Sänger- und Kaufmannsmuseum Finsterwalde

Current exhibitions

About the museum

The core of the museum is a commercial building on Lange Straße, the oldest shopping street in town. There, Gottfried Wittke founded a business in 1850 selling materials, tobacco, cigars, and distilled spirits. Three generations ran it: after the founder came his son Johannes in 1898, and in 1929 Johannes's daughter Johanna Wittke. The sale ended in 1974. The shop and office remained in their Gründerzeit (late 19th-century) interior and are considered the model of a mom-and-pop store (Tante-Emma-Laden).

From the shop, an exhibition area on the history of retail in the 19th and 20th centuries developed. It includes a drugstore with GDR products, historic vending machines, advertising signs, small doll shops, and old coffee-roasting ovens of the Wittke company.

The second theme is the "singing town" of Finsterwalde. It goes back to the popular song "Wir sind die Sänger von Finsterwalde", which the composer Wilhelm Wolff wrote in 1899 for a Berlin burlesque. The "Chorwurm" traces about 800 years of communal singing in Germany and shows its social significance. A small natural history display with two large dioramas of plants and animals of the region complements the house, which now belongs to the Museumsverbund Landkreis Elbe-Elster (museum association).

Highlights

• Original general store of the Wittke family (Gründerzeit interior)
• "Chorwurm": 800 years of communal singing in Germany
• GDR drugstore, historic vending machines, and doll shops
• Natural history dioramas of flora and fauna around Finsterwalde

Permanent exhibitions

• Historischer Kaufmannsladen und Handelsgeschichte – The original general store of the Wittke family is the centerpiece of an exhibition on retail in the 19th and 20th centuries, with a GDR drugstore, vending machines, and doll shops.
• Chorwurm – Sängerstadt Finsterwalde – The exhibition follows communal singing through about 800 years and tells the story behind the song about the singers of Finsterwalde.
• Regionale Naturkunde – Two large dioramas show plants and animals of the Finsterwalde area.

Operated by

Landkreis Elbe-Elster (Museumsverbund Landkreis Elbe-Elster)

Admission & discounts

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom: no information
• Accessible parking
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

Step-free access to the interior; two accessible parking spaces about 20 m from the entrance. Staff will gladly help if needed.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops

Museum education for kindergartens and school classes in a modular system; occasional holiday activities for children with parents and grandparents, such as "Einkaufen wie die Urgroßeltern" (shopping like great-grandparents). Family ticket €10.

Getting there & parking

The museum is at Lange Straße 6/8 in the city center.

Amenities & dining

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit