Surely you have sensed the quiet charm emanating from this place the Levner Bädle. It is more than just a building. It is a tangible link to centuries of history. The Levner Bädle began its life as a humble bathhouse. Its exact origins are shrouded in mystery. But, the Levner Bädle first appears in historical records in 1628.
Paul Furtenbach acquired the property that year. He purchased it from Andreas Welthin and his wife Ottilia Hauggin. The sale came with an unusual stipulation. The sellers had to remove the existing bathhouse and sulfur spring. This removal was at their own expense. Despite this, the bathing operations continued at the Levner Bädle.
Fast forward to the 18th century. The Furtenbach family constructed a new building. It was designed in the style of a regional country estate. This building is largely preserved even today. In 1814, Adrian Häusler announced the opening of the “Gesundheits Baades in Lövis”. Häusler was the bailiff of the Chur Cathedral Chapter in Feldkirch. Martin Christa actually operated the bath. Häusler had acquired the building and its properties in 1810. He bought them from Leopold Furtenbach. By 1820, after Häusler’s death it was sold to Johann Georg Zimmermann. Zimmermann was the Löwenwirt from Feldkirch-Altenstadt.
The Levner Bädle changed hands again in the second half of the 19th century. Eventually, it became the property of the Austrian Federal Railways. In 2014, they put the building and part of the land up for sale. The Levner Bädle’s healing spring was a cold sulfur spring. It originated in the woods above the Levner Weiher. Legend says that an earthquake caused the spring to lose its sulfur content.
In 1843, Eduard Jos Koch briefly mentioned the bath in his treatise. He mentioned it alongside other sulfur springs in Feldkirch. Josef Zehenter also mentioned the bath in his 1895 work. He referenced “Mineralquellen Vorarlbergs”. However, he did not elaborate further.
The Levner Bädle stands at “Beim Levner Weiher 9”. It is near Feldkirch’s southeastern border. It is about 200 meters from the Göfis municipal boundary. The Levner Bädle is about 1.2 kilometers from Feldkirch’s city center. It is approximately 30 kilometers from Lake Constance. Today, the Levner Bädle houses service apartments of the Austrian Federal Railways. It is located directly on the Lindau–Bludenz railway line. It is near the Feldkirch train station. Behind the Levner Bädle lies the “Badwald” plot. It borders directly on the municipality of Göfis. So the Levner Bädle is a landmark with a rich history. It has transformed over the centuries. It started as a bathhouse. Then it became a country estate. Later it was owned by the railway. Now it is a residential building. The Levner Bädle remains a silent witness to the passage of time.