Museum history

The story behind the creation of the Town Museum is complex and is reflected in the museum's high-quality collection which is of national importance. It was established in 1879 as a local museum by Willibald Filser. Its collection included items from the old town hall and from the town's artisans and patrician families. This exhibition could initially be seen in the town hall.

In 1901, as part of an agricultural exhibition, the town displayed a mock-up of farmhouse parlors at the former winter school on Kaisergäßchen, which now houses the museum. The exhibition "Folk art in the Allgäu“ by famous early "guardians of cultural heritage" Christian Frank and Gustav von Kahr and the architect Franz Zell established a model for other museums to display similar agricultural ways of life.

In 1928, the same building hosted an exhibition from parts of the estate of the acclaimed writer and Kaufbeuren native Ludwig Ganghofer (1855-1920).

In 1934, the collection of the town's history was relocated from the town hall to the building on Kaisergäßchen. Due to their immense popularity, the farmhouse parlors were also retained there.

In 1936, the collection gained another jewel: the extensive crucifix collection of parish priest Richard Wiebel from the nearby village of Irsee. As a result it grew beyond just a local heritage collection and became a multi-faceted museum. Its various collections and exhibitions each reflect their time and their collectors. But they are united by the one thing they all have in common: their association with Kaufbeuren.

After the local heritage museum had to shut in 2002 for structural reasons, the museum's refurbishment was assigned to the first full-time museum management team. The items were transferred to a storage facility and inventoried. The central collections were examined scientifically. In addition, extensive conservation and restoration work was carried out.

After the museum building was restored and extended, the Kaufbeuren Town Museum celebrated its re-opening in 2013.