the Museum Arbeitswelt Steyr. The exhibition, which was conceived by Karl Ramsmaier, made its debut in 2013 after more than a decade of meticulous planning.
The exhibition about National Socialism and forced labor in the 1990s was unfortunately disrupted when the facility was unlawfully demolished in 1993. In 2003, the Mauthausen Committee initiated a groundbreaking project to present a performance centered around the themes of forced labor and National Socialism. This exhibition provides a comprehensive depiction of the years 1938 through 1945, with a particular emphasis on the Steyr-Münichholz concentration camp annex and the experiences of the forced laborers in Steyr. The exhibition features a collection of quotes, anecdotes, historical documents, and photos that effectively provide context. The Memory Gallery did not include original artifacts because they were affected by moisture.
