For centuries, an old building, built on 90 larch posts and surrounded by water, has stood in the 32-hectare Hausteich near Plothen. Who built it and what significance it had in the past is not known; there are only assumptions. From preliminary restoration investigations, it is known that the building was carried out in the 17th century and that the land belonged to the Principality of Reuss, older line, based in Greiz. The Hausteichhaus, with its central location, served as a hunting lodge and was therefore well suited for representative purposes. In 1878, the owner changed. The new lords of the Knau manor bought the Hausteich. In return for a lease to the manor, three Plothen inns were able to use the stilt house for catering purposes. A lively excursion traffic began in the pond area and the wonderful area with its restaurant was very popular among the population. The Second World War put an end to tourism in the “Land of a Thousand Ponds”.
When inland fishing was founded in 1958, the stilt house served as a tool room and feed store. The state of Thuringia has been the new owner since 1989 and in 1991 the old building was listed as a historical monument. The "Initiative Group for the Rescue of the Thuringian House Pond House" attempted to preserve the house provisionally. In March 1995 the Plothen Local History Association was founded and the extensive reconstruction began in the autumn. As part of this redesign, the house received a new substructure, which now consists of just 54 logs. The stilt house currently houses a museum for fishing and pond farming with an exhibition on the history of the house and the various uses for pond farming, agriculture and forestry as well as nature conservation.