Schmerbach: Fountains and Charcoal-Burning Tradition

The old running fountains shape Schmerbach’s townscape and were incorporated into the redesign of streets and squares. The Fountain Festival focuses on a specific change: in 1861, the wooden troughs at the public fountains were replaced with stone ones. The festival commemorates this every year on Whit Sunday. The fountains are therefore not only a defining feature of the townscape, but also the focal point of a recurring local tradition.

The Fountain Festival and the Craft of Charcoal Burning

Another highlight is the Charcoal-Burning Festival. It takes place in the first week of July and celebrates the local tradition of producing charcoal. Guests can watch charcoal being made around the charcoal kiln. While the Fountain Festival recalls the renewal of public fountains, the Charcoal-Burning Festival puts a traditional craft in the spotlight. The two festivals take place at different times of year and tell two different stories about Schmerbach.

Regional Route 2, “Am Großen Inselsberg,” also passes through Schmerbach. This offers another specific point of reference for planning a trip, alongside the local festivals. Anyone looking for a holiday apartment in Schmerbach can choose their focus based on whether a festival date or the regional route will shape their stay.

Culture in the wider destination of Waltershausen

The wider destination of Waltershausen offers cultural attractions in their own right, alongside Schmerbach’s local traditions. The GutsMuths Memorial Hall in Schnepfenthal is a center for sport and culture. It provides information about history, nature, GutsMuths and the Rennsteiglauf, and has established itself as a gallery with special exhibitions. Outdoors, information panels explain GutsMuths and his pupils; trees from every continent also grow there.

Places of interest in Schnepfenthal include the historic cemetery in Hardt, an old manor house and Salzmannschule secondary school.

The ballroom of Tenneberg Castle dates from 1719. It is one of the castle’s three surviving Baroque rooms and features a ceiling painting by Johann Heinrich Ritter, court painter to the Thuringian court. Its date, the preserved room and the ceiling painting offer tangible insights into different aspects of its architectural and artistic history.

The town church “Zur Gotteshilfe” in Waltershausen is considered Thuringia’s first major Baroque centralized church building and a forerunner of Dresden Frauenkirche in terms of its floor plan and construction. The connection to Frauenkirche is specifically reflected in the floor plan and construction; the organ offers another perspective on the town church. It has three manuals, 53 sounding registers and 2,806 pipes.

When choosing a destination, it helps to distinguish between the themes: Schmerbach’s Fountain Festival and Charcoal-Burning Festival celebrate local traditions; the wider destination of Waltershausen offers themes ranging from sport and nature to history and architecture. Choose your holiday apartment based on which focus you want to shape your trip.

Discover more destinations: Winterstein.

View the wider travel overview: Emsetal.