The ancient village of Fahr bordering the

Rhine The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...

river is today part of the Feldkirchen district belonging to the town of

Neuwied Neuwied (, ) is a town in the north of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, capital of the Neuwied (district), District of Neuwied. Neuwied lies on the east bank of the Rhine, 12 km northwest of Koblenz, on the railway from Frankfurt ...

in northern

Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; ; ; ) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the sixteen states. Mainz is the capital and largest city. Other cities are ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. The name probably came from the old name ''Vare'' or ''Uff Fähr'' in local dialect, which relates to today's German word (English: ferry). Wappen Fahr

Geography

The former village is located directly on the right bank of the Rhine, with two ancient streets, the and the , both rising from the historic village center on the river bank to the first hills of the

Westerwald The Westerwald (; literally 'Western forest') is a low mountain range on the right bank of the river Rhine in the States of Germany, German federal states of Rhineland-Palatinate, Hesse and North Rhine-Westphalia. It is a part of the Rhenish Ma ...

mountain range. A small natural harbor had formed on the slope on which Fahr is located. Today the two single-lane roads still lead through the village, the can only be passed by smaller cars. The was previously called (hollow path) and today still corresponds to the course of the ancient Roman road, which in

Roman times In modern historiography, ancient Rome is the Roman civilisation from the founding of the Italian city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingd ...

led from the

Roman fort ''Castra'' () is a Latin term used during the Roman Republic and Roman Empire for a military 'camp', and ''castrum'' () for a 'fort'. Either could refer to a building or plot of land, used as a fortified military base.. Included is a discuss ...

to the Rhine at Fahr, as there was a crossing or ferry to the left river side (to the settlement of

Andernach Andernach () is a town in the district of Mayen-Koblenz, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, of about 30,000 inhabitants. It is situated towards the end of the ''Neuwied basin'' on the left bank of the Rhine between the former tiny fishing village ...

). As the Fahr area was surrounded by steep hills falling down to the river, the was the only land connection to the village until the 19th century. A first road running along the river downstream toward the village of

Leutesdorf Leutesdorf is a municipality in the district of Neuwied, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north a ...

was laid out in 1813. Because of the rocks east of Fahr, the upstream road towards Neuwied was only built during the second half of the 19th century, together with the construction of the

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

History

Originally, most of the inhabitants of Fahr earned their living on fishing and ferry services for centuries, and their houses were only accessible via footpaths. Fahr was first mentioned as a river crossing point in 1152 called ''Vare'' or ''Uff Fähr'' in local

Low German Low German is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language variety, language spoken mainly in Northern Germany and the northeastern Netherlands. The dialect of Plautdietsch is also spoken in the Russian Mennonite diaspora worldwide. "Low" ...

. Around 1190, the St. Thomas monastery from Andernach acquired arable and wine-growing land of Fahr. At that time, wine was grown on the hills of Fahr. The village had ferry rights for several hundred years, and many residents were active in shipping. There has been a castle called , built by the

County of Wied The County of Wied () was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire located on the river Wied (river), Wied where it meets the Rhine. Wied emerged as a County earlier than many other German states. From 1243–1462, Wied was united with an County of I ...

during the 17th century on the rocky river banks east of Fahr. In 1869 the remains of the castle were demolished for construction of the railway line. One of the old houses in Fahr still standing today and facing the river is the (Rhenish house) built in 1584 as a Ferryman's house, later also used as a changing station for

towpath A towpath is a road or trail on the bank of a river, canal, or other inland waterway. The purpose of a towpath is to allow a land vehicle, Working animal, beasts of burden, or a team of human pullers to tow a boat, often a barge. This mod ...

horses, and also as

Gasthaus A Gasthaus (also called ''Gasthof'', ''Landhaus'', or ''Pension'') is a German-style inn or tavern with a bar, a restaurant, banquet facilities and hotel rooms for rent. Gasthäuser are typically found in smaller towns and are often family-own ...

. The building has been restored by its current owner. Since July 14, 2001, the historic village center with its half-timbered houses has been protected as cultural heritage. The Moskopf family's vinegar and mustard factory, founded in 1836, still existed in Fahr until 1998. The factory had been operated by

Carl Kühne KG Carl Kühne KG is a German food manufacturer which mainly produces vinegars and Delicacy, delicacies. As one of the largest vinegar, Pickled cucumber, pickled gherkin and Mustard (condiment), mustard producers in Europe, the family-owned business ...

since 1948. The largest company on the territory of Fahr is Lohmann & Rauscher medical devices since 1899.

Community mergers

In 1966, the previously independent village of Fahr was merged with neighboring municipalities to form a large community under the historical name Feldkirchen. Later, in 1970, Feldkirchen was dissolved and assigned to the town of Neuwied. Fahr thus came to the city of Neuwied as part of the Feldkirchen district.

Notable people

* The origin of the

Rockefeller family The Rockefeller family ( ) is an American Industrial sector, industrial, political, and List of banking families, banking family that owns one of the world's largest fortunes. The fortune was made in the History of the petroleum industry in th ...

is traced back to Goddard Rockenfeller, born in Fahr in 1590. His grandson Johann Peter (1682–1763) and his great-grandson Johann Thiell (1695–1769) emigrated with their families to

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

and

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

where they called themselves Rockefeller. The family name relates to the village of

Rockenfeld Rockenfeld is an abandoned village in the Feldkirchen district of Neuwied, Germany. The names Rockenfeller and Rockefeller are derived from Rockenfeld. It is said that the ancestors of the Rockefeller family (including John D. Rockefeller ...

(today abandoned) which lies on higher grounds at a footpath distance of about from Fahr. * August von Röntgen (1781–1865), German lawyer and diplomat, second son of the Neuwied cabinet maker

David Roentgen David Roentgen (1743 in HerrnhaagFebruary 12, 1807), was a German cabinetmaker of the eighteenth century, famed throughout Europe for his marquetry and his secret drawers and poes and mechanical fittings. His work embraces the late Rococo an ...

, built Villa Roentgen, later also called , above Friedrichstein Castle in 1847.{{Cite web , title=Käufer gesucht: Roentgen-Villa in Fahr ist zu haben , url=https://www.rhein-zeitung.de/bilder_galerie,-kaeufer-gesucht-roentgenvilla-in-fahr-ist-zu-haben-_mediagalid,35194.html , access-date=2023-09-28 , website=www.rhein-zeitung.de , language=de

References

Villages in Rhineland-Palatinate