had special significance as the first medieval "industrial center" of the town. Industrialization of Geislingen Industrialization started with the arrival of the railroad and the construction of the Fils Valley Railway (1847-1850) up the Geislinger Steige, a steep incline of rail and road to the plateau of the Schwäbische Alb (Swabian Jura), and Geislingen (Steige) station. The leading industrial enterprise is the Württembergische Metallwarenfabrik (WMF) founded in 1852, a world-renowned manufacturer of goods for kitchen and table. Much older than the "artificial" foundation of Geislingen are two present-day districts, Altenstadt and Rorgensteig. Altenstadt, in the oldest times still called "ze der alten Stadt" or "Altengiselingen", is of Alamannic origin. First traces of settlement go back to the 5th century. On the site of today's "Lindenhof" stood since the 11th century a St. Michael's church, the original church of Altenstadt and the whole surrounding area. So the name of the later helfenstein Geislingen comes from the older neighboring village. Rorgensteig, situated on the upper Rohrach River, was an old parish village into which the citizens of the town of Geislingen were parishioners until 1393. Geislingen and Estonia The great wave of escape in 1944 brought thousands of Estonians to Germany. After the Second World War, 4400 Estonian refugees lived in the Geislingen refugee camp (including Voldemar Päts, Olev Piirsalu, Elias Kasak, Verner Hans Puurand, Henrik Visnapuu, Pedro Krusten, Roman Toi, Peeter Puusep, Harald Raudsepp and others). The Geislingen Estonian Gymnasium, Geislingen Estonian Primary School, Geislingen Estonian Theater and the Geislingen Estonian Symphony Orchestra operated there. The newspaper Eesti Post was published in Geislingen in 1945–1953. A memorial at the Geislingen cemetery was erected in 1949, designed by architects Kolmar and Aren, reflecting the fate of Estonians in exile. The names of 102 Estonians who died in Geislingen were carved in stone, with later additions to the list tallying a total of 154 names. The Geislingen refugee camp existed from October 1945 to June 24, 1950. Train connection In 1850, the construction of the Geislinger Steige was a pioneering act of the first order. The town experienced a noticeable upswing due to the connection to the "big wide world", which can be seen in new jobs and a growing population. In the year 2000 – 150 years later - the Deutsche Bahn AG, the municipality of Amstetten and the town of Geislingen an der Steige celebrated this "groundbreaking" anniversary with various activities,