The best city hikes and walks around Ober-Olmer Wald

The historic town center can be found in front of the church. The church is open for visits (and prayers). "The Catholic local church of St. Stephan in Mainz-Gonsenheim was first mentioned in a document in 1401. [...] With several new constructions and renovations, most recently in 1906, the church acquired its current imposing form in the Neo-Gothic style with a nave over 62 meters long and two church towers almost 60 meters high. As it was the largest rural church in Rheinhessen, St. Stephan was soon referred to as the 'Rheinhessen Cathedral'." https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Stephan_(Mainz-Gonsenheim)

The Gonsbach can now let loose again on the excavation site. It probably caused the builders of the facility at the time a lot of grief, as it tore everything down at least once. Man does not know exactly what was once there. Most likely, it was a breeding and training facility for Roman horses. A found object is exhibited next to the info board about the excavations and the info board about the renaturation of the Gonsbach here. Beautiful area and great info!

St. Stephen's Parish Church is not only a landmark of Gonsenheim, but also the largest church in Rhenish Hesse after Mainz Cathedral, and is therefore also called the 'Rhenish Hesse Cathedral'. A church has stood on this site for many centuries. The church, with its distinctive twin towers, was consecrated in its present form in 1906.

The 1863 monument of the Ludwigverein (an association of Grand Ducal Hessian civil servants from Gonsenheim) commemorates Gonsenheim's affiliation with the Grand Duchy of Hesse-Darmstadt. The monument was later supplemented with a list of Gonsenheim residents who died in World War I.

The Napoleon Stone in Mainz-Gonsenheim by Franz Dumont Upper part of the Napoleon Stone in Gonsenheim Like Mainz, Hechtsheim, Ober-Olm, and many other towns in Rheinhessen and the Palatinate, Mainz-Gonsenheim also has a memorial to the town's citizens who fell in the Napoleonic Wars. It is the "Napoleon Stone," erected in 1839 by the local "Veterans Association" in the former cemetery (today's Pfarrer-Grimm-Anlage). The stele is crowned with an "N" within a wreath of stars, and its central inscription reads: "Memorial / to the Gonsenheimers who fell under Napoleon's banner, by their / comrades in arms who returned from the campaigns, in the Gonsenheim cemetery / Erected in the year of our Lord 1839, renovated in 1926." The memorial lists not only the eleven fallen soldiers, but also all of the association's members – still alive at the time. It is thus a symbol of the long-lasting veneration (not to say glorification) of the "Emperor" Napoleon, who died on the Atlantic island of St. Helena in 1821. The "Napoleon Stone" also recalls the dark side of the "French period" on the left bank of the Rhine (1798-1814) – the "conscriptions." This refers to the year-by-year increase in the number of young men drafted into the French army. As early as 1793, the young French Republic had introduced universal conscription ("levée en masse"). But it wasn't until General Napoleon Bonaparte came to power in November 1799 that this became a problem, as increasing numbers of soldiers were recruited at ever shorter intervals. In the Rhenish departments, however, this only began to occur after their "final" equalization with those of central France in September 1802. Since then, the "Maire" (mayor) of the town (in Gonsenheim, of course, his name was Becker) was required to convene the "recruitment committee" at least once, if not twice a year (or even more often), to examine all male residents over the age of 16 for their fitness for military service. Anyone physically disabled or indispensable at home was generally exempt or deferred or placed "at the end of the depot"; there was also the option of being represented by a "Einsteher" for a fee. Anyone who evaded military service was prosecuted by the police as a "deserter" (deserter) and prosecuted. There seem to have been quite a few "réfractaires" in Gonsenheim in particular. Of the 40-50 Gonsenheimers who were actually drafted, about a quarter died in Napoleon's costly campaigns in Portugal, Spain, Austria, and Russia. Nevertheless, the "Emperor" enjoyed considerable popularity here, as well as on the entire left bank of the Rhine, for a relatively long time afterward, for he had not only brought war and military service, but also many soldiers to the wide world, and above all, social and legal progress. This was particularly evident through the "Code Civil," the French code of civil law, which remained in force here until 1900. Source: http://www.festung-mainz.de/festung/kriegerdenkmaeler/napoleonstein.html

The town hall in Mainz-Gonsenheim was built in 1615 by the cathedral provost – and later elector – Georg-Friedrich Greiffenklau von Vollraths. This Renaissance building is not only one of the most important town halls in the region, but also a rare example of this era. Located in the historic town center, this exceptionally dominant building is a testament to the development of the local administration and its need for representation. The massive, two-story plastered structure sits beneath a massive gable roof. The upper floors are accessed by a stair tower with slanted window openings, attached to the south side. The tower is crowned with a turret. The west side of the building is adorned with a shield gable with rich scrollwork and decorative obelisks. The facade, structured horizontally by cornices, is particularly emphasized in the middle of the upper floor by a box bay window bearing a detailed building inscription and the client's coat of arms. The originally open ground floor hall is divided into two naves by two sandstone columns on ironwork pedestals. In 1779, the flour weighing hall was located here. The Baroque hall inside the building is now used for concerts, readings, and events. Despite the corresponding renovations over the centuries, this prestigious, urbanistically dominant building is one of the best-preserved and most elaborate examples of this town hall type in the region. The German Foundation for Monument Protection funded the renovation of the town hall's facades between 1999 and 2002. Source: https://www.denkmalschutz.de/denkmal/rathaus-mainz.html

The Catholic Church of St. Stephen in Mainz-Gonsenheim, in its current neo-Gothic style, was built in 1906 and consecrated on September 30, 1906. The Gonsenheim parish church was first documented in 1401. The imposing towers dominate the townscape and are visible from afar. As the largest church in Rheinhessen after Mainz Cathedral, St. Stephen soon became known as the "Rheinhessen Cathedral." Pictured together with the Baroque town hall, the two buildings are certainly among Gonsenheim's most important landmarks. The modern leaded glass windows by glass artist Heinz Hindorf were installed between 1964 and 1967. Also worth seeing are the windows of the two side aisles, as the transepts in Gonsenheim are called, depicting the life of the patron saint, St. Stephen, and the life of Jesus. In 2006, the parish church of St. Stephen celebrated its 100th anniversary. The festive service took place on 30 September 2006, the anniversary of the inauguration, and was celebrated by the then Bishop of Mainz, Karl Cardinal Lehmann.

At the intersection of Koblenzer Straße and Ochsenwiese, you'll find the beautifully designed electrical box by Life.Lines at the fountain, featuring the symbolic figures of Gonsenheim's three carnival clubs: Gonsenheim Carnival Club "Die Schnorreswackler" (GCV), Eiskalte Brüder Gonsenheim (EBG), and Carnival Club Kleppergarde (CVKG). From the fountain, you can also enjoy a magnificent view of the twin towers of St. Stephen's Church, a.k.a., Rheinhessen Cathedral.