History

The Harzgerode sanatorium was built in 1929-31 as a clinic for children suffering from tuberculosis. It offered space for about 150 young patients, as well as 150 employees, some of whom lived on the premises. The so-called fresh-air reclining cure with high-altitude air, sunlight and physical rest was intended to stop the progress of the disease. The architectural style is classified as New Objectivity and Classical Modernism. The ensemble of buildings is listed as a heritage site. It includes residential buildings, a market garden, a sewage treatment plant, parks and a school building built in the 1970s.

According to current research, the Harzgerode TBC children’s sanatorium was also operated as such during the Nazi era. There are indications that the building served as a field hospital towards the end of the war and for a short time afterwards, before its original function was resumed. In 1969, the clinic was converted into a specialized children’s hospital for respiratory diseases. In the 1990s, part of the main building was renovated at a cost of several million Deutschmarks. Despite massive protests from the population and local politicians, the hospital was closed in 1996 for economic reasons. After many years of vacancy in 2014 the idea came up to found a community project here.