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New Bayreuth City Archives: A look at the finished construction work!
Bayreuth's new city archive is taking shape: completion in 2026, extensive renovation and modern archive rooms planned.
New Bayreuth City Archives: A look at the finished construction work!
The construction work on the new city archive in Bayreuth is entering its final phase. The project is based on the transformed Leers’ villa on Bernecker Straße, which will soon serve as the new home of the city archives. The facade facing Inselstrasse has already been completed and the ground floor with a glazed foyer, reading room and seminar room is almost finished. Good news for all history buffs – the archive is scheduled to be ceremoniously opened at the beginning of 2026. Wiesentbote reports that the new building offers an impressive usable area of 2,300 square meters and that mobile shelving systems have been installed for over eleven kilometers of archive material.
The renovation of Leers’ villa, which currently has 415 square meters of usable space, is also coming to an end. Not only offices will be created here, but also additional work rooms in the attic and a meeting room on the upper floor. A barrier-free, glazed connecting building between the villa and the new building will round off the whole thing and make it easy to access. This is particularly important because the city was looking for a new location for a long time because the old building did not meet the space and fire protection requirements, according to information from Bayreuth.de.
The move: a major project
Preparations for moving the previous city archives at Maximilianstrasse 64 have already begun. So far we have had to pack around 7,000 archive boxes, which is certainly no small undertaking. The reading room was open to the public until October 13, 2023, after which the facility was closed to the public. However, the archivists are available to answer written inquiries, although processing is delayed due to the current circumstances.
The holdings of the new archive include files from the city administration, incorporated districts and estates from over 60 private individuals, families, companies and associations. This will make it possible to document the city's history even more comprehensively.
Financing and future prospects
The total costs for the new building and renovation are around 21.5 million euros, which are supported, among other things, by funding from the Oberfrankenstiftung, the urban development funding and the cultural fund. These financial resources are crucial to guarantee the long-term preservation and use of the archive holdings, which are of great importance for the culture and history of the region.
In addition, from December 1, 2025, Dr. Tobias Herrmann announced as the new President of the North Rhine-Westphalia State Archives. With his extensive experience, he will bring a breath of fresh air to the institution. He will succeed Dr. Frank Bischoff, who is retiring. State Archives of North Rhine-Westphalia emphasizes that Dr. Herrmann was particularly active in the areas of digital transformation, cultural property protection and access to archive material. This creates new perspectives for the archive landscape and its further development.