City history

16518
Plattner families settle on the Fastenberg165310/10


. Edict banishing Protestants from Platten165412/02


. Petition from the exiles for land165412/02
. Request for land from the exiles23/02. Decree of approval from Johann Georg I. for
the land25/03. Weber is presented by the community to the Elector as a preacher01/05
. Instructions regarding construction sites and timberMay
10: Threshold laid for the first house
on the market squareJuly 24: First city council establishedAugust
7: 40 houses nearly completedAugust
8: City charter grantedAugust 11
: First child baptizedNovember
6: First Body buried in the (marked-out
) cemeteryThe brewery built (49 buildings in 1654)


1654–1662Wahlmühle mill
builtBretmühle mill


built1655May 10: Laying of the church’s


cornerstone1656May 14:03. City charter issued
11/21. Mayor Löbel elected
11/03. First council confirmation with sermon; Johann Georg I died (city founder)

1657
02/15. Church consecration
02/20. Jugler Glassworks incorporated into


the parish 1658 05/16. Organ purchased Oct. 28
. First pulpit erected by Kasper Wittich for 160 Rt., from which the first sermon was delivered on Oct. 31. 1659


: 6,150 houses in existence


. 1661: May 27. First baptismal font carved by Mayor Joh. Löbel
. July 12. Johann Georg II. visited


here1662last stalls removed from the


market1663bread bench moved to the town hall and a smelting hut built1664Jan


. 13. 1st cartload of stones for the

town hall
construction1665July 10. Johann Georg II. visited
hereDec. 25. Deacon Meißner’s 1st official


sermon1666June 22.-June 23: Schoolhouse erected


; 1668:


Deaconry purchased; 1669: June 26: Raising of the timber frame at the town hall;
1672:

July 5: Elector donates a bell (2.43 hundredweight); July
6: Crown Prince Johann Georg III here July
24. Johann Georg II here for the 3rd time 1678


. Silver ore procession before Johann Georg II (2 troughs of silver ore)

1681
. First forester Abraham Klug appointed 1682


. A silver smelting hut in the Jugler Grund 1685


. July 23.02. Decree approving the celebration of
the town’s founding20.07. Parish


fair168721.04. Laying of the tower’s

foundation
stone16913 bells installed in the tower

1707
Johann Heinrich Hennebach of Plauen appointed rector 1710 Church


tower dedication ceremony in

the fall 1713
Aug. 7: Finial placed on the church tower 1715 Interior


renovation of the tower completed


1716 Church roof covered with slate

1717
Jan. 1 Trade union donates 2 collection
bags07/06 School fees set at 10 and 6 groschen
, respectively07/13 Roof covered with


slate1718–1719 Two municipal ponds created

above the
town171907/31August 31. Principal Hennebach died1723Chronicle


compiled by


Engelschall1772Great famine, 673 people died

1805–1812
: Storehouse
built

; 1853: Church spire restored; 1854: February


23: 200th anniversary of the town; Lazarus


Foundation established1867August 19: Major city fire1868Savings bank



establishedNovember 15: Church council established1869Fall


: Construction of
the church begins; Volunteer fire department

established1870May
15:08. Topping-out ceremony for the


church1871April 28. Spire and cross placed on the


church1872May 1. Bells ring for the first
timeMay 7. Church construction completedAugust
27. Consecration of the


church 1877 Establishment of the compulsory fire


department 1878 Four houses from Steinbach and Sauschwemme incorporated into


the parish from Sosa 1880 Installation of the


tower apartment 1882 Mountain bell installed on the tower 1889


House Sauschwemme No. 13 incorporated into the parish from

Karlsfeld 1892
Water supply system installed

1896
May 10 War memorial erected on the


market square 1897 Expansion of the


cemetery 1898 Inauguration of the new school


1899 Mountain warehouse burns down and is converted into 2 apartments (Cromwell and Sedan)

1901
: Dedication of the Röder Monument1902


: New stained-glass windows donated by local

children1903
: Gas lighting installed in the church1904


: January: Radium is discovered in the zinc and bismuth ore of the "Vereinigt Feld im Fastenberge" mine; Ernestine Häcker’s inn on Hohegenisterstraße is renamed "
Bürgerschenke"; Feb. 23: 250th anniversary of the town
; March: Pastor Otto becomes first chairman of the Erzgebirgsverein; Gymnastics club celebrates its 25th anniversaryJune
: 50th anniversary of the "

Sängerbund"
men’s choir1905January: Population stands at 6,
288February–April: Rail service to Karlsbad interrupted for days due to heavy
snowfallMay: "Täumerhaus" inn destroyed
by fireOctober: already heavy snowfall, causing trouble and concern


for farmers1906April 8: Workers’ Gymnastics Club founded; its practice hall was the town
hall10.09: Benjamin Lindner’s "Gabe Gottes" inn destroyed
by fireOctober: Max Uhlig takes over the "Henriettenhof" for 67,000 marks (renamed "Hotel Deutsches Haus" as of January 1, 1907)


1907January: Founding of a "Patriotic Association"
February: Founder of the Gotthold Heinz company dies (aged 69)
March 21: Large snowdrifts up to 5
meters highJuly: Severe shortage of orders in the leather glove
industryAugust 17: Raising ceremony for the mountain lodge on the AuersbergNovember 10
: Consecration of the mountain lodge on the Auersberg; first innkeeper is K. A. Heinz, followed by Max


Teller1908January: Population drops to 6,230; the city constructs a 500-meter-long toboggan run (Graby-Villa-Rosengärtner slope)
February: Renaming of Jugler Gasse to ExulantenstraßeAugust
7: Northern part of the city flooded by a severe
thunderstorm with torrential rainDecember: Founding of the Winter Sports
ClubDecember 11: 1st general meeting of the Winter Sports


Club1909June: Bankruptcy proceedings are initiated against the firms L. Cohn and Vereinigte Handschuhfabriken; both companies are later taken over by the major American firm Steinberger & Bros.
July: Formation of the Westerzgebirge District Ski Association; chairman is Dr. Glaß (district court judge)August
22: Inauguration of the sports field on Eibenstocker Straße (Gerber, a native of Lössnitz, donated it to the city); beer strike by organized workers (the price of beer was set to rise by 2 pfennigs per 0.5 liters)
November: The city is connected to the Erzgebirge Interregional Power Center in
Schwarzenberg, which is under constructionDecember: Winter sports season begins; master saddler Carl Kunz establishes a ski factory on


Bahnhofstraße1910January: Ski lessons with Sigmund Ruud (from Norway) are underway; the Academic Sports Club of Leipzig builds a ski lodge on the northwestern edge of the forestJan.
22–23 Races organized by the “Westerzgebirge District of Saxony” Ski Association; a ski jump was built at the train station
for this purposeAugust: City council meeting approves the construction of 5 workers’ apartment buildings with 61 units; a new industrial enterprise (Wendler and Weiß Metal Goods Factory) is to be granted free building land at
the foot of the station platformNovember 27: 1st Special winter sports train from Leipzig via


Zwickau1911February: The side street branching off Exulantenstraße toward Claus-Mühle is named
MühlgasseMay 18: La Tosca glove factory (Rigden) entered in the commercial
registerJuly: Prolonged intense heat; water shortage beginning July 10; Wendler and Weiß begins construction of its
factory building September 3: Dedication of the new gymnasium on Glockenklanger Straße (with a gymnastics demonstration) November
13: Dr. Stresemann speaks at the "Deutsches Haus" regarding the Reichstag election on January 12, 1912


1912 November 14:03. Opening of the newly renovated “Lazarusstift”24
.08. Afternoon visit by King Friedrich August
of Saxony18.09. Inauguration of the new institution with its
estate15.10. Robert Jahn elected school


director191325.-Jan. 26: Ski races organized by the
Saxon Ski Association May 1: Opening of the Leipzig-Zwickau-Chemnitz-Johanngeorgenstadt-Karlsbad express
train line Aug. 9: Opening of the state-run bus route Johanngeorgenstadt-Eibenstock-Plauen; Discovery of new rich silver and bismuth


veins1914January: Heavy snowfall disrupts traffic; a freight train is snowed
in near BärringenApril: Installation of stained-glass windows in the town hall (donors: G. Georgi, Kircheisen, Böhme, M. Reinhold, W. Hecker)
August–September: Mobilization; the first conscripts are sent off in the first days of August; the first reports of wounded and fallen soldiers deeply shock all citizens; all French names and designations are Germanized (e.g., Hotel de Saxe becomes “Sachsenhof”)


191514.08. Installation of 4 memorial plaques bearing the names of those killed in World War I
. September 19: Post office initially located on A.-Unger-Straße



. 1916 May: City flown over for the first time by an airplane (biplane). June 1: Introduction of daylight saving time (until September 17)
. July: King Friedrich August arrives at the train station and goes on a hike with Mayor Rosenfeld and City Councilman Truckenbrodt to Carlsfeld and


Kranichsee1917June–July: Church pipe organs had to be turned over to the war collection on January 17; the church bells were spared from confiscation on June 29, whereas the two bells from the town hall


tower were removed on July 91918September: The brewers’ cooperative sells the Bürgerliche Brewery to the Männel Wernesgrün
AGOctober: The Nestler and Breitfeld company acquires the Wittigsthal brewery building and converts it into a residential
houseDecember: The workforce of the three mines currently in operation totals 76


miners1919January: The winter sports club resumes its activities; Weekly food ration per person: 250g meat, 250g jam, 300g artificial honey, 200g nutritional
supplements. June 15: The new town hall bells ring for the first time (donated by Mine Operations Director R. Poller).July
18: Workers’ Gymnastics and Sports Club dedicates its flag
; August 1: Military border guard disbanded
; October 1: Local border traffic permitted again
; October 8: Census records 6,004 inhabitants; Peat extraction at Kleiner Kranichsee, which had begun, is halted again. November
7: New cemetery inaugurated (adjacent to the old cemetery to the south).

1921
August: Municipal gasworks connected to the district
heating system. October: Founding of a nativity scene
and woodcarving association. November 13: 350th anniversary celebration in Jugel.
December: Commemorative plaques in the church list the names of a total of 225 soldiers who fell in the World


War1922Jan. 15: Winter sports club holds opening ski jump competition at the new Murmelmühlschanze in LehmergrundJuly
8–9: District Workers’ Singing Festival; Forestmaster Max Schreyer (author of “Vugelbeerbaam”), a native of the town, dies on July 28 in Pulsnitz
November 2 Clara Zetkin speaks in the

town hall
January 1923: the church organ’s pipes, sacrificed for the war, are replaced March
11: 40th anniversary celebration of the “Arion” March
25: second secular youth initiation ceremony in the town
hall April: another beer war over beer prices
May 5–6: Workers’ Cycling Club unveils new banner; on the second Sunday, “German Mother’s Day” is celebrated for the first time; first radio system installed to receive stock market reports from Berlin; massive storm damage in the forests (from the previous winter)
July: Exchange rate: 1 dollar = 415,000
MOctober: Severe crop damage due to devastating rain, frost, and early snowfall. Dec
. 30: The Winter Sports Club inaugurates the new Bahnhofschanze, named “Hans-Heinz-Schanze” in honor of a fellow athlete who fell in 1918; the inaugural jump was performed by 14-year-old Alfred Czermak. 1924


: Jan.April 4: The first successful public radio broadcast via loudspeakers takes place in the town
hall. September


30: The Zwickau Gymnastics Association inaugurates a sports clubhouse in Oberjugel. 1925 April: 15,000 marks allocated for the construction of a youth hostel; the head of the local DTH group is teacher P. Mothes
. May: The Wittigsthal Inn falls
victim to a fire for the third time in three decades. May 20: The Plauen-Eibenstock bus line, which had been
suspended until then, resumes service. December: Exhibition at the Bürgerschänke: 1. Old Johanngeorgenstadt before the fire, 2. Mechanical mine with mine elevator, 3. Nativity


scene1926March 17: Concert by the Great Russian Balalaika Orchestra in the town
hallMay 7: Laying of the cornerstone for the construction of the
youth hostelMay 15: Topping-out ceremony for the new
Wittigsthal InnJuly 15: Pachthaus destroyed by
fireJuly 24–25: ADAC Saxony Rally concluded with a car market
festivalSeptember 9: Church illuminated by electric lights for the first


time1927January 1-02.01. Festive dedication of the youth
hostel 15–16.01. 1st District Winter Sports Festival of the Workers’ Gymnastics and Sports Federation with the dedication of the ski jump by the Winter Sports Interest Group
30.01. Walter Herberger becomes Saxony champion of the Ski
Association in Altenberg02/06. 2,000 guests for winter sports
activities02/13. 3 special trains for ski
jumping02/20. Another 3 special trains (sports)
06/04. Opening of the Johanngeorgenstadt-Tellerhäuser-Oberwiesenthal bus route (Saxony’s most beautiful bus route) June
18: Republican rally of the Reichsbanner local group on the occasion of the Reichsbanner Fichtelberg meeting at the workers’
sports field June 28: Start of construction on the
Lehmergrund-Bahnhof valley road July: Artist A. Hermann renovates the interior of the town church (church services take place at the vocational school); Kleiner Kranichsee is declared a nature
reserve. September 25: The town church, renovated by Mr. A. Hermann with new murals, is solemnly consecrated.


1928 June: Music director Max F. Schmidt (a native of the town) from New York spends a few days in his hometown. July
28: 20 members of the Bürgergesangverein and MGV Sängerbund travel to the German Singers’ Festival in Vienna
. August: The Wittigsthal Ironworks is taken over by Zschopauer Motorenwerke
Rasmussen A.-G. August 12: 1st Allotment garden festival in the "Eleonora" arboretum; Germany’s largest ski jump is under
construction in the "Römisch Reich" forest. October: 5 dozen pairs of leather gloves are en route to America aboard the airship "Graf Zeppelin"; they were transported to Friedrichshafen by car in a
record-breaking night drive. November: The new valley road is opened to traffic; Under construction: 24 family homes on Schmelzberg, barracks with 24 emergency housing units on Külliggutstraße, Johann Kny extension, Fritz Krauß auto repair shop below the train station, auto hall at the former Bürgerliche Brewery, hospital extension, kindergarten, and ski
jumpDecember: Snow depth already 80–110 cm
. Dec. 20: Dedication ceremony for the church-run kindergarten on the grounds of the Lazarusstift


. 1929 Jan. 5–6: Inauguration of the Hanz-Heinz Ski Jump; Recknagel jumps 62
metersFebruary: coldest February days in 100 years, down to
-28°CMarch: "Zur Bleibe" inn destroyed by fire (suspected arson)
June–August: Anniversaries are celebrated: 250th Privileged Rifle Company, 60th Volunteer Fire Department, 75th Singers’ Association, 50th Gymnastics Club, 50th Ore Mountains Association, 60th Leatherworkers’ Association, 75th Military
AssociationsAugust 17: A “Do 1166” aircraft flies over the citySeptember
8: Manufacturer Hans Otto dies in Vienna1930July


: Gymnastics club decides to build a large gymnasiumSeptember
7: The “Graf Zeppelin” airship flies over the city around noon; Laying of the foundation stone for the
gymnasium. Oct. 25: Ocean aviator Captain Köhl speaks at the gliding club about his first successful


flight to America. 1931 JuneJuly 7 (after 5:00 p.m.): Severe flash flooding in the Schwarzwassertal following a violent
thunderstorm. August 16: Youth gliding meet for glider pilots at the
Külliggut grounds. September 4–7: The new gymnasium is dedicated as part of a border region meet of gymnastics clubs.

In 1932
, large areas of the Ore Mountains were flooded; due to persistent rain and the overflowing of all streams, the Claus Mill, the dye mill, and the mining buildings were submerged. A

public meeting of the NSDAP was held in the town hall, Speakers include National Socialist Count Kurt von Schwerin, retired Lieutenant Commander, on the topic “On Struggle and Victory in the New Year.” Opening

of a branch of the Oskar

Löffler butcher shop. At its meeting, the Nativity Scene and Carving Association resolved to

comply with the request of the Erzgebirge Museum in Augustusburg to create a horse-drawn winch. Until February 14. Exhibition by the Nativity Scene and Woodcarving Association at the Bürgerschänke. February

6: Entertainment evening with dancing hosted by the Poultry Breeders’ Association to mark its 30th anniversary. February

17: Protest rally of the League Against Fascism, Johanngeorgenstadt chapter, at 8 p.m. in the town

hall27.02. The winter sports community holds its club competitions with large jumps at the Lehmergrundschanze14.

03. Individual results of the Reich Presidential election on 03/13 in our city:
Düsterberg 203 votes, Hindenburg 1,522 votes, Hitler 1,138 votes, Thälmann 1,247 votes, and Winter 8 votes

. 03/20 Youth initiation ceremony in the festively decorated school hall

, April 11. Election results for the
Reich President election in the city: 1st electoral district: Hindenburg 537 votes, Hitler 516 votes, Thälmann 332 votes
; 2nd electoral district: Hindenburg 476 votes, Hitler 488 votes, Thälmann 231 votes
; 3rd Hindenburg 565 votes, Hitler 343 votes, Thälmann 315 votes

. April 30: Community festival on the sports field

. May 24: Founding of the Jugel and Breitenbach Entertainment Cooperative at the Farbmühle

Inn. June 10: American Glove glove factory celebrates its 20th anniversary. June

19: Work in the Schwarzwasser Valley on the expansion of the Breitenbach below the state highway bridge in Wittigsthal to its confluence with the Schwarzwasser has been put out to tender as an emergency

construction project June 25: Sports Association (Wacker) celebrates its 13th anniversary July

10: Youth festival at the youth hostel with a parade

July 24–August 21: The mountain town of Platten celebrates its 400th anniversary Aug

. 20. Celebration of the 26th anniversary of the Workers’ Gymnastics and Sports Association, combined with a concert Sept

. 24. Public boxing evening followed by dancing

Nov. 16. Radio

exhibition Dec. 4–11. Christmas Fair

Dec. 4. Olympic champion Birger Ruud arrives in


Johanngeorgenstadt 1933 Jan. 6. Flight service of the Flugsportverein e.V. for the young pilots’ group begins, according to a meeting resolution, tentatively every Sunday morning

Jan. 10. Winter sports: first jumps at the Hans-Heinz ski jump – new ski jump records: Guttormsen 60, 61, and 65 m; Sigmund Ruud 70, 73, and 73 m; Birger Ruud 71, 73, and 74 m

. January 15: Special winter sports trains from Zwickau and Leipzig

. January 22: Celebration of the founding of the Reich by the local chapter of the Stahlhelm Association of Frontline Soldiers in the evening at the "Deutsches Haus" hotel

. January 26: Annual general meeting of the German Youth Hostels at 8 p.m. at Löbel. January

28: The Reich Association of War Disabled, Former Combatants, and War Widows and Orphans hosts a “Variety Evening” in the evening in honor

of the attending delegates02/03 General Assembly of the “Wacker” Sports Association, Inc. at 8 p.m. at the clubhouse

“Garküche”02/05–11 Unemployment checks in the municipalities of Johanngeorgenstadt, Jugel, Wittigsthal, Steinbach, and Steinheidel Feb

. 19. Major ski jumping competition as part of a district event at the Lehmergrundschanze

Feb. 19. NSDAP Johanngeorgenstadt Local Group “Flags Out” major rally

Feb. 25–26. "Arion" Workers’ Choir celebrates its 50th anniversary Feb

. 28–29 Annual General Meeting of the Reich Association of War Disabled, Former Combatants, and War

Survivors Mar. 1–7 Census of fruit trees (apples, pears, plums, damsons, sweet cherries, sour cherries) March

4 Anniversary celebration of the Saxon Military Association with honors for long-serving members at the Hotel Stadt Wien March

15. NSDAP: Founding of a Girls’ Youth Group for girls aged 8–14 March

17. Grand opening of Marie Opp’s grocery store, Georgistrasse 19 March

19. Enrollment of new students at the adult

education center June 1 30th anniversary of Gasthof Ernst

June 1 With the reopening of the Johanngeorgenstadt-Oberwiesenthal bus route, new return tickets were

introduced June 5 Soccer tournament: Sportklub Concordia vs. 1st Team of V.F.B. Auerbach June

12 The Bellin Brothers Circus performs in

Wittigsthal June 18–19: Fair in Johanngeorgenstadt