Vorchdorf
Encyclopedia
Vorchdorf is a market town
in the district of Gmunden
in Upper Austria
, Austria
, as well as the name of the municipal area ("Gemeinde
") that the town and others occupy. As of the 2005 census, the town of Vorchdorf had a population of 7,287 inhabitants.
region of the state
of Upper Austria
, about 15 km north of the town of Gmunden
, the town of Vorchdorf has an approximate elevation of 414 m above sea level (highest point: 640 m; deepest point: 370 m). Its area extends 9.3 km from north to south, and 9.8 km from east to west.
The community territory is about 48 km2. 17.2% of the region is wooded and 71.8% of it is used for agriculture. The rivers Laudach
and the Alm
cross Vorchdorf from the south. The inner Laudach disembogues near the center of Vorchdorf into the outer Laudach.
Adlhaming, Aggsbach, Albenedt, Berg, Bergern, Eggenberg, Eichham, Einsiedling, Falkenohren, Feldham, Fischböckau, Hötzelsdorf, Heitzing, Lederau, Moos, Mühltal, Oberhörbach, Pappelleiten, Peintal, Point, Radhaming, Schart, Seyrkam, Theuerwang, Unterhörbach, Ursprung, Vorchdorf (center), Weidach. The most populated localities are Vorchdorf (center), Fischböckau, Mühltal, Lederau and Feldham.
Vorchdorf consists of eleven Katastralgemeinde
n—that is, cadastral subdivision of municipalities—which are not always congruent with the localities:
, Eberstalzell
, Kirchham
, Laakirchen
, Pettenbach
, Roitham
, Scharnstein
and Steinerkirchen
. Vorchdorf borders to the districts of Wels-Land
and Kirchdorf
.
relocated to Vorchdorf after the second world war
. Thereafter, most of the immigration people descends from Turkey
, the former Yugoslavia
and from Germany
.
time.
Originally lying in the eastern part of the Herzogtum Bayern
, the town belonged since the 12th century to the Herzogtum Österreich (Austria). Thereafter since 1490 Vorchdorf was assigned to the Fürstentum (Principality
) „Österreich ob der Enns“. During the Napoleonic Wars
the town was occupied several times. Since 1918 the Gemeinde belonged to Upper Austria. After the Anschluss
Austrias to the Deutsches Reich
with 13 March 1938, Vorchdorf belonged to the „Gau Oberdonau“. After 1945 the recovery of Upper Austria took place. The upper Austrian central government decided 1982 to upraise the Gemeinde to a market town.
: In green a silver, square house with three stories. A pedestal, black round arch
gate, two black rectangular windows on the ground floor and each four black rectangular windows in the two upper stories, whereas the middle windows are double windows. They are crowned with an arc Frieze
. Above it there is a small black round arc middle window and a red hip roof. Sideways bordered with shifted corner cuboids. Colors of the Gemeinde: red-white-green
, and they are divided as follows:
The Unabhängiger Bauernverband (Independent compound of farmers) do not have any Mandat.
Since 15 April 2008, mayor is Dipl.-Ing. Gunter Schimpl from the ÖVP, after the former mayor Franz Kofler retired from his post.
A1 motorway. An exit on the roadway was located in Vorchdorf, fostering a great uplift in the economy of the region.
in the south and Lambach
in the north.
Persons with reference to the town:
Market town
Market town or market right is a legal term, originating in the medieval period, for a European settlement that has the right to host markets, distinguishing it from a village and city...
in the district of Gmunden
Gmunden (district)
Bezirk Gmunden is a district of the state ofUpper Austria in Austria.- Municipalities :Towns are indicated in boldface; market towns in italics; suburbs, hamlets and other subdivisions of a municipality are indicated in small characters.*Altmünster*Bad Goisern*Bad...
in Upper Austria
Upper Austria
Upper Austria is one of the nine states or Bundesländer of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders on Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as on the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, and Salzburg...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, as well as the name of the municipal area ("Gemeinde
Gemeinde
Gemeinde is a German word for borough, commune, community, township, municipality, or in religious contexts, a parish or congregation ....
") that the town and others occupy. As of the 2005 census, the town of Vorchdorf had a population of 7,287 inhabitants.
Geography
Located in the TraunviertelTraunviertel
The Traunviertel is an Austrian region belonging to the state of Upper Austria: it is one of four "quarters" of Upper Austria the others being Hausruckviertel, Mühlviertel, and Innviertel...
region of the state
States of Austria
Austria is a federal republic made up of nine states, known in German as Länder . Since Land is also the German word for a country, the term Bundesländer is often used instead to avoid ambiguity. The Constitution of Austria uses both terms...
of Upper Austria
Upper Austria
Upper Austria is one of the nine states or Bundesländer of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders on Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as on the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, and Salzburg...
, about 15 km north of the town of Gmunden
Gmunden
Gmunden is a town in Upper Austria, Austria in the district of Gmunden. It has 13,202 inhabitants . It is much frequented as a health and summer resort, and has a variety of goat, lake, brine, vegetable and pine-cone baths, a hydropathic establishment, inhalation chambers, whey cure, etc...
, the town of Vorchdorf has an approximate elevation of 414 m above sea level (highest point: 640 m; deepest point: 370 m). Its area extends 9.3 km from north to south, and 9.8 km from east to west.
The community territory is about 48 km2. 17.2% of the region is wooded and 71.8% of it is used for agriculture. The rivers Laudach
Laudach
Laudach is a river in the Austrian state of Upper Austria. With the outer Laudach, the river reaches a length of something over 20 km. The Laudach is a left and the main tributary of the Alm....
and the Alm
Alm River
Alm is a river in the Austrian state of Upper Austria.The Alm is a right tributary of the Traun, which it meets near the City of Fischlham. Its source is the lake Almsee...
cross Vorchdorf from the south. The inner Laudach disembogues near the center of Vorchdorf into the outer Laudach.
Localities of Vorchdorf
Hamlets of Vorchdorf municipality include:Adlhaming, Aggsbach, Albenedt, Berg, Bergern, Eggenberg, Eichham, Einsiedling, Falkenohren, Feldham, Fischböckau, Hötzelsdorf, Heitzing, Lederau, Moos, Mühltal, Oberhörbach, Pappelleiten, Peintal, Point, Radhaming, Schart, Seyrkam, Theuerwang, Unterhörbach, Ursprung, Vorchdorf (center), Weidach. The most populated localities are Vorchdorf (center), Fischböckau, Mühltal, Lederau and Feldham.
| Population Development (with secondary residence) | |
|---|---|
| Year | Population |
| 1848 | 3127 |
| 1900 | 3322 |
| 1934 | 3914 |
| 1951 | 4849 |
| 1970 | 5517 |
| 1991 | 6868 |
| 2001 | 7585 |
| 2008 | 7723 |
Vorchdorf consists of eleven Katastralgemeinde
Katastralgemeinde
A Katastralgemeinde , a German word , is a cadastral subdivision of municipalities in the nations of Austria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, the Italian provinces of South Tyrol, Trentino, Gorizia, Trieste, and in Slovenia.A cadastral community records property ownership in a cadastre,...
n—that is, cadastral subdivision of municipalities—which are not always congruent with the localities:
- Adlhaming (incl. Albenedt)
- Eggenberg (incl. Eichham, Seyrkam)
- Einsiedling (incl. Aggsbach, Heitzing, Pappelleiten, Radhaming)
- Feldham
- Hörbach (incl. Hötzelsdorf)
- Lederau
- Messenbach (named after the castle Messenbach, which no longer exists, includes the hamlets of Berg, Falkenohren, Peintal, Ursprung and Weidach.)
- Moos
- Mühltal (incl. Point und Schart)
- Theuerwang (incl. Fischböckau)
- Vorchdorf
Neighbor communities
Neighbor communities to Vorchdorf include: Bad Wimsbach-NeydhartingBad Wimsbach-Neydharting
Bad Wimsbach-Neydharting is a municipality in the district of Wels-Land in Upper Austria, Austria....
, Eberstalzell
Eberstalzell
Eberstalzell is a municipality in the district of Wels-Land in Upper Austria, Austria....
, Kirchham
Kirchham, Austria
Kirchham is a municipality in the district of Gmunden in Upper Austria, Austria....
, Laakirchen
Laakirchen
Laakirchen is a municipality in the district of Gmunden in Upper Austria, Austria....
, Pettenbach
Pettenbach
Pettenbach is a municipality in the district of Kirchdorf an der Krems in Upper Austria, Austria.-References:...
, Roitham
Roitham
Roitham is a municipality in the district of Gmunden in Upper Austria, Austria....
, Scharnstein
Scharnstein
Scharnstein is a municipality in the district of Gmunden in Upper Austria, Austria....
and Steinerkirchen
Steinerkirchen an der Traun
Steinerkirchen an der Traun is a municipality in the district of Wels-Land in Upper Austria, Austria....
. Vorchdorf borders to the districts of Wels-Land
Wels-Land
Bezirk Wels-Land is a district of the state ofUpper Austria in Austria.- Municipalities :Towns are indicated in boldface; market towns in italics; suburbs, hamlets and other subdivisions of a municipality are indicated in small characters.*Aichkirchen*Bachmanning*Bad...
and Kirchdorf
Kirchdorf an der Krems (district)
Bezirk Kirchdorf an der Krems is a district of the state ofUpper Austria in Austria.- Municipalities :Towns are indicated in boldface; market towns in italics; suburbs, hamlets and other subdivisions of a municipality are indicated in small characters.*Edlbach*Grünburg*Hinterstoder*Inzersdorf im...
.
Population
As of 1 October, 2008, the city had a population of 7,374. About 500 Transylvanian SaxonsTransylvanian Saxons
The Transylvanian Saxons are a people of German ethnicity who settled in Transylvania from the 12th century onwards.The colonization of Transylvania by Germans was begun by King Géza II of Hungary . For decades, the main task of the German settlers was to defend the southeastern border of the...
relocated to Vorchdorf after the second world war
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Thereafter, most of the immigration people descends from Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, the former Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
and from Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
History
Because of the geographically convenient location Vorchdorf was settled already in the NeolithicNeolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
time.
Originally lying in the eastern part of the Herzogtum Bayern
History of Bavaria
The history of Bavaria stretches from its earliest settlement and its formation as a stem duchy in the 6th century through its inclusion in the Holy Roman Empires to its status as an independent kingdom and, finally, as a large and significant Bundesland of the modern Federal Republic of...
, the town belonged since the 12th century to the Herzogtum Österreich (Austria). Thereafter since 1490 Vorchdorf was assigned to the Fürstentum (Principality
Principality
A principality is a monarchical feudatory or sovereign state, ruled or reigned over by a monarch with the title of prince or princess, or by a monarch with another title within the generic use of the term prince....
) „Österreich ob der Enns“. During the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
the town was occupied several times. Since 1918 the Gemeinde belonged to Upper Austria. After the Anschluss
Anschluss
The Anschluss , also known as the ', was the occupation and annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in 1938....
Austrias to the Deutsches Reich
Deutsches Reich
Deutsches Reich was the official name for Germany from 1871 to 1945 in the German language.As the literal English translation "German Empire" denotes a monarchy, the term is used only in reference to Germany prior to the fall of the monarchies at the end of World War I in 1918...
with 13 March 1938, Vorchdorf belonged to the „Gau Oberdonau“. After 1945 the recovery of Upper Austria took place. The upper Austrian central government decided 1982 to upraise the Gemeinde to a market town.
Emblem
BlazonBlazon
In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image...
: In green a silver, square house with three stories. A pedestal, black round arch
Arch
An arch is a structure that spans a space and supports a load. Arches appeared as early as the 2nd millennium BC in Mesopotamian brick architecture and their systematic use started with the Ancient Romans who were the first to apply the technique to a wide range of structures.-Technical aspects:The...
gate, two black rectangular windows on the ground floor and each four black rectangular windows in the two upper stories, whereas the middle windows are double windows. They are crowned with an arc Frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
. Above it there is a small black round arc middle window and a red hip roof. Sideways bordered with shifted corner cuboids. Colors of the Gemeinde: red-white-green
Politics
The Gemeinderat (parish councils) consists of 31 MandateMandate
Mandate can refer to:*Mandate , an obligation handed down by an inter-governmental body*Mandate , an official or authoritative command; an order or injunction*Mandate , the power granted by an electorate...
, and they are divided as follows:
- ÖVPAustrian People's PartyThe Austrian People's Party is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Austria. A successor to the Christian Social Party of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, it is similar to the Christian Democratic Union of Germany in terms of ideology...
(Austrian Peoples Party) 14 - SPÖSocial Democratic Party of AustriaThe Social Democratic Party of Austria is one of the oldest political parties in Austria. The SPÖ is one of the two major parties in Austria, and has ties to trade unions and the Austrian Chamber of Labour. The SPÖ is among the few mainstream European social-democratic parties that have preserved...
(Social Democratic Party of Austria) 10 - Alle für Vorchdorf (All for Vorchdorf) 3
- FPÖFreedom Party of AustriaThe Freedom Party of Austria is a political party in Austria. Ideologically, the party is a direct descendant of the German national liberal camp, which dates back to the 1848 revolutions. The FPÖ itself was founded in 1956 as the successor to the short-lived Federation of Independents , which had...
(Freedom Party of Austria) 2 - Die Grünen (The Greens – The Green Alternative) 2
The Unabhängiger Bauernverband (Independent compound of farmers) do not have any Mandat.
Since 15 April 2008, mayor is Dipl.-Ing. Gunter Schimpl from the ÖVP, after the former mayor Franz Kofler retired from his post.
Economy and Infrastructure
During the early 1960s, Austria built its first autobahn, the WestautobahnWestautobahn
The West Autobahn was the first motorway, or ‘Autobahn’, to be built in Austria originating from plans drawn up for the so-called Reichsautobahn system. Today it runs from Vienna via Linz to Salzburg, where it joins the German Bundesautobahn 8 at the Walserberg border crossing...
A1 motorway. An exit on the roadway was located in Vorchdorf, fostering a great uplift in the economy of the region.
Traffic
The northern area of the city is divided by the Westautobahn and therefore the community is well located for visitation which is a boon to the region's economy. The local trains, Lambach–Vorchdorf-Eggenberg and Gmunden–Vorchdorf, connect the city to GmundenGmunden
Gmunden is a town in Upper Austria, Austria in the district of Gmunden. It has 13,202 inhabitants . It is much frequented as a health and summer resort, and has a variety of goat, lake, brine, vegetable and pine-cone baths, a hydropathic establishment, inhalation chambers, whey cure, etc...
in the south and Lambach
Lambach
Lambach is a market town in the Wels-Land district of Upper Austria, Austria, on the Ager and Traun Rivers. It has a population of 3,242 as of 2001. A major stop on the salt trade, it is the site of the Lambach Abbey, built around 1056.-Notable inhabitants:...
in the north.
Resident Companies
- Miba AG
- Josef Wick & Söhne
- Heson
- Brauerei Eggenberg
- Lössl
- Acamp
Education
- KindergartenKindergartenA kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...
- VolksschuleVolksschuleA Volksschule was an 18th century system of state-supported primary schools established in the Habsburg Austrian Empire and Prussia . Attendance was supposedly compulsory, but a 1781 census reveals that only one fourth of school-age children attended. At the time, this was one of the few examples...
Vorchdorf - Volksschule Pamet
- HauptschuleHauptschuleA Hauptschule is a secondary school in Germany and Austria, starting after 4 years of elementary schooling, which offers Lower Secondary Education according to the International Standard Classification of Education...
HS1 - Hauptschule HS2 (Music Hauptschule)
- Landesmusikschule (branch office of LaakirchenLaakirchenLaakirchen is a municipality in the district of Gmunden in Upper Austria, Austria....
)
Religion
- Catholic parish church (see sightseeing)
- Branch church Einsiedling (catholic)
- Evangelic church
- Mosque of the islamic denomination (since December 1980)
Societies
- Culture Association Dezibel
- Guten Morgen (Good morning) Vorchdorf: Society
- Marktmusik (music of town) Vorchdorf
- Musikverein der Siebenbürger (music club of the Transylvanian Saxons) Vorchdorf
Periodic Events
- Marktmusik Festkonzert (gala concert from the music of town)
- Culture weekend in the Kitzmantel
- Hüvie Movie
Sightseeing
- Schloss Eggenberg: an old castle from the year 971. It accommodates the brewery Eggenberg, which proves back also until the 10th century.
- Schloss Hochhaus: an almost originally conserved renaissanceRenaissanceThe Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
castle from the time of 1600. It is one of the first renaissance buildings in Austria. The castle is located in the middle of the town. It includes the Heimatmuseum (museum of local history) and gastronomy. - Parish church: baroqueBaroqueThe Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
church building, originally GothicGothic architectureGothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
, from 1700 on reconstructed in baroque style, baroque high altar from 1690. - Branch church Einsiedling: it is possible, that this church reaches back until the 8th century.
- Heimatmuseum (museum of local history) in the castle Schloss Hochhaus.
- Emailmuseum (museum of enamel) in the Fischerturm (tower of fishers) in the Schloss Hochhaus.
- Motorradmuseum (museum of motorbikes) in the locality Peintal.
Personalities
Sons and daughters:- Martin Dickinger, born 1959, artist (installations from Papier-mâchéPapier-mâchéPapier-mâché , alternatively, paper-mache, is a composite material consisting of paper pieces or pulp, sometimes reinforced with textiles, bound with an adhesive, such as glue, starch, or wallpaper paste....
); works and lives in Vorchdorf.
Persons with reference to the town:
- Wieland Schmied, born 1929 in Frankfurt am Main, art historian and art critic; lives in Vorchdorf.