The Topotheque of the town of Gallneukirchen in the lower Mühlviertel went online on 10.10.2020, 0:00 a.m. „Show the development of the village from the village to the market and finally to the city and take the citizens with you on a journey through time“ is the motto that Topothequer Johannes Berger has issued. In the preparation period up to the activation of the Topotheque, he and the chairman of the Heimatverein, Willi Schinagl, had countless conversations with people from Gallneukirchen, scanned over 2,000 photos and made some of them accessible in the Topotheque. „For the time being, we are limiting ourselves to around 900 photos and 35 videos to make it easier for users to get started,“ Johannes Berger describes the strategy of his topotheque. There is even an easy-to-understand explanatory video to get you started.
The starting shot for the topotheque in Gallneukirchen was some time ago. It was the idea of the chairman of the Heimatverein Gallneukirchen, Wilhelm Schinagl, to set up a Topotheque for their city. After the municipality of Gallneukirchen was enthusiastic about the project and the financing was secured by the municipality of Gallneukirchen, Johannes Berger agreed to take over the role of the leading Topothequer.
The result of the preparatory work is impressive. A diverse mix of different areas of the community‘s history shows the numerous places where you can immerse yourself in the history of the city. Only a few examples should be listed here: Everyday life in Haus Bethanien, the Evangelical “Diakonissenanstalt”, in which the social work of the Diakoniewerk began in 1877. Or: a sleeper stone of the first railway on the continent, which reminds of the beginning of the history of the railways in which Gallneukirchen was integrated. Museum items such as the model of the church tower, the town‘s local money from the time after the First World War or the tools used by the coopers draw attention to the collection and coummunication work of the Heimathaus. Because the Topotheque cannot do one thing: convey the fascination of an original.
It is certain that the TTopotheque in Gallneukirchen will continue to grow, because the timetable for the near future has been set: 100 new exhibits are to be made visible every month. There will be no shortage, because, as Heimatverein chairman Willi Schinagl emphasizes: “It is a pleasure how much the population supports us and makes private sources available!” Watch how the Topotheque of Gallneukirchen will develop: gallneukichen.topothek. at