Construction of sawmill 1884-1886 (≈ 1885)
Directed by Philippe Auguste Brion, local architect.
1992
Final closure
Final closure 1992 (≈ 1992)
Cessation of sawing activity.
19 janvier 1995
Historical monument classification
Historical monument classification 19 janvier 1995 (≈ 1995)
Registration with its technical installations.
début XXe siècle
Equipment modernization
Equipment modernization début XXe siècle (≈ 2004)
Add mobile trolley, vertical saw and diesel engine.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
Sawmill, with its external and internal technical installations (cad. 28 58): registration by order of 19 January 1995
Key figures
Philippe Auguste Brion - Architect
Manufacturer of the sawmill between 1884 and 1886.
Origin and history
The Museum of the Sawmill in Haut-Fer de Ranrupt is a former hydraulic sawmill located in the commune of Ranrupt, in the department of Bas-Rhin (Great East region). Built between 1884 and 1886 by the local architect Philippe Auguste Brion, it illustrates the typical industrial architecture of the Vosges, with an enveloping of planks on a stone base. The building housed both the sawmill and the home of the artisan, called sagard.
The technical equipment, dating back to the early twentieth century, included a mobile rail cart for logs, a vertical saw, gears and belts operated either by a hydraulic turbine or a diesel engine. The sawmill operated until 1992, before being classified as a historical monument in 1995 for its preserved technical and architectural heritage. Today, it belongs to the commune and retains its original indoor and outdoor facilities.
This type of sawmill played a central role in the local economy of the Vosges valleys in the 19th century, transforming the wood of the surrounding forests into planks for construction or handicrafts. Hydraulic sawmills, like Ranrupt's, reflect the ingenuity of pre-industrial techniques, combining hydraulic energy, craftsmanship and local materials. Their decline in the 20th century, with the mechanization and centralization of production, marks the end of an era for these rural workshops.
Ranrupt's sawmill is distinguished by its exceptional conservation status, including turbine, belts and sawing tools. Its ranking in 1995 underlines its importance as a material testimony to Alsatian industrial history, in a department where forest and wood monuments are rare. The site, located along the national road 424, is now a museum to discover this technical and social heritage.
