Thurnen, Bern

The oldest trace of a settlement in the area are several Hallstatt era graves discovered at the Ried gravel pit.

By the 13th-14th century a number of Bernese patrician families owned land and rights in the village and surrounding farms.

In 1343, the von Blankenburg family donated Kirchenthurnen and the surrounding land, which probably included Lohnstorf, to Interlaken Monastery.

In 1528 Bern accepted the new faith of the Protestant Reformation and forcibly secularized the monastery and its lands, including Lohnstorf.

The Gürbe river correction projects of 1855-1911 helped drain the marshy valley floor and opened up farmland.

Today, agriculture is the major industry in the municipality, though about two-thirds of the work force commute to jobs in surrounding towns and cities.

[4] The Gürbe river correction projects from 1855 until 1911 drained the swampy valley floor and opened up additional farm land.

In 1901 the Gürbetal railroad built a station in the municipality and connected it to the rest of the Swiss rail network.