DORNBIRN, AUSTRIA

DORNBIRN, AUSTRIA. In May 2011 the Dubuque City Council voted to formally establish a sister city relationship with Dornbirn, Austria. On the weekend of May 15-16, 2010 a delegation from Dornbirn, visited Dubuque. Dubuque was a popular destination for Dornbirn immigrants in the 19th century, including Joseph A. RHOMBERG, Frank M. RHOMBERG and Liberat Alphonse "L.A." RHOMBERG The family members were born in Dornbirn and became one of Dubuque's prominent families.

Dornbirn is the largest city in the Austrian state of Vorarlberg and has a population of nearly 46,000. The delegation included Mayor Wolfgang Rümmele, Vice Mayor Martin Ruepp and Public Relations Director Ralf Hämmerle. Their itinerary included visits to the NATIONAL MISSISSIPPI RIVER MUSEUM AND AQUARIUM, DUBUQUE STAR BREWING COMPANY and MOUNT CALVARY CEMETERY.

Dubuque's sister-city relationships have a history of beginning with great expectations and then languishing through lack of oversight. Dubuque City Councilmen Dirk VOETBERG and Kevin Lynch hope to reverse that trend with the creation of the Sister City Relationships Advisory Commission. "We've had sister-city relationships for more than 20 years and they have ebbed and flowed with individual interest," Voetberg said. The city is seeking applicants for 12 spots on the newly created commission who would foster relationships with peers in Pyatigorsk, Russia, and Handan, China. The commission also is expected to facilitate potential relationships with Dornbirn, Austria, and Trois Rivieres, Quebec - the boyhood home of Julien Dubuque. Interested citizens were asked to submit applications to the City Clerk's Office by Wednesday, December 29, 2010.

Another delegation from Dornbirn, Austria, visited Dubuque at the end of April, 2011. Dubuque's Sister City Committee hosted the five-person delegation, which included a Dornbirn City Council member, a community archivist, an author and two city staff members. The group visited the CENTER FOR DUBUQUE HISTORY at LORAS COLLEGE, Mount Calvary Cemetery, Mount St. Francis and Park Farm Winery. Dubuque was one of the most common destinations for the immigrants coming from Dornbirn during the 19th century.

Source:

"Group from Austria Visiting Dubuque," Telegraph Herald (Dubuque, IA) - Friday, May 14, 2010, Section A, p. 3

Panel Aims to Improve Sister-City Relationships," Telegraph Herald (Dubuque, IA) - Saturday, December 11, 2010, Section A, p. 3

"Delegation from Austria to visit Dubuque," Telegraph Herald (Dubuque, IA) - Saturday, April 30, 2011, Section A, p. 5