History from 1900 onward

1. Sources and method

The documentary record becomes much richer in the 20th century. Historical advertisements, telephone directories, building and business records, photographs, postcards, brochures, technical documentation and family records allow the history of the house to be traced in considerably greater detail than in its earliest period.

2. Documented operators from 1900 onward

The following chronology records the documented succession of operators used in this history of the house. Wives and other family members often contributed substantially to the business; where their role is known, it is described separately rather than being silently converted into formal ownership.

3. Timeline from 1900 to the present

4. The “Ochsen” in the early 20th century

At the beginning of the 20th century, the house still operated under the historical name “Ochsen”. It stood within a rural business environment shaped by hospitality, butchery, agriculture and the gradual arrival of modern communications and motorised transport.

Excursion culture and a changing public

Hohenstaufen increasingly attracted walkers, visitors interested in history and local day-trip traffic. Better transport links in the wider region and later motorisation made the mountain village accessible to a broader public. For the Ochsen this created favourable conditions for meals, refreshment and accommodation, although surviving evidence does not provide reliable annual guest numbers.

Not yet a modern hotel

The house should not be described retrospectively as a modern hotel in this early period. Its accommodation developed gradually out of the older combination of inn, guest-room letting, butchery and farming.

5. Telephone number 2 and early modernisation

A later historical advertisement also names Karl Mayer as proprietor of the “Gasthaus und Metzgerei z. Ochsen” and gives “Telefon Nr. 2”. The advertisement therefore proves that the established number continued to be used in Karl Mayer’s time; it does not date the beginning of his period.

For the house’s main telephone number, surviving material records the sequence 2 → 262 → 8062. At the same time, the property had several separate telephone connections during parts of its history, so individual historical numbers must not automatically be interpreted as one single technical line that was simply renamed each time.

The current hotel number remains +49 7165 8062. The telephone history is therefore a useful example of how a long-established village business adapted repeatedly to changing communications technology.

6. Wars and crisis periods

The First World War, the interwar crises and the Second World War affected rural businesses through shortages, regulation, loss of labour, restrictions on travel and changes in purchasing power.

The operator chronology nevertheless shows continuity: Hermann Mayer I formally led the Ochsen from 1919 until 1964, including the difficult years before, during and after the Second World War.

7. Motorisation and day-trip traffic

During the 20th century, motorcycles, buses and cars made Hohenstaufen easier to reach. The difficult ascent became less of a barrier, and day trips became more practical for a broader public.

The house responded to changing expectations through structural expansion, room development, restaurant alterations and technical investment. These documented measures are stronger evidence than invented model values for guest numbers or mobility shares.

8. The house’s own farming is discontinued in 1960

In 1960, active farming by the house ended. Woods, meadows and fields were subsequently leased out or sold and were no longer cultivated by the business itself.

This was a major structural break: operating effort shifted more clearly towards the inn, accommodation, butchery, slaughtering, processing and sales.

9. Name change, address and restaurant rooms in the 1960s

This establishes the change from “Ochsen” to “Goldener Ochsen” in 1965. The records examined so far do not establish the personal or promotional reasons for adding “Goldener”, so those motives are not presented here as fact.

The restaurant layout was established before 1965

A restaurant licence issued in 1938, which refers back to an existing licence dated 21 January 1920, records a main restaurant room and two adjoining rooms on the ground floor. It also lists a hall and two further rooms on the first floor, a restaurant garden and terrace, and two guest rooms on the second floor.

1965: six guest rooms and recorded floor areas

The 1965 restaurant licence records six guest rooms on the second floor, a 66 m² main restaurant room and a 32 m² adjoining room on the ground floor, a 115 m² hall on the first floor and a 36 m² south-facing terrace.

1965–1966: further alterations and modernisation

Further alterations and modernisation followed in 1965 and 1966, affecting the restaurant and guest accommodation, while the butcher’s shop and cold-room facilities were also expanded. These measures built on an accommodation and restaurant structure that was already well established.

From Hauptstraße 37 to Ailstraße 1

The address also changed during the 20th century. Older licensing records still list the “Ochsen” at Hauptstraße 37; by 1965, the business is recorded at Ailstraße 1. The change therefore took place while Hohenstaufen was still an independent municipality, before its incorporation into Göppingen in 1971. The records examined so far do not establish the exact date on which the street name and house number were changed.

The historic ground-floor layout can still be recognised today

The basic arrangement described in the historic licensing records survives today, although the rooms have been modernised. The former main restaurant room remains the principal restaurant room, and both adjoining rooms are still present.

The larger adjoining room can be separated from the restaurant by a large folding partition. When the partition is opened, the two spaces can be used together as one larger room. An internal door leads from this larger adjoining room into the smaller room.

This smaller room, measuring approximately 15 to 16 m², has also survived. According to family tradition, it was formerly known as the “Kutscherstüble” — roughly, the coachmen’s snug. The name has been passed down within the family; in the official records examined so far, the room is simply described as one of the adjoining rooms.

The corridor has separate entrances to the restaurant and directly to the smaller room, while another internal door connects that room with the larger adjoining room. The historic division into a main restaurant room and two adjoining rooms can therefore still be traced within the present building.

10. Butchery and slaughterhouse development

After the business’s own farming ended in 1960, butchery remained an important part of the business. The following decades are documented through repeated investment in slaughtering, processing, refrigeration, sales and technical equipment.

1977: new slaughterhouse

The new slaughterhouse included an overhead rail for cattle, a sausage kitchen, a boning room, several cold rooms and associated work, cleaning and storage areas. These facilities supported the individual stages of slaughtering, cutting, processing and refrigeration.

1982: new and expanded butcher’s shop

The sales area was modernised with a new shop layout, refrigeration, display facilities, counters and climate control, improving both the technical conditions and the customer-facing sales area.

1984–2014: equipment and continuing refurbishment

Alongside the major building projects, further equipment was purchased and several parts of the property were refurbished between 1984 and 2014. Surviving business information includes equipment such as the Palux Rotimat, Wiesheu combi-steamer and Frey Kompakta, together with work in the restaurant, kitchen, guest rooms, butcher’s shop and slaughterhouse.

1992–2001: technical specialisation

• 1992: offal-processing room and tripe room with specialist equipment.
• 1999: additional cold rooms and storage areas, including space for slaughter by-products and smoking materials.
• 2000: modernisation of the drinks-dispensing system with accompanying cooling.
• 2001: combined refrigeration system with heat recovery and electricity peak-load monitoring.

Regional craft tradition

For many years, cattle, pigs, oxen and calves continued to be slaughtered in the house’s own facilities. This forms part of the documented craft history of the business. The origin of individual animals and the exact geographical catchment area should be stated only where specific records support it.

2009: EU approval

In 2009, the slaughterhouse received EU approval for slaughtering. This records an important historical regulatory step and shows that the facilities met the requirements relevant to that approval at the time. It does not describe the present operating situation.

11. From guest rooms to present hotel operation

Accommodation developed gradually from the historic room-letting structure of the inn. The alterations of 1965–1966 formed part of a longer process in which guest rooms were modernised and adapted to the requirements of the present hotel operation.

Modernisation within an old building

In a historic property, improving rooms means fitting bathrooms, services, heating and new patterns of use into an existing structure. The work therefore took place in stages rather than through one single conversion date.

The present hotel developed from the earlier guest-room operation

The present hotel remains a small, family-run operation. It currently has 8 guest rooms, each with shower and WC in the room. The rooms are reached by stairs; there is no lift.

Room enquiries, reservations and arrival arrangements are handled exclusively by telephone and in German. E-mail is intended for general enquiries only. There is no continuously staffed 24-hour reception. Payment is cash only.

12. The house in the 21st century

2002: a wider choice of coffee drinks

Guest expectations around coffee were also changing at the beginning of the new century. As demand for a wider choice of coffee drinks increased, the house ordered a WMF combiNation S. The machine was pre-ordered and configured to suit the requirements of the business. It was delivered in September 2002, and the data plate likewise gives 09.2002 as the date of manufacture.

The purchase illustrates a recurring theme in the history of the house: equipment was not replaced only because technology aged or regulations changed. Investment also followed changing guest expectations and new habits in everyday hospitality.

Digital visibility replaces older directories

Today, the route by which many guests first reach the house is digital. The website and current online information perform some of the functions once carried by printed hotel guides, telephone directories and word of mouth.

The technical form has changed, but personal contact remains important: room enquiries, reservations and arrival arrangements continue to be handled by telephone.

Continuity through use rather than museum preservation

The Goldener Ochsen is not a building preserved as a static exhibit. Its history consists of continuing use, rebuilding, technical investment, changes of emphasis and generational succession. That continued use is what gives the house its historical continuity.

13. Since 2020: pandemic aftermath, cost pressures, staffing shortages and the present

The period since 2020 has also become part of the house history. The coronavirus years interrupted established operating routines in the hotel, restaurant and butchery. In the following years, higher energy, goods and operating costs and persistent staffing shortages added further pressure.

For the history of the house, the most important point is the concrete operational result: the hotel operation is now concentrated on 8 guest rooms, the restaurant is operated on a restricted basis without regular opening hours, and active butchery operation is suspended for staffing reasons.

Restaurant: no regular opening hours

The restaurant currently has no regular opening hours. External guests may be served occasionally and at irregular times, depending on availability and staffing. The restaurant may open for only a few hours, on individual days or on several days. Whether food is offered in addition to drinks also depends on availability.

The current daily opening status is shown on this page and in the imprint. On site, a clearly visible “Open” sign in the window also indicates when the restaurant is open. Service for overnight guests is likewise subject to availability and staffing.

Butchery: active operation suspended

The butchery business continues to exist and has not been deregistered. Active operation is currently suspended for staffing reasons. There is no retail sale, online sale, slaughtering, event catering or production, and products are no longer sold through the restaurant.

Hotel: 8 guest rooms

The hotel remains open with 8 guest rooms. Room enquiries, reservations and arrival arrangements are handled exclusively by telephone and in German. E-mail is intended for general enquiries only.

14. Family members and professional qualifications

Karl (Carl) Mayer

Karl Mayer’s documented operating period at the “Ochsen” is 1907–1919. Historical sources use both the spellings Karl and Carl. Individual sources give 1903 or 1906 as differing earlier dates; the house chronicle nevertheless uses 1907 as the secured beginning.

Hermann Mayer I and Katharina Mayer

Hermann Mayer I had been a master butcher since 1917. Hermann Mayer I and Katharina Mayer ran the “Ochsen” from 1919 to 1964, including the long period in which inn, butchery and the business’s own farming still formed a connected family business.

Hermann Mayer II and Elfriede Mayer

Hermann Mayer II had been a master butcher since 1955 and ran the business from 1964 to 1995. Elfriede Mayer worked in the family business as a butcher’s saleswoman and cook.

Hermann Mayer III and Sonja Mayer

Hermann Mayer III has been a master butcher since 1990 and has run the business since 1995. Sonja Mayer is a qualified meat retail sales manager and cook.

15. Development matrix: four major phases

The table is a source-oriented summary. It deliberately avoids invented percentages for guest groups or the importance of individual business areas.

16. Glossary

17. Open questions and further research

• Complete building plans and alteration drawings for the measures of 1965–1966, 1976, 1977 and 1982.
• Further advertising material, butcher’s-shop bags, sugar packets, price lists or menus.
• More complete telephone and address records for individual decades, including early subscriber directories documenting number 2.
• The exact date and administrative decision behind the change from Hauptstraße 37 to Ailstraße 1.
• Guest books, room books or invoice fragments from the post-war decades.
• Documents concerning the end of the business’s own farming in 1960 and the later lease or sale of woods, meadows and fields.
• Photographs showing the shop, slaughterhouse, hall, rooms and yard at different stages of development.
• Local press reports on alterations, anniversaries, the EU approval or other notable events.
• Further archival documentation of the changes since 2020, especially the suspended active butchery operation and the restaurant’s irregular opening pattern.

Further research is worthwhile because several developments overlap in this one house: village history, tourism, telephone history, the butcher’s trade, technical modernisation and family continuity. The denser the small-scale sources become, the more precisely these changes can be described without relying on assumptions.

18. Sources and material groups

Archival and surviving house evidence

• Restaurant licences, building records and business files from the Hohenstaufen local and archival context.
• The 1938 restaurant licence, referring back to the existing licence of 21 January 1920; it records the main restaurant room, two adjoining rooms, hall, two further rooms, restaurant garden, terrace and two guest rooms.
• Older licensing records showing the historical address Hauptstraße 37 and records from 1965 showing Ailstraße 1.
• Early telephone material, including number 2 documented from 1894; this proves early accessibility but not the exact original connection date or the start of Karl Mayer’s tenure.
• Historic postcards, house brochures, photographs, hall views and hotel-guide material.
• Family records and oral family tradition relating to owners, qualifications, alterations, operating structures and the name “Kutscherstüble”.
• WMF combiNation S: family and business recollection of purchase and delivery in September 2002; data plate (type 03.8800.0030) showing 09.2002 as the date of manufacture. The selected configuration and increasing guest demand for a wider range of coffee drinks are part of the business’s own recollection.
• Technical records concerning the slaughterhouse, shop, refrigeration and dispensing systems.
• Formal documentation relating to the 2009 EU approval for slaughtering.
• Current house and operating information concerning the more recent development of hotel, restaurant and butchery.

Key dates in the house history

• 1907: secured beginning of Karl Mayer’s period at the Ochsen.
• 1919: Hermann Mayer I and Katharina Mayer take over.
• 1938: restaurant licence records a main restaurant room and two adjoining rooms on the ground floor, together with a hall, restaurant garden, terrace and two guest rooms.
• Before 1965: the address changes from Hauptstraße 37 to Ailstraße 1; the exact date has not yet been established.
• 1960: end of the business’s own farming; woods, meadows and fields subsequently leased out or sold.
• 1964: Hermann Mayer II and Elfriede Mayer take over.
• 1965: January business registration still “Gasthaus und Metzgerei zum Ochsen”; April restaurant licence already “Goldener Ochsen”.
• 1965: six guest rooms, 66 m² main restaurant room, 32 m² adjoining room, 115 m² hall and 36 m² south-facing terrace.
• 1965–1966: further alterations and modernisation to the restaurant and guest accommodation, together with expansion of the butcher’s shop and cold rooms.
• Present: the historic ground-floor arrangement of the main restaurant room and two adjoining rooms remains recognisable; family tradition preserves the name “Kutscherstüble” for the smaller room.
• 1976: additional drinks counter in the hall.
• 1977: new slaughterhouse.
• 1982: new and expanded butcher’s shop.
• 1984–2014: further equipment purchases and refurbishment, including Palux Rotimat, Wiesheu combi-steamer and Frey Kompakta, together with work in the restaurant, kitchen, guest rooms, shop and slaughterhouse.
• 1992: offal-processing / tripe room.
• 1995: Hermann Mayer III and Sonja Mayer continue the next generation.
• 1999–2001: further cooling, storage and energy modernisation.
• September 2002: purchase and delivery of a pre-ordered WMF combiNation S, configured for the needs of the business as guests increasingly asked for a wider choice of coffee drinks.
• 2009: EU approval for slaughtering.
• Since 2020: operational aftermath of the coronavirus years, cost pressures and staffing shortages; present consequences include concentration on 8 hotel rooms, restricted restaurant operation and suspended active butchery operation.
• Present: hotel open; restaurant without regular opening hours; active butchery operation suspended.

Telephone directories, advertisements, postcards, brochures and photographs must always be dated individually. A number or image is not assigned to a particular year unless the object itself or a reliable associated source supports that date.

19. Conclusion: structural change within a continuing family business

From 1900 onward, the history of the house shows repeated changes in operating priorities rather than one unchanging business model. The succession of operators becomes clearer in the 20th century, while the documentary record also becomes much richer through business registrations, restaurant licences, building records, technical documentation, photographs and family records.

One of the clearest structural breaks came in 1960, when the business’s own farming ended and woods, meadows and fields were subsequently leased out or sold. In the following decades, important investment was concentrated in hospitality, accommodation, butchery, slaughtering, refrigeration, retail and technical equipment.

The documented change from “Ochsen” to “Goldener Ochsen” in 1965, the room and floor-area records in the restaurant licence, the new slaughterhouse of 1977, the expanded butcher’s shop of 1982, technical work up to 2001, the WMF combiNation S delivered in September 2002 and the EU approval of 2009 mark different stages in that development.

The most recent phase again involves a shift in emphasis. The butchery business continues to exist, but active operation is currently suspended for staffing reasons. The restaurant has no regular opening hours and is operated according to availability and staffing. Today, the main focus is the open hotel operation with 8 guest rooms.

The modern history of the house therefore consists of a sequence of documented changes: the end of some activities, investment in others, repeated technical modernisation and, in the present day, renewed concentration on the hotel operation.