Translation and editing from the German by Norman John Pihale, Northfield, Minnesota, USA
From the Town History of Wallern 

1269, Wallern is mentioned in the year 1269 officially for the first time and is called Bala in a document, entitled "Lambertus of Götsch bequeaths before the chapter of Raab a property in the size of 150 yokes the Cistercian Abbey and Cloister of Marienberg".

1349, November 5: Thomas and Johann, sons of the Nikolaus Viczai from the generation of Osl pledge themselves to 20 years in the Komitat Sopron, being the property of Balaund Lobl the freeman Belyd, part of  the same generation, and son of Johann Hoflyng before the Raaber Domkapitel (royal cathedral).

Of greater consequence, Wallern is mentioned in other, different documents, which we see several times  Wallern is part of the possessions of the generation of the Osl. Later, Wallern is named BOLLERN, WALLA, VALLA, WALARNN, BALLA, and WALERN as well.

According to Father Graisy (the Roman Catholic priest) Wallern is already mentioned as our town in a document from the year 1534, and in a document from the year 1652,  Wallern am See (on the lake).

The village was not always at the location where it is now, but more to the east, in the swamps, a half hour distant from the current location. Therefore that area, where the village was earlier, today is called  "the old village ".

The former inhabitants of Wallern lived through many floods of the Raab River. In the present area, that is, farther from the swamps and dryer, the residents pulled and moved the abandoned ruins of the church and the houses that are still now visible.

1498, Wallern was listed for the first time among those possessions that belonged to Forchtenstein castle at that time. In this document, the place is called Wallern. From 1622 to 1865, the Esterhazy regime controlled Wallern.

1709 in the Kuruzzenkrieg (war), the town suffered once again. An old embankment reminds us that the settlement was approximately 1500 meters northwest of the current location. The village was called two Wällens at that time. On 14. January 1709 inhabitants fought with dragoons for the defense of the prince Eugen; the town had to nevertheless be surrendered.

The Kuruzzengeneral count,  Anton Esterhazy, reports Bercsenyi ," my estimate is that foot-soldiers and just as many riders should have been behind the approximately 300 Wallern  men. On the 14th of January I began with the shelling and the storming of the walls. Through God's mercy we succeeded between six and seven o'clock (in the evening) in conquering the outer embankment quite unexpectedly. The enemy was forced to retreat with the exhausted farmers behind the inner embankment. The unfavorable weather, and that dark, blustery night, prevented my intention to storm also the second embankment. The surprised enemy left behind his dragoon-horses and many munitions in his panic at the outer embankment. In the morning, I wanted to continue my action, however the enemy abandoned his fortress, leaving, after withdrawing from the old Hungarian Castle ".

1730, the first church is erected under the judge, Georg Graisy (13 meters long and 5,5 meters wide). this church still had no spire.

1734, Wallern becomes an independent parish with the contract of the 31. May.1734. Before that, Wallern was a branch of the Pamhagen parish.

1760, the church is widened to 17 meters and a spire erected.

1784, the belfry is erected in the center of town. It is called in a record: “The spire, in the middle of the community, was erected " in the year 1784 from resources of the community under the Judge Johann Unger. In that same year  a big bell was donated by the benefactors of the church, Johann Stadler, Georg Koppy, Paul Lang and Johann Koppy. After statements of elderly townspeople, the history of the erection of the belfry is believed to show that the first church had no tower and the town put a simple wood-spire in the middle of the community for the bells. At the bell-tower was a water-house or well-house, which contained a fire apparatus. From the tower towards Tadten was a big pond that performed in 1881 very good service with the fire brigade due to the major fire in the year. This happened in the middle of the village.

1809, the French-wars brought new unrest to Wallern.

1848, the inhabitants escaped from the flooding Hungarian river with help of Zillen on the present-day fields, that possessed elevated hills. In order to secure the place of safety, they plowed it with reverse harrows. The elderly people remained in the town in order to provide for the troops with food, and so that  looting (which they had foreseen) might not occur.

1848, Cholera rages in Wallern. 80 people die in this year alone. Almost 20% of the town’s residents were victims of the epidemic.

1875, The “Marien-Säule" (Maria-Column or tower) was erected in the town square.

70 families and more than 200 singles emigrated from Wallern between 1875 and 1914. Almost all to North America.

1881. A big fire destroyed many houses in the main street. It was referred to in a record: “ On July 7, 1881 a fire broke out at main street (Hauptstrasse) No. 49. The fire found plentiful fuel with the dry reed-roofs because of the heat and in a short time almost all of the houses on both sides of main street and the whole Salidergasse burned down. Although the population fought bravely in order to extinguish the fire, their efforts and that of the fire brigade were not enough.

1897. The Post Office and the railroad came. The utilization of the mail is however still very low:  only 2 newspapers and 5 to 6 letters weekly.

1904. The first school is built.

To the southeast of Wallern is a peat processing plant that is privately held.
1918 By this time the peat-layer was exhausted and the factory was shut down.

1914 - 1918 the 1st world war  (World War I) takes 52 victims
1921, the Burgenland becomes part of Austria, rather than Hungary.

Since the year 1921, the Einser-Canal " with its dam on the Austrian side of the border between Austria and Hungary. This border separates about 213 hectares, meadows and farmland of the Wallern farmers.  The owners of these properties were entitled to process their produce lying on Hungarian ground and to bring over the fruits to Austria up until the year 1948. In order to enable the border-traffic, everyone that had to perform agricultural work over the border possessed a permanent border pass. The border crossing  usually took place at the “Bohatsch ", which was an inn at the border, where a wood-bridge led across the " Einser-Canal ". The tax for these farm goods was paid to Hungary, and every year in the autumn Hungarian tax collectors came to Wallern to collect these taxes which were owed to Hungary.

In the course of a second emigration-wave, mainly between 1921 and 1923, more than 10 families and several singles migrated from Wallern to South America.

1931-32. The new church is erected between 1931/1932. The main source of funding for the new church-construction was the so-called milk-groschen (or pennies). From each liter of milk, that was delivered, one penny was put into the Kirchenbaufonds (Church fund).

On 25.September 1932, the consecration of the new parish-church was celebrated.

1938 quote from the chronicles: “Hansl-Vetter” or Cousin-Johnny (“a good old man”) was the only gypsy in Wallern, he was born on the periphery of Wallern on the way to Tadten, but belonged to Wallern”. His nomadic mother took him as a child far away from Wallern, but he came back towards the end of 1938. Here, he lived gypsy-style in an earthen dug-out home. He also had the qualities of the gypsy: the look, that unsettled and uncertain gaze, that frightened nature, the fear of dogs.  He had the concession or privilege to make umbrellas and to sharpen scissors”.  In October of 1942 (during World War II), he was sent to Vienna for Aufräumungsarbeiten  (“special work”) and he never returned again to Wallern. It is likely that he was sent to a Nazi concentration camp.

1941, Industrial buildings were put up near the end of town closest to St. Andrä, some company buildings for Bastfaser GmbH., Fehrbellin. Hemp was processed there for the textile-industry. About 90 workers found employment there.

In the 2. world war (World War II) 138 Wallern residents died at the front.

1945, a quote from the town chronicles: “Towards the end of  World War II, in May 1945, the first unguarded borders between Hungary and Austria appeared. Hungary provided foodstuffs and exchanged goods and products here in Wallern. There were, however, shady elements, that went out to steal and loot when nighttime came. For the protection of the population, stations, that should prevent such undesirable “visits”, were put into place here and in the neighboring communities during the evening hours. In Wallern itself, no unwelcome visitors were to be registered at the inn “Bohatsch ". Then, at the Einser-Canal " a ghastly bloody deed occurred. On 28. May. 1946 at about 17 o'clock 30 (5:30 PM), someone found the new Inn-owner Matthias Fiala, badly wounded, and his wife, Ludmilla, and Mrs. Antonia Wagner, geb. Bohatsch and her son, Günter Wagner murdered inside the Inn. The perpetrators could not be found despite active investigations that continued for some time. The building was demolished in the years following this tragedy. Today (1956) there are only a few remains of the foundation walls existing ".

1948, Wallern received electric stream service.

1954-1955 Construction of the parish-kindergarten

1956, after the bloody rebellion was defeated in Hungary, many refugees came to us over the border.

In the Innsbrucker “Volksboten” (newspaper) one reads: " In their untiring and quite natural working helpfulness opposite the many thousands of Hungarian refugees, the border-population of the Austrian Burgenland set for all of the European continent an example. Especially notable, however, is the village of Wallern. There, no headquarters of the Red Cross or other support-organization is needed. The farmers, workers and craftsmen of Wallern credit themselves with the honor, to assist the refugee-stream, the endless nightly stream of helpless people coming over the border alone. The local lads drive out night after night with farm tractors to the Einser-Canal and bring the exhausted, freezing, Hungarians, soaked and cold, into their village. In the reception camp of Wallern the refugees are fed, are able to dry their clothes and can bathe. Then they take the refugees into their homes, where they can sleep. Each family looks after "their" refugees, until they, usually the next evening, are picked up by buses - and from the border the next wave comes - 800 was the count on one night, but no one had to remain behind in the reception camp. More than 6,000 were processed through the camp. For weeks, the village simply paid for the food until the refugees were able to make it alone. Since then, the Red Cross has sent food for support. But the Wallerners still manage the initial aid and assistance themselves ".

One report, in 1956, with pride in the chronicle:

“Several homes already have been remodeled and refurbished (the interior rooms). The affluence of the population is beginning to become apparent. Urban furnishings, carpets, linoleum, and rubber floor-coverings are preferred by farmers. The more affluent farmers have a beautifully furnished bathroom and piped-in water throughout the entire home furnished by an electrically-driven pump system from their well.

Almost every house has introduced the electric light. The stall and yard are illuminated also electrically, as is obvious. Our predecessors still heated around the turn of the century with peat and wood, and after World War I partially with stone-coal. Now, many housewives cook on a gas or electric stove. Washing machines ease cleaning of the laundry.

A radio set is in almost every house. In the year 1956, 4 television sets are in the village. Furthermore, 11 automobiles are in Wallern ".

1958, Opening of the new community-office on November 9, 1958.
1962, About 500,000 liters of milk are still delivered to Vienna.
1966, The old bast-fiber-factory (hemp) is torn down.
1967, The Post-Office buries the telephone-cables underground.
1968, The asphalt paving of all community-streets is decided in the district council-session of the 17.June.68
1971, On  the 16. May marked the beginning of the rebuilt and renovated grade school.
1972, The ring-water pipe (municipal water service) is built.
1981, 18 March. The ground-breaking takes place for the extension of the town’s sewage system.
1995, The new fire brigade-house is initiated.
1996, 19. October. Our district council visits our partner-community “Wallern an der Trattnach” (river). This long-time friendship is formalized into an official partnership.
1998, On 17.May an “Info-freight car " is opened as a Tourism-Information-Centre. It is an antique rail car.

The government has with the decision of 16. June 1998 the community Wallern in the Burgenland over proposition in accordance with § 4 paragraphs 1 of the Burgenländischen community-order, LGBI. No. 37/1965 i.d.g.Fs., the right to the use of the below described coat of arms given:
In it, of red and gold diagonally-left divided sign in the front from green hill three golden, red inseminated, four-leafed blooms on leaf stems growing, behind a green tower. that through a golden, rectangular doorway, a niche, a rectangular window, an hourglass and a round-bow-window is structured.

Simultaneously, the government has decreed, that from the district council of the community Wallern in the Burgenland fixed community-colors, Red-Gold " in accordance with § 4 paragraphs 4 Burgenländische community-rights, LGBI. No. 37/1965 i.d.g.Fs., to approve.