As the name of the town suggests, much of the activity in Bad Sulza revolves around its mineral waters and the benefits they bring to one's health. Yet a few industries developed during the 19th century in this little town surrounded by agricultural land, 22 km northeast of Weimar. One of these was a malt factory, founded in 1864 by Ludwig Groß, an entrepreneur from Leipzig, who also opened the 'Hotel zum Großherzog von Sachsen' near the town's train station. The malt factory with its distinctive square tower was built near the River Ilm and in the proximity of the Erfurt-Halle railway line. Very little information about its history is available other than in 1912 the factory was bought by Robert Deinhardt, the owner of Weimar's brewery. This made him the largest malt producer in the region.
As for the Sächsische Malzfabrik (Saxon Malt Factory), it was founded on 29th January 1889 in the industrial district of Plauen in Dresden. Once more I haven't found much about this company. It seems it remained in private hands until the early 1950s but was certainly taken over by the East German authorities afterwards.
Looking at the ghost sign on the tower, I would assume the Sächsische Malzfabrik bought at some point the Bad Sulza malt factory from the brewing business controlled by Robert Deinhardt or, following his death in 1937, his family. However that may be totally wrong.
Sächsische Malzfabrik [Saxon Malt Factory]
...
Bad Sulza
Unfortunately I haven't been able to decipher what was written between "Malzfabrik" and "Bad Sulza."
Location: Bergstraße, Bad Sulza, Thüringen / Pictures taken on: 23/04/2010
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