The gate tower owes its name to a crane that was anchored on a Rhine ship between the 15th and 18th centuries for the handling of goods and customs duties. In the Middle Ages, the Rhine reached almost up to the city wall. The harbour was located in today's Rhine facilities at that time. The top floor of the crane tower has a round-arched frieze and an arched fascia. In 1689 the tower was set on fire by French troops. It lost its roof in another fire in 1894. The Rhenish Society for Monument Preservation and Landscape Protection restored it between 1907 and 1913. Today the Kranenturm houses a hotel and restaurant.