Travel Guide "Remembrance Connects Region Oder-Warta"

100 101 A me e t i ng and d i scovery space A me e t i ng and d i scovery space The Schweizerhaus Seelow was built at the beginning of the 19 th century on the edge of the heights between Oderbruch and the Lubusz Plateau as a pasture. The first references to its use as an excursion destination date back to 1854 . The Berlin banker Hugo Simon acquired the site in 1919 . He developed it into a model agricultural estate. He also con- verted and expanded the Schweizer- haus Seelow as a place of recreation for art, culture and politics. Sculptures by renowned artists adorned the park, such as Alfred Gaul‘s „Dancing Bear“ or Renee Sinteni‘s „Donkey of Seelow“. Among the guests were Max Lieber- mann, Heinrich Heine, and Otto von Braun. In 1933 , shortly after the Reichs- Seelow Swiss House The Seelow Swiss House is a well-known excursion destination located in the immediate vicinity of the monument complex of the Seelower Heights place of remembrance. tag fire, Simon was forced into exile with his family. The Schweizerhaus was used as a horticultural enterprise in the Volks- eigenes Gut ( VEG /state-owned farm) Gartenbau Wollup from 1950 – 1990 . The fall of the Berlin Wall brought the dissolution of the VEG and the site was abandoned. In 2007 , the Heimatverein Schweizer- haus Seelow e.V. association was founded, with the aim of preserving and carefully developing this unique gem. In 2010 , the city of Seelow bought the area and transferred it to the association. The association‘s considerable volun- tary commitment and numerous activi- ties have turned the Schweizerhaus Seelow area into a multi-regional location for education, art, and culture, and into the source of a multifaceted history. Address: Am Schweizerhaus 1 - 5 15306 Seelow, Deutschland www.heimatverein-seelow.de Open: January-December GPS : 52 ° 31 ‘ 58 . 6 “N 14 ° 23 ‘ 58 . 1 “E Seelow Swiss House i The town of Vietz probably dates back to being founded by the Knights Templar, and owes a rapid economic growth to its location on the route of the Prussian Eastern Railway. This railway line, several hundred kilometres long, connected the two important cities of Berlin and Königs- berg. But the town was also situated along the important Reichsstraße 1 , which also led to Königsberg (Prussia). After the Second World War, the German population was resettled and the place was renamed Witnica. The local city park, which covers several hectares, was transformed into the so-called Wegweiser-Park (Signpost Park) in 1994 on the initia- Witnica Signpost Park Today, in Wegweiser-Park Witnica (The Witnica Signpost Park), an aspect of the region‘s history is documented by numerous preserved signposts from different eras. tive of the publicist and local historian Zbigniew Czarnuch. Various original exhibits remind visitors of the historic route from Berlin to Königsberg. The various exhibits are arranged in four thematic groups: Culture of the Path, Milestones of Civilisation, Reflection and Imagination. This collection serves to document the city‘s history and the region‘s historical cultural landscape as a common German and Polish history, and does so in the form of a creative and enigmatic presentation. More- over, the expansive composition is intended to encourage visitors to reflect on the fact that excessive national pride is the cause of much evil between peoples. Address: ul. Moniuszki 66 - 460 Witnica, Polen Open: January-December gPS : 52 ° 40 ‘ 31 . 0 “N 14 ° 53 ‘ 45 . 3 “E Witnica Signpost Park i