Friedrichsbrunn

Friedrichsbrunn
Stadtteil of Thale

Coat of arms
Friedrichsbrunn

Coordinates: 51°41′23″N 11°2′18″E / 51.68972°N 11.03833°ECoordinates: 51°41′23″N 11°2′18″E / 51.68972°N 11.03833°E
Country Germany
State Saxony-Anhalt
District Harz
Town Thale
Government
  Mayor Albrecht Loeffler
Area
  Total 18.34 km2 (7.08 sq mi)
Population (2006-12-31)
  Total 1,038
  Density 57/km2 (150/sq mi)
Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes 06507
Dialling codes 039487
Vehicle registration HZ
Website www.friedrichsbrunn.de

Friedrichsbrunn is a village and a former municipality in the district of Harz, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 23 November 2009, it is part of the town Thale.

History

At the location of Friedrichsbrunn there has been a well and a resting place along the road between Quedlinburg and Nordhausen since the 11th century. In 1680, a Prussian border watch station was built at the well, which was known as the Ungetreuer Brunnen (Unfaithful Well). Between 1773 and 1775, King Friedrich the Great settled the area with 50 families and the place took the name Friedrichsbrunn.

The first tourists spent their summer here in 1884. Before World War I, two sanitoriums, three larger hotels, and numerous bed and breakfasts were built in Friedrichsbrunn and it became known as a health resort. During the world wars, these facilities were used as military hospitals.

In 1949, Friedrichsbrunn was recognized as a health and winter sports resort. Up to 1990, as many as 20,000 vacationers and patients came here each year. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, mass tourism declined.