90 years Idar-Oberstein

A critical look at the urban development of Idar-Oberstein

We cordially invite you to the lecture by former city archivist Manfred Rauscher: "90 years of Idar-Oberstein - A critical look at the city's development" on Friday, 8 September 2023, 6:30 pm in the Jakob Bengel Industrial Monument.

The town of Idar-Oberstein on the Nahe - world-famous as a gemstone and jewellery centre - is celebrating its 90th anniversary this year. Firstly, the entire prehistory of the creation of this new community will be discussed. The first point in this prehistory is the elevation of the Birkenfeld residence and the towns of Idar and Oberstein to municipalities by the Oldenburg State Ministry. Further local political decisions up to the founding of the new town on 1 October 1933 are then discussed, as well as the joint projects carried out by the two towns of Oberstein and Idar before their unification. Further sections of the town's more recent history will deal with the Third Reich and the subsequent period of occupation.
The focus of the lecture is on the development of the town after the Second World War up to the present day. It is intended to be a comprehensive retrospective, in which local political, economic and cultural aspects in particular will be critically analysed.

Manfred Rauscher