Stadt Neuenstadt am Kocher

Popular residential town

Stein is the only local subdivision which became incorporated into Baden in 1806 and was affiliated to the district of Mosbach until the reform of municipal and district boundaries in the early 1970s. There are many historical links to Kochertürn and Bürg, which formed a co-operative together with Stein until 1736.

The branch relationship to Kochertürn did not cease until 1778. In 1884, Neogothic-style church which stands today was built in place of a castle chapel.

The town, which was sold to the Kurmainz by Lord von Weinsberg in 1335, owes its name to the 20-metre-high tuff rock outcrop on the Schlossberg. In the early 19th century, the Dahlberg Mansion was built in Tuscan style atop the rocky outcrop in place of the old castle "Schloss am Stein". Today, the building is but a shadow of its former glory, and only hints of its original beauty can still be seen.

The water castle of Presteneck, a stately Renaissance castle (1581) situated in the centre of town, was long threatened with dereliction and converted to privately owned apartments in 1998. A beautiful portal bearing the coat of arms of the barons von Gemmingen identifies the former proprietors of the neighbouring subdivision of Bürg.

The Jewish cemetery on the road to Kressbach also bears testimony to the town’s chequered past. In April 1945 Stein and the affiliated hamlets of Lobenbacher Hof and Buchhof were almost completely destroyed under heavy fighting. The reconstruction and development of large residential areas, some with glorious views of the Kocher Valley, have again made Stein a popular residential town.