In the course of renovating and modernizing the old Kreuztal railroad station into a new cultural station, the town of Kreuztal has also broken new cultural ground: The visual arts have been given a worthy home in the public space with the exhibition area in the newly and modernly designed reception hall.
SZENENWECHSEL
The SZENENWECHSEL exhibition concept stands for changing presentations of various artists and their works from all areas of the visual arts. Away from the usual "stages" of a museum or gallery, they are brought to life for the senses. Change of scene also means not limiting oneself to a single stage set, and not always designing the presentation and theme in the same way. The Kulturbahnhof is therefore open to all artists - whether known or unknown, old or young, classical, avant-garde or revolutionary. Every year, an exhibition cycle is also dedicated to historical themes of the town of Kreuztal. The two artists Ulrich Langenbach and Annette Besgen have their studios on the upper floor of the station building ►Zum Kulturbahnhof
Opening hours of the temporary exhibitions: Mon. to Fri. from 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Restaurant-BarFünf10 + station kiosk
The inclusive Restaurant-Bar Fünf10 is located directly in the station building and has a bar as well as a cozy Biergarten(Restaurant-Bar Fünf10). There is a kiosk for travel supplies in the station building.
Café Basico
In 2014, a cultural café opened in the former Lokschuppen building on the other side of the tracks. Events for dance, art and culture as well as private or company celebrations are held in a stylish ambience(www.cafebasico.de)
Kreuztal station
Kreuztal station is still very important as a passenger station, especially for commuters. For this reason, a large park & ride area with a bus turnaround and cab rank was built as part of the fundamental refurbishment in 2008. Equally important is its function as a railroad junction with a container transshipment point and shunting yard for local industry. However, its heyday as a freight station for general cargo has long since passed. ►Train connection information
Historical development
The railroad dictated the rhythm - those who wanted to pass through the countless level crossings between Kreuztal and Siegen often had to wait. And that affected many: Due to the economic boom in the narrow valley, the conurbation was reminiscent of conditions in the Ruhrgebiet. Industry still characterizes the region today. In contrast, freight traffic on the Ruhr-Sieg line is only a faint reflection of earlier times.
"With regard to the line between Creuzthal and Siegen, where the Siegen iron industry preferred to set up its headquarters, care had to be taken to provide suitable rail connections, especially for the numerous blast furnaces, puddling and rolling mills, iron foundries and hammer mills." The Ruhr-Sieg line fully met this requirement from 1864. Thanks to it, the entire region grows into a dense conglomerate of ironworks, steelworks, ore mines, engineering companies and steel processing businesses.
Kreuztal plays a key role in this, even if the beginnings seem quite modest with a Lokschuppen for two machines. But it doesn't stop there. A branch line to Marburg, built in 1883-89, opened up the structurally weak districts of Wittgenstein and Biedenkopf. As a result, many people from Wittgenstein find a job in Siegerland and move to Kreuztal and the surrounding area. At the same time, the goods station receives a new roundhouse to cope with the increased freight volume. This increases again in 1915 with the new main line via Siegen-Ost to Haiger. Freight trains are now increasingly formed and shunted in Kreuztal: Locomotives coming from Hagen travel back north with a new order, while engines from Dillenburg, Siegen or Betzdorf take over further transportation south. This was made possible by another expansion - eleven tracks in 1916 and a further twelve in 1923. After the destruction caused by Allied air raids in February and March 1945, freight traffic flourished once again. The decline of the Kreuztal depot began in 1953 when it was downgraded to a branch office. It is completely disbanded in 1969. Many historical photos at: https://www.kulturbahnhof-kreuztal.de/das-gebaeude/
The Kulturbahnhof Kreuztal is a place of experience on the >Eisenstraße Südwestfalen and a sight worth seeing from >WasserEisenLand