"De Schmelzaarbechter" museum in Schifflange
To keep the memory of the workers alive
Alain Günther, président de l’amicale Schëfflenger Kolonien
Alain Günther, president of the Schëfflenger Kolonien association, welcomes us to the premises of the "De Schmelzaarbechter" museum on the former ArcelorMittal Esch-Schifflange site. These premises were made available to the association by the company Agora, which is in charge of developing the new district.
The Schëfflenger Kolonien association was founded in the early 2000s with the aim of preserving the memory of former factory workers. Over time, the members have collected a whole range of objects linked to the steel industry: work tools, identity documents, protective clothing, machines and parts, period photos, etc. The idea soon arose of creating a steelworkers' museum focusing on the transmission of memory.
In April 2015, the association received permission to move into a building on the Esch-Schifflange site to house the collections, which until then had been stored in various garages. In a large room of 110 m2, visitors can admire and discover authentic objects and machines that were used for decades as working tools.
Alain Günther: "Even though the association has been established in Schifflange since its beginnings, our aim with this museum is to tell a collective story and individual stories common to the whole southern region of Luxembourg. It is a question of explaining how the installations functioned and how the work was organised...".
A large number of the members of the association are former steelworkers who can testify to this part of local history. Their voluntary and passionate commitment counts a lot for the functioning and the warm welcome of the museum. They speak with conviction and in great detail about what they knew, about the working class world of yesteryear which had such an impact on the country's economy and the lives of families.
In a second building made available to the association, several other exhibitions can be discovered, including one dedicated to the general strike of 1942. You can also visit a former director's office and an infirmary, both of which have been entirely recreated by the association. And all around, huge rooms with mechanical and electronic workshops.
"With this museum, it is a question of telling a collective story and
individual stories common to the entire southern region of
Luxembourg.”
Alain Günther, President of the Schëfflenger Kolonien Association
Alain Günther: "The particularity of this museum is that it is in constant motion. There is a lot to do, all the time, a lot to identify, to tidy up, to repair. We are always working on a new device, a new layout or a better way to explain or illustrate the stories. It is also gratifying to count among our active members several young people between 19 and 25 years old who are extremely motivated and eager to participate in this project, and who also engage in sometimes very technical work. This is proof that the memory of our industrial history can endure through the generations.
The great prospect for the association is that, in a few years, the museum will find its definitive place in the “Pompelhaus”, one of the historic industrial buildings that will be preserved in the future residential district of Esch-Schifflange. This district will eventually be home to 10,000 inhabitants.
In the meantime, the public can visit the museum in the current premises and discover the collections gathered with love and sincerity by the former "Schmelzaarbechter".
The museum is open on the first Saturday of every month from 14 to 18 PM. Admission is free. Guided tours are available on request.
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Address : rue Léon Lamort
4335 Esch-sur-Alzette
