The orphanage was opened in 1718 on the site of the former Dominican convent of St. Mary Magdalene. For the education of the orphans, girls as well as boys, a jewelry and watch factory was established; the "cradle" of the goldware production in Pforzheim. In 1768 the first vocational school for jewelry and watchmaking professions was established there. The remains of today's walls symbolically indicate the location of the former orphanage.
Waisenhausplatz is the location of the three-venue theater, the CongressCentrum Pforzheim, the 4-star-superior Parkhotel as well as cafés and restaurants.
