History

1945

The former boarding school association received 200,000 Deutsche Marks as compensation for the seizure of the secondary school by the Nazi regime. Since the school was not rebuilt after the war, the boarding school association (Internat Freren gGmbH) decided to make the funds available for charitable purposes in Freren.

1963

The local heritage association was founded by 15 former members of the boarding school association, with initial capital of 11,000 Deutsche Marks from the compensation payment. The board members were Heinrich Franksmann as the first chairman, Georg Siepenkort as the second chairman, and Georg Wintering as the treasurer.

1964

During the first general meeting, Bernhard Fritze was added to the board as the secretary.

1984

The heritage association moved into two rooms in the restored old rectory.

1991

The former Kirchwall School became the heritage association's home. Here, the library, with over 1,000 books and documents, as well as the collection of household and artisan tools from past times, found a place that also allowed for the exhibition of the collected objects.

1998

The last local magistrate of Freren bequeathed his magistrate's house, acquired in the 1970s, to the heritage association.

2003

After renovation work, the magistrate's house was occupied. Since then, the adjacent building has been available for the craft museum.

2019

Existing and future documents, such as private estates, company records, newspapers, and photos, are to be archived. The newly founded archive group received training organised in cooperation with LEB Emsland/Grafschaft Bentheim, under the guidance of district archivist Christian Lonnemann. With support from the city of Freren and funding from the VGH Foundation and the Emsländische Landschaft e.V., the necessary materials and software for proper archiving were acquired. The archived sources are to be made accessible in the future through the Arcinsys archive and information system.