There is evidence of a ship's crane on the Frei-Weinheim shore as early as the 14th century. A first massive land crane was erected in 1549, modeled on the Bingen crane (1487).
The still visible foundation is a relic of the last crane moved by human power, which was built around 1680. The rotatable crane stand, to which the two treadwheels and the jib were attached, was embedded in the central shaft. Two farmhands had to run in the wheels and thus provide for the drive of the equipment. There was a charge for unloading and loading. The crane recorder kept a record of this income. The crane master was the sheriff. A crane order regulated the procedures, working hours and wages. This crane was destroyed between 1690 and 1694 and was not completely rebuilt despite the efforts of the Palatine Elector.
The crane law was repeatedly the subject of power-political disputes between the competing Electoral Palatine and Electoral Mainz sovereigns. Among the goods shipped, the regionally produced cask wine took the most important rank.
