A Visit to Untermassfeld

The Protestant Church dates from the 1700s

After several days of high temperatures the weather broke and I took the opportunity of a cool, overcast day to drive up to Untermassfeld, Thuringia from my home in Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Bavaria. 

The drive took about 90 minutes via Autobahn, with lovely, rolling hills and greenery of the Rhoen Valley region unfolding before me as I drove rapidly down the expressway. I'm always excited to be out on the road in pursuit of information and photographs. This is a feeling dating back to my days as a photographer for the "Stars and Stripes" in Germany, where I was lucky enough to work from 1989-94. 

As I approached Untermassfeld I stopped for look around Obermassfeld. This is a slightly larger village with an old stone bridge, a "Wehrkirche" (Fortified church) and a nice old town center. 

Taking the back road to Untermassfeld, my first view of the village was what appeared to be a large castle. I soon learned that it was indeed a castle which had been converted about 200 years ago into a prison. Workers were redoing the paving stones in front of the main gate, creating clouds of dust. This is obviously still very much in use. A nearby parking lot was full of cars with local license plates. 

 The old castle is now a prison

 The Kutzner Butcher Shop at Left, Gasthaus zum Stern at right

I parked outside the butcher shop owned and operated by your relative, Achim Kutzner. It was lunch time and I was hungry. The butcher shop offers a huge assortment of sausages and meats but also has a small deli section with salads ready to eat. A small table for two and a stand up table is provided for customers. A local woman was selecting sausages and other items as I entered. This process seemed to be taking a very long time, and so I caught the eye of the young woman behind the counter and said in German, "Ich komme weider." (I'll be back) The customer said, "Es dauert zu lang?" (It's taking too long?) I smiled and shrugged and left. Yes, it was taking far too long! Couldn't she hear my stomach grumbling? The smells in there were intoxicating. I decided to walk around the village and take some photos. 

 Yes, there are people living in this house

 Note the "notch" in this very old house. It was created this way to allow passing carriages and wagons to make the 

corner without taking out the house

Untermassfeld is a quiet place, at least in the historic center. There are numerous houses dating from at least 150 - 200 years ago. 

Obviously this place slept for many years and has only just recently come awake with the fall of the wall separating East and West Germany. Houses here and there have been nicely renovated although there are still many that look sad and dilapidated. During the communist years, it wasn't that the people lacked the money to restore or modernize their homes, what they lacked was the materials. This all started to change in 1990 with the reunification of Germany. 

 The crest of the former owner of the castle, and

the Lord of the village of Untermassfeld. Your 

ancestors would have paid their tithing to this fellow

 Explanation of the crest, belonging to the Count von Henneberg

 Recognition of those citizens who contributed to the restoration of the crest, including the Kutzner 

family. Below, a memorial stone nearby to those who were brought to this prison by the Soviets, 

and who perished there. This was an echo of World War II.

As I walked, dogs barked. Many people have dogs behind their gates and they can sense a stranger in town from many yards away. I'm used to this, and keep my distance. In my career I've been chased by dogs in rural Poland and Slovakia. I could run faster 20 years ago.   

 Many homes are covered in slate, a material that is readily available around here

Twenty minutes had gone by, and so I returned to the butcher shop. It was empty and I selected an egg salad, a sausage salad and a carrot salad on a plate. The grand total - 1,98. That's less than $2.20 for lunch. As the young woman was dishing it up, I told her why I was in town. She went into the back room and a woman aged about 50 came out. I asked if she was Frau Kutzner. She reddened a bit in the face and said that no, she was the "girlfriend." I explained that I was on an advance scouting trip to prepare for the arrival in October of relatives from the United States. I would need a double room and two singles for October 2 and 3. She flipped open a book and made the entry on blank pages for those dates. It looks as if we have the house to ourselves, for the moment. Then she went to the back to get Herr Kutzner. 

I met Achim Kutzner as I was enjoying the salads. He seemed pleased that I was eating from his deli. He sat down and we had a discussion. He is a man of few words. Typical German, it takes most an hour or so to warm up. He told me that his Metzgerei (Butcher Shop) was more than 160 years in the family. He proudly stated that he has very nice guest rooms in the adjacent building, which dates from the late 1700s. 

I told him our plans for October 2. I explained that the Stones family would be flying in the day before from California. A long, long flight I explained, and jet lag is an issue. So, we would not be leaving Rothenburg until the middle of the afternoon, with our arrival at Untermassfeld at around 5. 

This clearly would not do. Herr Kutzner stated that the only chance for the family to have a meal in his acclaimed Gasthaus was to come for Sunday dinner (midday meal). But what about Rothenburg? What about seeing the sights there? This all has to go by the wayside, as Herr Kutzner was insistent that we arrive in Untermassfeld by 1 pm. 

This is pretty common in my experience. Germans are befuddled as to why anyone would want to spend time in any other place other than where they live. Berlin? Cologne? The Rhein River? Other ancestral locations such as Lambsheim or Ticino? All nonsense according to most Germans. You should spend your entire vacation in Untermassfeld.  It's actually quite charming. Germans are proud of their heritage and their home towns. 

He had to go to the back for a minute and while he was gone, a local fellow asked if he could share my little table. This is common in Germany. I indicated yes, and he sat down with his sandwich. He was eating mettwurst. What is that? It's raw chopped steak. It actually turns my stomach to look at it. I prefer my hamburger cooked. He was munching it down and I was trying hard not to notice. He told me that he could not drink anything hot or cold because he'd just had many teeth removed. I tried not to look but I did notice as he was devouring the mettwurst that he didn't have any front or bottom front teeth. 

 The "Gansemaenchen," or Goose Man, in the center of town. 

Below, the prison

Leaving my van in front of the butcher shop I walked around the village some more, taking the photographs you see here. The church was locked but I was assured that it would be open on the Sunday that we are in town. 

As I drove away, I found a more active part of the town on the south end, where there are some small businesses. On the way home, I noticed a guard tower standing on the old East-West border, just south of Untermassfeld. Times have changed. But in many ways, they have remained the same.  

The Stones Family will visit Untermassfeld and area on October 2 and 3, 2016 as part of their ancestry in Europe tour with European Focus Private Tours of October 1 - 10. All images by James Derheim.