The city arms
The
city arms, which was designed after the unification of the sister cities
Hohenstein and Ernstthal in 1898, shows five patterns. In the top left-hand corner you find Saint Christopher, the patron saint
of travellers. Below there are crossed hammers as a symbol of the former
mining tradition.
The fir reminds us of the thick forests that once could be found around Ernstthal whereas the entwined hands symbolize the cohesion of the citizens of Ernstthal. In the centre of the city arms you find the attached shield of the Schoenburg family, the former feudal landlords of both cities.
Enjoy your sojourn!
"Glück Auf"
The Saxon mining town of Hohenstein-Ernstthal welcomes you with our
traditional miner’s greeting that conveys good luck wishes:
Glück Auf!
With this brochure we would like to take you on a small trip into the history of our town and arouse your curiosity for its lovely sights and marvellous landscape.
Together with the district of Wüstenbrand, which was incorporated in 1999, Hohenstein-Ernstthal has about 16,500 inhabitants. The conveniently situated town stretches picturesquely along the southern slope of the Pfaffenberg hill (481m/1580ft.). The historic town centre impressively combines an architecturally interesting ensemble of beautifully renovated houses from the past and attractive new buildings. Charming little shops and cosy restaurants invite you for a stroll.
Do you like Karl May’s adventure stories? Then Hohenstein-Ernstthal is particularly worth a visit since the much-read author was born here. You will find more than 20 places that remind you of Karl May’s life and work, such as his birthplace which today houses a museum. The legendary racetrack “Sachsenring” and a road safety centre of the same name are only two more important image factors. All in all, there are manifold leisure facilities for every taste.
Old market place
with Town Hall
A View of Ernstthal
Church of Wüstenbrand
Visit us and enjoy the typical Saxon hospitality.
The district of Wüstenbrand, which used to be independent until 1998, was founded in 1148 and first mentioned in a document in 1346. A little later, the discovery of silver deposits laid the foundations for the formation of a settlement “uff den Hohen Stein” (on the high stone) near Waldenburg.
Mining became the typical trade of that time. In
1430, the settlement was destroyed by the Hussits. It was only in 1473
that a councilman from Freiberg, named Münzer, bought an abandoned mine.
In the following,
the shafts “Lampertus”, “St. Anna” and “God’s Will”
were built.
As early as in 1510, the status of a town was bestowed on
Hohenstein by Countess Anna Gratiosa of Schönburg.
Underworld Ernstthal
Train Station of Wüstenbrand
In 1858 Hohenstein-Ernstthal was connected to the railway line Chemnitz-Zwickau, which contributed to a further economic upturn.
Starting from the train station of Wüstenbrand, the line sections to Chemnitz-Altendorf and Lugau/Oelsnitz were opened in 1897.
The towns of Hohenstein and Ernstthal united in 1898. The mining era ended in 1910 when the last shift was done in the ore mine “St. Lampertus”.
Today only a number of street names, such as Goldbachstraße (Gold Stream Street), “Silbergässchen” (Silver Alley) or “Lampertusweg” (Lampertus Way) as well as the nearby miner’s monument and the former assembly building of the miners that is now used by the Association for Geology and Mining, are reminders of that past period.
Miner’s Assembly Building
“St. Lampertus”
with Miner’s Monument
In the course of an administrative reform, Hohenstein-Ernstthal became chief town of the county with the same name in 1952. It only lost this status in 1994. After several incorporations that started in 1999 and included Wüstenbrand, the district of Oberwald and parts of Oberlungwitz, the town presently covers an area of 18.3 sq km.
On the occasion of the 150th birthday of the adventure author Karl May, who was born in Ernstthal, the town was conferred the epithet “Native Town of Karl May” in 1992.
Building and living
Many new buildings and industrial plants have been erected since 1990,
some of them being the impressive downtown savings bank centre, the fire
brigade’s building or the industrial park in the district of Wüstenbrand
Zillplatz (Downtown Square)
with Ornate Fountain
Attractive residential areas with detached family houses and freehold flats in a magnificent area with a spectacular view of the Erzgebirge (Ore Mountains) have been built in the last couple of years. Moreover, also numerous old buildings could be complePhoney renovated with funds of a promotion programme for urban development.
The association “Am Sachsenring”, an administration union of the towns of Oberlungwitz and Hohenstein-Ernstthal that was established in 1993, practises a close communal cooperation in the coverage of industrial and living areas, such as the industrial park “Am Sachsenring”.
Industrial Area “Am Sachsenring”
Aside from various industrial enterprises, you will also find a road safety centre here, which was inaugurated in 1995 and is the central part of this industrial park. Furthermore, a new racetrack was built which, under an enormous response from the public, has hosted the German Motorcycle Grand Prix and touring car races since 1998.
Wüstenbrand,
which was founded in the 12th century and thus looking back on a history
of more than 850 years, has been a district of Hohenstein-Ernstthal
since 1 January 1999.
Just as in other towns of the region, the textile industry, in
particular hosiery knitting, also determined Wüstenbrand’s economic
development. This branch of industry was first introduced here in 1728.
In the following years, the trade with hosiery led to a modest upswing
of the village.
Due to extensive investments, the townscape could be further improved within the last couple of years. Thus the main roads were fixed and extended and many buildings were reconstructed by their owners in a very costly but fondly way in order to preserve their architectural style. Many new buildings with a high quality of living arose increasing the number of inhabitants remarkably.
Savings Bank and Gymnasium
Lookout Tower on Top
of the Heidelberg Hill
| County court | Conrad-Clauß-Str. 11 09337 Hohenstein-Ernstthal Phone +49 3723 493-0 |
| Job office | Schillerstr. 5 09337 Hohenstein-Ernstthal Phone +49 3723 409-0 |
| Railway station (travel centre) |
Am Bahnhof 6 09337 Hohenstein-Ernstthal Phone +49 3723 681877 |
| Emergency medical services |
Goldbachstr. 13 09353 Oberlungwitz Phone +49 3723 426113 |
| Tax office | Dr.-Wilhelm-Külz-Platz 5 09337 Hohenstein-Ernstthal Phone +49 3723 745-0 |
| District hospital | Hartensteiner Str. 42 09350 Lichtenstein Phone +49 37204 32-0 |
| District office branch Hohenstein-Er. |
Am Bahnhof 9 09337 Hohenstein-Ernstthal Phone +49 3723 45-0 |
| Tourist information centre | Altmarkt 41 09337 Hohenstein-Ernstthal Phone +49 3723 402-180 Fax +49 3723 402-189 |
| Municipality | Altmarkt 41 09337 Hohenstein-Ernstthal Phone +49 3723 402-0 Fax +49 3723 402-109 |
| Municipal council | Str. der Einheit 14 09337 Hohenstein-Ernstthal OT Wüstenbrand Phone +49 3723 711318 Fax +49 3723 711317 |
| Road safety centre | Am Sachsenring 2 09353 Oberlungwitz Phone +49 3723 65330 |
| Imprint: Publisher: Municipality Hohenstein-Ernstthal Editing, Texts: Tourist Information Centre Hohenstein-Ernstthal Translation: Gunnar Lahr, M. A. Photographs: Luftbildservice Büschel, Wolfgang Hallmann, Andreas Kretschel, Helmut Scholze, Andreas Tittmann, Archives of municipality |
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