Wolfhalden is a municipality in the canton of Appenzell Ausserrhoden in Switzerland.

History

Wolfhalden, Heiden and Lutzenberg originally were parts of a single municipality named the Kurzenberg. Around 1650 Wolfhalden and Heiden could not agree about control over the local church. This led to the creation of a church in each village in 1652, making them independent. In 1658 the Kurzenberg was split into the three separate municipalities in defiance of the canton government; their borders were officially established in 1666–7.

Geography

thumb|Aerial view of Wolfhalden from 900 m by [[Walter Mittelholzer (1927)|left]]

, Wolfhalden has an area of . Of this area, 58% is used for agricultural purposes, while 30.5% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 11.4% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (0.1%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains). Over the last 10 years, the population has decreased at a rate of 4.3%. Most of the population () speaks German (94.4%), with Serbo-Croatian being second most common (1.0%) and Italian being third ( 0.9%).

, the gender distribution of the population was 51.2% male and 48.8% female.

In the 2007 federal election the FDP received 65.1% of the vote.

  • Gustav Adolf Tobler, educator, writer, and artist. Director of Canton School in Trogen for 15 years from 1842 to 1857.
  • Gregor Gustav Adolf Tobler (1834–1875), merchant, coffee planter, and writer in the Spanish Philippines

Heritage sites of national significance

The Alte Mühle Wolfhalden (The Old Mill at Wolfhalden) is listed as a heritage site of national significance.

References

  • Official Page (German)