Spittal an der Drau#

Spittal an der Drau, Carinthia, town in the district of Spittal an der Drau, alt. 560 m, pop. 15,346, area 48.48 km2, main district and traffic junction, situated at the confluence of River Lieser and River Drau/Drava, cadastral district of Molzbichl. - District commission, district court, Gendarmerie (rural police) district headquarters, tax and health authorities, office of youth affairs, office of weights, measures and surveying, road construction and hydraulic engineering authorities, Tuerk und Troyer Barracks, provincial forest cultivation grounds, Forestry Department of the Chamber of Finance of the Diocese of Gurk, hospital, KELAG electricity company regional administration office West, Economic Chamber, Chamber of Labour, Chamber of Agriculture and Forestry, Berufsfoerderungsinstitut (BFI, vocational training institute), vocational information centre, Gebietskrankenkasse (regional health and social insurance agency), probation centre, Caritas life guidance service, Katholisches Bildungswerk (adult education centre), Pro mente infirmis social and psychological consulting centre, Association of Social Assistance, School Psychological Service, Kolpinghaus Centre, Carinthian Heimatwerk shop, Bundesgymnasium, Bundesrealgymnasium, Bundesoberstufenrealgymnasium secondary schools, commercial academy, commercial school, two vocational schools, Fachhochschule, theatrical stage at Schloss Porcia, municipal library, Stadtsaal multi-purpose hall, sports hall, Museum of Popular Culture, cableway leading to Goldeck Mountain (alt. 2,142 m), Gmeineck power station; 9,331 people employed (1991), around 63 % of whom in the service sector (mainly personal, social and public services, trade), tourism (132,700 overnight stays); the production sector comprises shoe manufacturers, construction and building companies, a dairy, a mill, pharmaceutical industry and electronic engineerings (circuit boards), production of recycling machines, large joinery. - Documented mention of the construction of a hospital (Austrian: Spital) in 1191, followed by settlement on the right bank of the River Lieser, burnt down by the French in 1797, a town since 1930. - Gothic parish church (mid-13th century, altered in 1584) with Romanesque foundation walls and grave monuments; Protestant church (1908/09); Renaissance palace Porcia; town hall with frescoes (around 1600); houses on the main square with elements from the 16th century.

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