Wichernhaus, Support center in Altdorf bei Nürnberg, Germany.
Wichernhaus is a support facility in Altdorf bei Nürnberg that provides residential care and educational services for people with physical and multiple disabilities. The building offers single and double rooms for younger residents, alongside separate living arrangements designed for adults seeking greater independence.
The main building was erected from 1571 to 1575 as a Gymnasium, meaning an academic secondary school rather than a sports hall. It was raised to an academy and in 1622 became the university of the imperial city of Nuremberg, dissolved by King Maximilian I of Bavaria in 1809. From 1824 to 1924 it housed a teachers' seminary; in 1925 it was sold and became a facility for people with physical disabilities, named Wichernhaus after Johann Hinrich Wichern.
The name Wichernhaus, used for the whole complex since 1925, honours Johann Hinrich Wichern, the Protestant social reformer. The site's departments are a Förderzentrum for people with physical disabilities, a Heilpädagogische Tagesstätte and a workshop, run by the Rummelsberger Diakonie.
The Wichernhaus is a residential and educational facility, not a public museum; visits should be arranged in advance with the Rummelsberger Diakonie. The protected main building stands in Altdorf bei Nürnberg, where the former university rooms are used by the special education centre, so access to the historic interiors depends on the institution's daily operations.
The main building, erected 1571–1575 in Renaissance style, survives largely unchanged in its 18th-century state and is a protected monument; according to the sources, only the dissolved University of Helmstedt compares as a witness to German university history.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 94,083 contributors worldwide.