The History - Gut Weissenhof
| 1350 |
1350 - The Weissenhof has its roots as one of the oldest still-preserved properties on the rolls of the Salzburg archbishops. The estate was described as the "inferius iuxta ripam", in other words as "below the banks" of the Taurach. As the first owner of this estate on the banks of the Taurach, we encounter a certain "Chunradus Albus" between 1350 and 1400. The name is written in Latin, which translated means "Konrad Weiss". And it is from this that we derive the common name applied to the property. The name first appears in German as "DEM WEISSEN SEIN HOF", from which you ultimately come to today's name, the Weissenhof. |
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| 1454 | In 1454, Archbishop Sigmund von Salzburg purchased the estate, which he then placed at the direct disposal of the governor of Radstadt. |
| 1589 | In 1589, the main farm structure was completely rebuilt by the Archbishop of Salzburg. Since the plans and building costs have survived in their entirety, we see that this building, even after 400 years, has been well preserved and is still in original condition. In this time when the Weissenhof still belonged to Radstadt, it served an additional function as a tithe house, where the tithed grains from Taurach, Ennstal, Forstau and the Saucer Zech, were collected and threshed. |
| 1695 | 1695 On 6 April 1695, the estate was sold to Matthias Puchsteiner, for the considerable price of 3,800 gilders. In the years prior, the estate had been owned by the archbishops. During this period, the tithed grains had been threshed and stored for the archbishop. And so we see construction of a secure tithe warehouse on the upper floor, as well as a large threshing barn. |
| 1807 | 1807 saw the first Habersatter, Josef, assume ownership of the Weissenhof. |
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| 1899 | In 1899, the estate was passed on to Josef and Maria Habersatter. The living and farm buildings were completely renovated. In the time of our great-grandfather, the Weissenhof was the focal point of a large business (with around 300 employees), which encompassed the farm holdings, the sawmill in Radstadt, an inn, as well as a number of other businesses. |
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| 1943 | In 1943, ownership was divided up between the five sons, with our grandfather, Rupert Habersatter, acquiring the farming portion of the property. |
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| 1959 | In 1959, it was passed down to son, Johann, and his wife, Maria Habersatter. They ran the Weissenhof until 1974, purely as a farming operation with around 100 head of cattle. |
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| 1974 | 1974 saw construction of a new residential building which became Pension Weissenhof. Even then, it accommodated 50 guests, whilst the large family, with 6 children and the grandparents, also moved over to the new building. |
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| 1977 | In 1977, an indoor pool was built which, for those times at least, was very modern. |
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| 1981 | In 1981 there came the indoor tennis courts (3 sand courts) and a tennis clubhouse, yet another expansion of our infrastructure. |
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| 1991 | In 1991, Gutshof Weissenhof opened. With the latest addition, the Weissenhof was able to accommodate over 100 guests. Which allowed the Weissenhof to take its rightful place as a 4-star establishment. |
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| 1991 1992 |
In 1991/1992 the Radstadt Golf Course was opened. Large portions of the golf course are actually located on property of Gut Weissenhof, co-initiator and charter hotel of this important summertime tourist attraction. |
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| 1992 | In 1992, subsequent to the building of the golf course, a trout pond was also created spanning some 12,000m². Around 3,000 – 4,000 trout are kept in these ponds, provided as needed for the Weissenhof kitchens. |
| 1994 | 1994 saw new construction of an indoor riding arena at the Weissenhof measuring 20 x 60 m, as well as stables and outdoor facilities. With around 20 horses, we began a riding school and riding stables. |
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| 1998 | 1998 saw a complete change in how we ran our riding business. 45 horses could now be stabled. And it was in this year that the era of dairy cows at the Weissenhof came to an end. Though we still keep around 20 oxen here on the farm, supplying the kitchen with our own organic beef. |
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| 1999 | 1999 was the last time that the Weissenhof was passed down through the family, this time to the family of Josef and Regina Habersatter. |
| 2001 | 2001 saw remodeling and new construction in the entire wellness area, as well as expansion of rooms in the main building. |
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| 2003 | In 2003, a new kitchen was built, as were dining rooms and a remodeled hotel lobby. |
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| 2004 | 2004 brought us construction of new employee housing with 27 full and studio apartments. |
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| 2005 | In 2005, we purchased the former telephone exchange, remodeling it into a commercial building. It currently houses 6 different businesses and apartments. |
| 2007 | 2007 saw the opening of our new Residenz, with an additional 22 suites and 4 hotel apartments. As part of our remodeling efforts, we also created a new outdoor pool, the fitness room, restaurants, a children's cinema, fitness lounge and youth areas, along with 50 parking spaces in our underground garage. |
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| 2008 | 2008: The Weissenhof was reclassified as a 4-star-superior hotel. |
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| 2009 | In 2009, the new heating plant with a micro-grid was built and put into operation on the grounds of Gut Weissenhof. As a consequence, the 3 hotel buildings incl. in-and outdoor swimming pools, the employee housing, the indoor tennis courts and the commercial building could all be heated organically with woodchips. Which saves some 140,000 liters of heating oil annually. |
