Genevreuille: Sacred Art and Industrial History

Genevreuille brings together religious art, industrial history and hiking discoveries in the village and its surroundings. For a stay, you can explore these different highlights: the Church of Saint-Léonard de Noblat, the Fonderie Meyer / Amet site in La Conche, a hike taken in May 2024 and the Abbey of Bithaine. A farm offering walks with pack donkeys and refreshments is also part of what the area has to offer. If you are looking for a hotel, these highlights give you a concrete impression of the cultural and natural themes that shape the destination.

Church and Sacred Art

The Church of Saint-Léonard de Noblat was built in the 19th century on the site of an earlier chapel. Its building history therefore encompasses two successive religious buildings in the same location. Its furnishings include a wrought-iron communion rail and an 18th-century painting of Saint Leonard. Genevreuille church also houses a ciborium-chrismatory, also known as a pyx. These details offer different points of interest: from the development of church architecture to a finely crafted liturgical object and religious painting. Genevreuille can thus also be understood through the history of its sacred buildings and art.

Industrial History in La Conche

The Fonderie Meyer / Amet site is located in La Conche, on Route de la Gare in Genevreuille. Its production hall is a single-storey building with two sawtooth roof sections. The term “sawtooth roof” refers to the roof’s zigzag profile; the hall has two sections. The site is associated with a former secondary smelting foundry and a metal-surface treatment factory. The production hall’s architecture, as well as the site’s history of use, is part of the area’s industrial heritage.

Another point in time is 1925: Charles Meyer applied, on behalf of the company Meyer et Cie, also founded in 1925, for permission to establish a copper, brass, bronze and aluminium foundry. The application concerned a project involving four specified metals and adds a company-history perspective to the architectural one. Taken together, the hall, the site’s industrial associations and the application offer different ways to explore Genevreuille’s industrial history.

Hikes and Surroundings

In May 2024, a hike led from Genevreuille towards the Val de Bithaine and the Abbey of Bithaine. On the way to Genevreuille railway station are the ruins of a lime factory; the architecture of a railway tunnel was also observed during a hike. A gently uphill road is lined with farmhouses from the 18th and 19th centuries. These observations connect different themes: the streetscape, the lime industry and railway infrastructure. If you plan your own hike, check trail conditions and public access locally.

Nearby, the former 12th-century Cistercian Abbey of Bithaine stands alongside the Colombine River. Its former monastic function and riverside location offer a different historical focus from the industrial site in La Conche. Visits are possible by appointment and during the Heritage Days. Check the current dates before visiting so you can take the applicable visiting conditions into account.

Farm Offerings and Your Stay

L’bout d’chemin in Genevreuille is a secluded organic farm surrounded by nature, with a garden, flowers and animals. The farm offers walks with pack donkeys as well as refreshments on the farm. Alongside church and industrial history, this means there is also a rural setting and a specific activity in the village. Check before your visit whether walks and refreshments are available. These different themes give you a basis for deciding whether sacred art, industrial history, hiking or the farm’s offerings should shape your stay in Genevreuille in particular.

Discover more destinations: Fretigney-Et-Velloreille, La Basse-Vaivre, Volon, Vernois Sur Mance, Chargey-Lès-Gray, Leffond, Étuz, Héricourt.

For the regional travel overview: Haute-Saône.