Laufen, BL, Switzerland - City and Town Halls on Waymarking.com

Laufen is a municipality and the capital of the district of Laufental in the canton Basel-Landschaft. It has a population of about 5,200.

The area of Laufen has been inhabited for at least 5000 years. Two megalithic burial mounds were found as well as remains of Roman farms. After the fall of the Roman Empire it became Alemanish and the French in the 6th century, Burgundian in the 9th century. In 999 the area was donated to the Archbishopric of Basel. The town itself was first mentioned in 1141 and received town rights in 1295. It was occupied by French troops in the Napoleonic wars and after 1815 it finally became Swiss as a part of the canton Bern. After the secession of some French-speaking counties as the new canton Jura in 1979 Laufental county became an exclave. After several years of discussing various possibilities the majority of the citizens decided to join the canton Basel-Land, that is much nearer. This was done in 1994.

Laufen is a regional center with a lot of industry and businesses. A lot of people from surrounding municipalities commute in for work, but there are also a lot commuting to the Basel area.

The town hall is a baroque building from 1672. It was built as the home for a noble family and later converted into a hospital. I could not find out when the town authorities moved in from the old town hall that is located just behind the gate.

Name: Stadthaus Laufen Address: Vorstadtplatz 2 Laufen, BL Switzerland 4242 Date of Construction: 1672 Web Site for City/Town/Municipality: [Web Link] Architect: Not listed Memorials/Commemorations/Dedications: Not listed

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