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Description

Sister´s House and Nuns in Großenlüder

Around 1900, the community of Großenlüder had about 1660 inhabitants. Families usually had many children while many men worked as construction workers and travelled seasonally to Westphalia or the Rhine-Main region. Women had to manage the household, agriculture, and the care of children, elderly and sick people on their own. As there was hardly any state support, the care of the sick was organized exclusively within families. Many families had to sell their cattle or get into debt for major medical treatments.

From this situation, the desire arose to build a Sister´s House. Pastor Johann Georg Schell and Mayor Adam Möller were particularly committed to this. The Sister´s House was meant to help the old and the sick, enable ambulant care and also set up a nursery and a class for girls dedicated to housework and handicrafts. The Motherhouse in Fulda agreed to send nuns to Großenlüder.

The Catholic Church community assumed the responsibility for the building project. The plot of land “At the Fronhof/Kreuzgarten” was provided for free by the community. The construction was planned and directed by Josef Köhl, a civil engineer native to Großenlüder. The costs were initially estimated at around 21,000 marks. Through donations and the community´s voluntary work, a large part of the financing could be covered. Upon completion, the construction costs amounted to about 22,654 marks, with interior furnishings in total about 25,000 marks.

On the 12th of April 1904, the building, constructed in the style of the turn of the century, was inaugurated and the first three nuns moved in. Between 1904 and 1971, fourteen nuns worked in Großenlüder. They shaped the town´s image for a long time with their black habits and white winged bonnets.

Their main duties included nursing. Many residents first sought help from the nuns for minor injuries or sicknesses before seeing a doctor. One sister also acted as a birth assistant and supported the local midwife. In addition, the nuns managed the kindergarten and taught children and young girls. The kindergarten conveyed Christian values and prepared children for school and life.

During the Nazi period, all church kindergartens in Germany were placed under the National Socialist People’s Welfare in 1937. Although the nuns were allowed to stay in Großenlüder, they lost their responsibility for child education.

In addition to their social work, the nuns were also involved in the community´s cultural life. They supported church youth groups, singing and theatre groups, and educational offers for children and teenagers.

Due to a lack of young recruits and the ageing of the nun community, the establishment was given up in 1971. After this, the use of the building changed several times. After extensions and the construction of a new kindergarten, the Sister´s House was used differently, at times even as the town hall of Großenlüder. Later, it served various commercial and public purposes.