History of Hotel Bären
Solothurn (Salodurum), probably celtic of origin, was a strategic location in Roman times for the important military roads. The Pattusius stone inscription suggests that there was once a Roman temple of Apollo Augustus there. At the time of the migration of nations, Solothurn became the interface between the Germanic tribes of the Burgundians and Alemanni who were coming into Switzerland. At this time, a real medley of people must have travelled through both the east-west and north-south passage on unsprung wheels or in sandals.
Hotel Bären Solothurn, formerly called "Zum heiligen Ursus"
Probably because of its convenient location, far enough away from the Aare, then known as the "unpredictable watercourse", to not wet your feet, our guesthouse "Zum heiligen Ursus" held its own against competing inns and taverns. It is important to remember that since the 14th century, the Bären was on highly frequented trade routes, which for example, connected the trading cities of southern Germany with the Burgundian Lyon. They travelled with horses and oxen. Whoever wanted to cross what was almost the only bridge across the Aare in the region (the wooden Wengibrücke), had to pay a bridge toll at the city gates (there was also a Berntor where the Hotel an der Aare stands today). If you just wanted to cross to the side of the town on the other side of the river, you had to pay a street toll. It was therefore customary for guests inside the favourably priced tavern of the Bären, to breath in deeply before going through the town and crossing the bridge.
Hotel Bären (building)
Little is known about the history of this very stately building. According to the cantonal monument preservation group, it was built around the mid 18th century and underwent some changes in the early 19th century. It has evolved into a monument. It was originally a farmhouse or even a farm estate, as can be seen from the layout design, which is typical for our region, and the barn floor that is still there today.
In the living quarters on the east side, the ground floor was a pub, "Bären", until about 1917 as an inscription inside the building reveals. There must have been a very careful renovation of the building. This would certainly have included the outer walls and the roof structure. After which the large, under utilised space of the barn floor and the stables could be put to good use.
The cantonal monument preservation group refers to the property as follows: The building at Baselstrasse 83 is one of those properties, which the regional planning group Solothurn and surroundings put forward for protection status. It is the former Bären guest house, a semi-detached building with stables dating back to the 18th century. Modifications were added to the outside of the guest house seciton in the 19th century (window roofings, cornices on the roof soffit).