Bandwebereimuseum Elfringhausen

About the museum

In the hills of Elfringhausen in southern Hattingen, many families earned their living for decades by weaving ribbons at home. Weavers are documented here since 1822; most also worked as smallholders and wove ribbons in their own houses on commission for textile firms in Barmen and Langenberg, initially carrying the finished goods there on foot. The looms were first operated by hand, later by water and steam power, then gasoline engines, and finally electricity in dedicated workshop extensions.

After World War II the trade enjoyed one last boom because many factories in Wuppertal had been destroyed: in 1961 the village had 29 weavers with 63 ribbon looms. With automation, however, home weaving disappeared by the 1990s.

To preserve this chapter of history, members of the Bürger-, Heimat- und Verkehrsverein Elfringhausen, including several former home ribbon weavers, set up a museum that opened on May 11, 1996. It is still run entirely by volunteers. On display are working machines, including a shaft ribbon loom built in 1911, Jacquard ribbon looms controlled by punched cards, machines for punching and lacing the punched cards, as well as winding machines and modern automatic ribbon looms. The weavers demonstrate the equipment during visits; sample ribbons can be taken home for a small donation.

Highlights

• Demonstrations on running looms by former ribbon weavers
• Shaft ribbon loom from 1911 with 16 shafts, in use until 1993
• Jacquard ribbon loom controlled by punched cards, which can weave the Hattingen coat of arms, among other designs
• Card-punching and card-lacing machines for the punched cards
• Sample ribbons to take home for a small donation

Permanent exhibitions

• Hausbandweberei in Elfringhausen – Working ribbon and Jacquard looms, punched-card technology and winding machines show how ribbon weaving developed from the shaft loom to the computer-controlled needle loom.

Founded

1996

Operated by

Bürger-, Heimat- und Verkehrsverein Elfringhausen und Umgebung e. V. (BHV)

Admission & discounts

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.

Kids & families

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Getting there & parking

Amenities & dining

Sample ribbons can be purchased for a small donation.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.

Plan your visit