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Origin and history

The town hall of Masevaux, located at 5 rue du Maréchal-de-Lattre-de-Tassigny, was built between 1748 and 1751 to replace a 14th century building destroyed by a flood of the Doller in 1747. The project was entrusted to architect Meinrad Strolz, who also provided masterwork and masonry. The building initially housed public spaces (hall, prison, communal balance) on the ground floor, courtrooms and archives upstairs, as well as the house of the bailli on the last level. Its architecture is distinguished by recast-angle chains, curved bays decorated with carved heads, and a wrought iron balcony.

In 1758, water infiltration damaged the southern facade, requiring a restoration led by Jean-Baptiste Chassain (inspector of Ponts et Chaussées) under the supervision of Strolz. A new flood of the Doller in 1778 damaged the riparian facade, rebuilt between 1778 and 1781 under the direction of architect G.I. Ritter, then employed by the Masevaux abbesse. The campanile originally planned was never realized. The monument, inscribed in the Historical Monuments in 1937, preserves remarkable elements such as a baluster oak staircase and sandstone arches.

The building reflects the municipal organisation of the Ancien Régime in Alsace, where the town hall served as a place of justice, commerce (hall) and administration. The communal and departmental archives retain the names of the craftsmen who participated in its construction (stone tailors, carpenters, sculptors), as well as the original plans of Strolz. A study published in 1993 in Heritage Doller by R. Limacher details its history and its architectural specificities, highlighting its central role in local life since the 18th century.

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