Michael Reichel (ari)
In the urban area of Ilmenau there is the so-called southern town, which also bears the name "spa district". Only rarely can anyone associate this with a one hundred year tradition of a bathing culture in Ilmenau. The lecture is intended to close a gap here and to recall partly forgotten Ilmenau history. Insights into the structure and functioning of the bathing culture will be given as well as the rise and decline of the institution will be described. The development of the town benefited from the spa industry. The creation of the hiking trails through the nearby mountains, which are still popular today, bears witness to this. Even if it is not immediately recognizable on the surface, there are still many currently existing structural references to the past to be described here. Many a street name or building designation is given an explanatory background in the lecture. The health resort was never an isolated area, but was always connected with the economic and social development of the city of Ilmenau.
