Schifffahrts- und Schiffbaumuseum Wörth am Main

About the museum

Wörth am Main has been known as a boatmen's town since the 13th century. The museum uses the former town church of St. Wolfgang: a church at this site is documented since 1328, and the present Baroque building was erected from 1729 to 1748 after floods had undermined the foundations of its predecessor. After the floods of 1882/83, Neuwörth, a flood-safe district with a new parish church, was laid out; St. Wolfgang was deconsecrated in 1903 and afterward served as a storage place for fire-fighting equipment, as a gymnasium, and as a storage room.

A friends' association founded in 1980 campaigned for a shipping museum. In 1985 the town bought the decaying building, had it restored with support from the Landesstelle für die nichtstaatlichen Museen (Bavarian state office for non-state museums), and opened the museum in 1991; the preservation-minded renovation was awarded a state prize by the Federation of German Architects the same year. Light steel installations with walkways and galleries pick up forms of ship architecture without concealing the church interior.

On three levels, ship models, tools, documents, and pictures show the Main as a transport route – from towing to chain shipping to modern shipbuilding. In the museum courtyard stand original ship parts, an adjoining room houses a historic nail smithy, a fishing stand explains the fishing trade, and films complement the offering. The small exhibition "Römerzeit in Wörth" (Roman Era in Wörth) has also moved from the Old Town Hall into the museum; in the gate tower "Oberes Tor," an exhibition also provides information on the town's flood history.

Highlights

• Baroque church interior with steel installations in the style of ship architecture
• Scale ship models on the history of Main shipping
• Original ship parts in the museum courtyard
• Historic nail smithy that operated until 1948
• Fishing stand with an information board on the fish population in the Main
• Roman exhibition with a fort model and two dioramas

Permanent exhibitions

• Mainschifffahrt und Schiffbau – Models, tools, documents, and films explain Main shipping from towing to the present as well as the technology and history of shipbuilding; also a nail smithy, fishing stand, and ship parts in the courtyard.
• Römerzeit in Wörth – Finds from the forts near Wörth, a fort model, a virtual reconstruction, and two dioramas, including the construction of a watchtower on the Main Limes.
• Hochwasser der vergangenen Jahrhunderte – Hochwasserschutz heute – Exhibition in the medieval gate tower "Oberes Tor" on Wörth's flood history and present-day protection; the panels can also be viewed digitally in the museum.

Founded

1991

Operated by

Stadt Wörth a.Main

Admission & discounts

Accessibility

• Partially wheelchair accessible
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom: no information
• Accessible parking: no information
• 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

Ground-level exhibition areas, media room, and nail smithy are accessible; the first gallery can be reached by elevator, the second gallery cannot. The flood exhibition in the Oberes Tor is not accessible; its panels are shown on a screen in the museum.

Kids & families

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

Getting there & parking

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

Amenities & dining

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Events & venue rental

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

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