Stein (
East Franconian
East Franconian (german: Ostfränkisch) or Mainfränkisch, usually referred to as Franconian (') in German, is a dialect which is spoken in Franconia, the northern part of the federal state of Bavaria and other areas in Germany around Nuremberg, ...
: ''Schdah'') is a town in the
district of Fürth, in
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. It is situated 7 km south of
Fürth
Fürth (; East Franconian: ; yi, פיורדא, Fiurda) is a city in northern Bavaria, Germany, in the administrative division (''Regierungsbezirk'') of Middle Franconia. It is now contiguous with the larger city of Nuremberg, the centres of the t ...
, and 7 km southwest of
Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
(centre).
Geography
Stein is located in the metropolitan area
Nürnberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ci ...
/
Fürth
Fürth (; East Franconian: ; yi, פיורדא, Fiurda) is a city in northern Bavaria, Germany, in the administrative division (''Regierungsbezirk'') of Middle Franconia. It is now contiguous with the larger city of Nuremberg, the centres of the t ...
/
Erlangen
Erlangen (; East Franconian German, East Franconian: ''Erlang'', Bavarian language, Bavarian: ''Erlanga'') is a Middle Franconian city in Bavaria, Germany. It is the seat of the administrative district Erlangen-Höchstadt (former administrative d ...
in
Middle Franconia
Middle Franconia (german: Mittelfranken, ) is one of the three administrative regions of Franconia in Bavaria, Germany. It is located in the west of Bavaria and borders the state of Baden-Württemberg. The administrative seat is Ansbach; however, ...
,
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
and is a part of the
district of Fürth. It adjoins to
Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
in the north-west and lies on the left bank of the river
Rednitz
The Rednitz is a long river in Franconia, Germany, tributary of the Regnitz (more precisely: its southern, left headstream). The Rednitz is formed by the confluence of the rivers Franconian Rezat and Swabian Rezat, in Georgensgmünd ( district o ...
. Neighboring municipalities are
Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
,
Rohr,
Roßtal
Roßtal is a market town in the district of Fürth, Bavaria, Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the mos ...
,
Zirndorf
Zirndorf () is a town, which is part of the district of Fürth. It is located in northern Bavaria, Germany in the Regierungsbezirk of Middle Franconia.
Neighbouring municipalities
The following towns and municipalities share borders with Zirn ...
and
Oberasbach
Oberasbach is a municipality in the district of Fürth, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated 6 km southwest of Fürth, and 10 km west of Nuremberg (centre).
Stadtrat
The local council has 24 members.
The election in 2020 showed the ...
.
Stein is divided into 11 districts:
History
Stein has first been mentioned in a document dating back to 1296.
The origin of the settlement is linked to the first ''Rednitzbrücke'', a bridge which first crossed the river
Rednitz
The Rednitz is a long river in Franconia, Germany, tributary of the Regnitz (more precisely: its southern, left headstream). The Rednitz is formed by the confluence of the rivers Franconian Rezat and Swabian Rezat, in Georgensgmünd ( district o ...
. It was referred to as “Steinbruke” and probably caused the town's naming. In 1498, the two famous sculptors
Veit Stoss
Veit Stoss (also: ''Veit Stoß'' and ''Stuoss''; pl, Wit Stwosz; before 1450about 20 September 1533) was a leading German sculptor, mostly working with wood, whose career covered the transition between the late Gothic and the Northern Renaiss ...
and
Adam Kraft were appointed as counselors for construction works on the bridge.
Between the 15th and the 17th century, Stein was completely destroyed three times. After the two Margrave Wars, which took place between 1449 and 1552, the city was left burned to ashes. In the summer of 1632,
King Gustav Adolf of Sweden confronted
Albrecht von Wallenstein
Albrecht Wenzel Eusebius von Wallenstein () (24 September 1583 – 25 February 1634), also von Waldstein ( cs, Albrecht Václav Eusebius z Valdštejna), was a Bohemian military leader and statesman who fought on the Catholic side during the Th ...
near
Zirndorf
Zirndorf () is a town, which is part of the district of Fürth. It is located in northern Bavaria, Germany in the Regierungsbezirk of Middle Franconia.
Neighbouring municipalities
The following towns and municipalities share borders with Zirn ...
in the
Battle of the Alte Veste
The Battle of the Alte Veste was a significant battle of the Thirty Years' War.
Background
In the late summer of 1632 the army of Swedish King Gustavus Adolphus met Albrecht von Wallenstein near Nürnberg. The successes of Gustavus Adolphu ...
, which was part of the
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history
The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (80 ...
. Stein was no setting of the battle but was devastated during the troop's retreat.
In 1660, the Old Church (''Alte Kirche'') was built.
[
Stein's history is closely linked to its pencil industry. The first manufacturers of pencils have already settled in the town in 1717. In 1761, the company A.W.Faber-Castell was founded in Stein by ]Kaspar Faber
Kaspar Faber (1730 – 1784) was a German entrepreneur. He was the founder of the well-known stationery company now known as Faber-Castell.
Life and work
After finishing school, Faber trained as a carpenter. In 1758 he moved from the town of ...
, a carpenter, who had moved there from Langenzenn a few years before.The castel is open for visitors on certain times a year.
In 1806, Stein became a part of the Kingdom of Bavaria
The Kingdom of Bavaria (german: Königreich Bayern; ; spelled ''Baiern'' until 1825) was a German state that succeeded the former Electorate of Bavaria in 1805 and continued to exist until 1918. With the unification of Germany into the German E ...
.
In 1861, the Martin-Luther Church was inaugurated and in 1906, the construction of the new Faber-Castell
Faber-Castell AG is a manufacturer of pens, pencils, other office supplies (e.g., staplers, slide rules, erasers, rulers)Faber-Castell InternationalOffice Products and art supplies,Faber-Castell InternationalProducts for FineArts and FineWriting ...
Castle was finished. In the same year, the company ''Möbel Krügel'' was founded in Stein.
Due to the local government reform in Bavaria, Stein was integrated into the district of Fürth in 1972. Before, the City of Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
had made several unsuccessful attempts to incorporate Stein.
Stein received its town charter
A city charter or town charter (generically, municipal charter) is a legal document (''charter'') establishing a municipality such as a city or town. The concept developed in Europe during the Middle Ages.
Traditionally the granting of a charter ...
in 1977.[
]
International relations
Stein is twinned with:
* Guéret
Guéret (; Occitan: ''Garait'') is a commune and the prefecture of the Creuse department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in central France.
Geography
Guéret is a light industrial town, the largest in the department, with a big woodland and so ...
, France (since July 8, 1990)
* Falkenstein, Germany (since November 9, 1990)
* Puck, Poland (since May 1, 2004)
* Makarska
Makarska (; it, Macarsca, ; german: Macharscha) is a town on the Adriatic coastline of Croatia, about southeast of Split (city), Split and northwest of Dubrovnik, in the Split-Dalmatia County.
Makarska is a prominent regional tourist center, ...
, Croatia
Culture and leisure
Sights
In 1898, Ottilie von Faber married Count Alexander zu Castell-Rüdenhausen and a few years later, they decided to build a new castle, right next to the small old castle. The building work took only three years (1903 - 1906) and was supervised by Theodor von Kramer. The furniture features a combination of Historism
Historism (Italian: ''storicismo'') is a philosophical and historiographical theory, founded in 19th-century Germany (as ''Historismus'') and especially influential in 19th- and 20th-century Europe. In those times there was not a single natural, hu ...
and Jugendstil
''Jugendstil'' ("Youth Style") was an artistic movement, particularly in the decorative arts, that was influential primarily in Germany and elsewhere in Europe to a lesser extent from about 1895 until about 1910. It was the German counterpart of ...
. Two rooms, which are especially remarkable, are the ladies and the gentlemen's bathrooms with sunken marble baths. During the two world wars, the castle remained mostly unharmed and was used as housing for international lawyers and journalists during the Nuremberg Trials
The Nuremberg trials were held by the Allies of World War II, Allies against representatives of the defeated Nazi Germany, for plotting and carrying out invasions of other countries, and other crimes, in World War II.
Between 1939 and 1945 ...
. Reportedly, John Steinbeck
John Ernst Steinbeck Jr. (; February 27, 1902 – December 20, 1968) was an American writer and the 1962 Nobel Prize in Literature winner "for his realistic and imaginative writings, combining as they do sympathetic humor and keen social ...
and Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. His economical and understated style—which he termed the iceberg theory—had a strong influence on 20th-century fic ...
resided there while writing for the US press. Nowadays, the castle is mainly used for cultural events and meetings. It is also used for weddings of the Faber-Castell family.
The ''Heimatmuseum'' (local museum
A local museum or local history museum is a type of museum that shows the historical development of a place/region (local history) using exhibits. These museums usually maintain a collection of historic three-dimensional objects which are exh ...
) is located in the oldest building of the town. The house was built in 1635 and used to contain an inn. The city of Stein acquired and renovated it in 1988. The museum's exhibition consists of items on loan and donations by citizens and tries to reconstruct the history of craft
A craft or trade is a pastime or an occupation that requires particular skills and knowledge of skilled work. In a historical sense, particularly the Middle Ages and earlier, the term is usually applied to people occupied in small scale prod ...
, industry and family/community life. Its opening hours are from 1 to 5 pm, always on the third Sunday of the month and are accorded to the opening hours of the museum ''Alte Mine'', which is run by Faber-Castell
Faber-Castell AG is a manufacturer of pens, pencils, other office supplies (e.g., staplers, slide rules, erasers, rulers)Faber-Castell InternationalOffice Products and art supplies,Faber-Castell InternationalProducts for FineArts and FineWriting ...
and which documents the historical development of lead production.
The ''Freiland-Aquarium and -Terrarium Stein'' is a smal park where local flora and fauna
In biology, an organism () is any living system that functions as an individual entity. All organisms are composed of cells (cell theory). Organisms are classified by taxonomy into groups such as multicellular animals, plants, and fungi; ...
are presented to visitors for free entrance. It is open on weekends and holidays from May to September and its focus lies on local reptile
Reptiles, as most commonly defined are the animals in the class Reptilia ( ), a paraphyletic grouping comprising all sauropsids except birds. Living reptiles comprise turtles, crocodilians, squamates (lizards and snakes) and rhynchocephalians ( ...
s, amphibian
Amphibians are tetrapod, four-limbed and ectothermic vertebrates of the Class (biology), class Amphibia. All living amphibians belong to the group Lissamphibia. They inhabit a wide variety of habitats, with most species living within terres ...
s, fish
Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of li ...
, swamp
A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...
and water plants.
The Palm Beach is a large spa that was built in 1979 and privatized in 1993.[ The facility includes a 25-meter sports pool, a pool with artificial waves, thermal baths, a beach bar and a large outside area. In December 2012, the ''Future world & Space Center'', which includes twelve water slides, was opened.
]
Events
The Christmas Market
A Christmas market, also known as ''Christkindlmarkt'' (literally: ''Christ Child Market'', but the term "Christkind" usually refers to an angel-like "spirit of Christmas" rather than literally the Christ Child), ''Christkindlesmarkt'', ''Chris ...
in Stein takes place during the first weekend in Advent
Advent is a Christian season of preparation for the Nativity of Christ at Christmas. It is the beginning of the liturgical year in Western Christianity.
The name was adopted from Latin "coming; arrival", translating Greek ''parousia''.
In ...
. On the first evening, school children walk with lanterns from the town hall to ''Mecklenburger Platz'', where the mayor opens the market together with St. Nicolas and the Christkind
The Christkind (; ), also called ''Christkindl'', is the traditional Christmas gift-bringer in Austria, Switzerland, southern and western Germany, the Czech Republic, Croatia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, the eastern part of Belgium, Portuga ...
. The booths usually represent the town's associations, unions or businesses.
The City Festival (''Stadtfest'') takes place every spring. The shops are open all weekend, and there is a stage with music and entertainment. The festival is accompanied by an arts exhibition in the town hall.
Every town district has its own church fair, which takes place between June and September.
Education
Stein's Elementary School consists of three school buildings located in different districts of the town. They are located in ''Neuwerker Weg'' (Deutenbach), ''Mühlstraße'' (Stein) and ''Stuttgarter Straße'' (Oberweihersbuch). Directly next to the building in Neuwerker Weg, there is a Hauptschule
A ''Hauptschule'' (, "general school") is a secondary school in Germany, starting after four years of elementary schooling (''Grundschule''), which offers Lower Secondary Education (Level 2) according to the International Standard Classification ...
(nowadays called ''Mittelschule Stein'').
The Gymnasium in Stein was founded in 1982 and offers a mathematical/natural scientific and an economic/social branch to its students.[Gymnasium Stein]
(in German)
Further institutions of learning are the Adult high school
An adult high school or adult school is a high school facility designed for adult education. It is intended for adults who have not completed high school to continue their education. Some adult high schools offer child care, special integration pro ...
(''Volkshochschule'') and the music school which offers a wide range of musical lessons.
Infrastructure
Stein is located near the federal road Bundesstraße 14
{{Infobox road
, country = DEU
, type = B
, route = 14
, map = B014 Verlauf.svg
, map_notes =
, length_km = 464
, direction_a = West
, terminus_a =
, direction_b = East
, terminus_b =
, states = ...
. The rush-hour traffic usually leads to long jams between Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
and Stein, where the street becomes narrower. A motorway feeder, which is two kilometer away, links Stein to the autobahns
The (; German plural ) is the federal controlled-access highway system in Germany. The official German term is (abbreviated ''BAB''), which translates as 'federal motorway'. The literal meaning of the word is 'Federal Auto(mobile) Track'. ...
A3, A6 and A9.
The city belongs to the Greater Nuremberg Transport Network (''Verkehrsverbund Großraum Nürnberg'') and is connected to Nuremberg's public transport system. The nearest Nuremberg U-Bahn
The Nuremberg U-Bahn is a rapid transit system run by '' Verkehrs-Aktiengesellschaft Nürnberg'' (VAG; Nuremberg Transport Corporation), which itself is a member of the ''Verkehrsverbund Großraum Nürnberg'' (VGN; Greater Nuremberg Transport Net ...
station, Röthenbach station, can be reached by busses, which go every 5-10 minutes during weekdays.[ An extension of line U2 towards Stein has been proposed multiple times, as early as the first plans of the metro network, however, fears over the long term operational costs have led local politicians to oppose such an extension.
Stein has a railway station, which is located in ]Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
-Gebersdorf, though.
References
{{Authority control
Fürth (district)