Tour to the Badischer Bahnhof

Thanks to our member Ronald we got the opportunity to book one of the few public tours through the Badischer Bahnhof. These tours are rarely offered and Centrepoint was on a waiting list for nearly one year before we got this slot. And the waiting list of our Centrepoint tour filled up quickly as well!

A lucky group of 12 members gathered on a hot Wednesday afternoon in the reception hall of the railway station. We were welcomed by our tour guide and historian, Dr Oswald Inglin, together with a representative of the German Railways who gave us access to the hidden corners of the station and served as a security person in the same time. 

But first we got an overview about the remarkable architecture. Karl Moser built the station in the beginning of the 20th century after having built the church Pauluskirche close to the SBB railway station. If you take a closer look you might find similarities in some of the details of the two buildings. But who would have imagined that the same architect created, as well the Antoniuskirche, one of the first concrete buildings in Switzerland!

We continued the tour by entering the lower, cooler level inside the building where Dr. Inglin walked us through the cellars, talking about the role the station had during the world wars I and II. Owned by the German state (who bought it in the 19th century) the ground is still a part of Switzerland and the concern was that the railway station might become a gate for the Germans to invade Switzerland. There are narrow tunnels leading from the station to the Rhine and Wiese rivers which are now bricked up after just a few hundred metres. We walked partly through them which left us with a subtle feeling of being on the run.

We left the cellars on the very other end of the huge station and Dr. Inglin shared some more interesting details with us before he let us go our way back home. When I now pass by the station I have a very different view on it. Thanks Dr. Inglin and thank you Roland for organising such an interesting tour for us!

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Text and images by Heidrun Osterer