Moor- und Fehnmuseum Elisabethfehn

Current exhibitions

About the museum

Elisabethfehn was founded in the 19th century as a fen colony (Fehnkolonie): along the Elisabethfehn Canal, settlers drained the raised bog, cut peat, and shipped it away until the bog had been turned into farmland. The Moor- und Fehnmuseum in the village of Dreibrücken commemorates this cultural landscape between Barßel and the Saterland.

The museum was founded in 1986 on the initiative of the local community and beautification association; Dr. Gustav Schünemann shaped it as founder and longtime director. The main building is a canal keeper’s house built in 1896; a new building in the style of a fen house was added in 1993. Since 2009, the museum has been run by a foundation and supported by a friends’ association.

The exhibitions explain how raised bogs form, which plants and animals live there, and how people transformed the bog through peat cutting and colonization. On the extensive outdoor grounds, a bog teaching garden, peat-cutting equipment, machinery, boats, and a historic museum barn complete the picture. Increasingly, the museum also focuses on bog conservation and new forms of use such as paludiculture (wet farming on peatland), and sees itself as an out-of-school learning venue.

Highlights

• Historic canal keeper’s house from 1896 and fen house as exhibition buildings
• Bog teaching garden with bog and paludiculture plants
• Outdoor area with a bog wading pool, a bog water-level platform, and a machinery exhibition
• Historic museum barn and museum bakery
• Bog rally for families and school classes

Permanent exhibitions

• Moor und Fehnkultur – Two exhibition buildings cover the formation of raised bogs, their flora and fauna, and the life of the fen settlers with peat cutting and canal shipping.
• Freigelände und Moorlehrgarten – Outdoor grounds with a bog teaching garden, hands-on stations of the bog rally, machinery, and a historic museum barn.

Founded

1986

Admission & discounts

The special exhibition is free during opening hours. Free admission on International Museum Day and on the Day of Open Monuments (Tag des offenen Denkmals). Supporting members (from €30/year) receive free admission.

Accessibility

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

Accessible except for the “Leben mit dem Moor” (Living with the Bog) section and the special exhibition; for both areas, a media presentation is available at the foot of the stairs. Dogs on a leash are allowed.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Activity booklet, scavenger hunt or kids’ audio guide
• Hands-on stations

Families can explore the outdoor grounds on their own with the free bog scavenger-hunt sheet (download or at the ticket desk), which includes a bog wading pool, among other things. The annual program includes nature explorer activities for children ages 8 and up and story hours. Birthday children get free admission.

Getting there & parking

Located in the Elisabethfehn-Dreibrücken district; GPS address Oldenburger Straße 1, 26676 Barßel. By car via the A28 (exit Apen/Remels or Filsum), the B72 (exit Strücklingen), or the B401 (turn off at Kampe, then about 10 km along the Elisabethfehn Canal).

Amenities & dining

• Café

Tea room next to the museum (Rudloff family) with a small menu, homemade cakes and tarts, and a terrace; in season Tue–Sun, in winter on select Sundays.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent
• Weddings / ceremonies

Up to 40 guests.

Civil wedding ceremonies in the historic museum barn (a branch office of the Barßel registry office) from March to November, max. 40 people; setup fee €250. Dates via the Barßel registry office.

Plan your visit