Hemer
Encyclopedia
Hemer is a town in the Märkischer Kreis
district, in North Rhine-Westphalia
, Germany
.
near the Ruhr river. The highest elevation, at 546 metres (1,791 ft), is in the Balver Wald in the south of the city. The lowest elevation, at 160 metres (525 ft), is at the Edelburg in the northeast.
show that around 1250 BC, Bronze Age
shepherds and farmers lived in the area. Graves from the time of the Merovingian Franks
around the year 650 were found near the present city centre.
Hemer was first mentioned in 1072 by its old name Hademare in a document of bishop Anno II of Cologne
, granting lands to the newly founded Benedictine
Grafschaft Abbey
, including St. Vitus
' church and two farms, the later Haus Hemer and the Hedhof. In 1124 the parish of St. Vitus was separated from the parish of Menden.
Hemer remained an unimportant settlement without market rights, even when the Counts of the Mark gained independence from the episcopal state of Cologne in the 13th century, when Hemer found itself on the boundary of the two states. But despite the political insignificance of the Kirchspiel Hemer ("Hemer parish"), it was already quite densely settled, thanks to its location on the old road from the Rhineland
to Middle Germany (now Bundesstrasse 7), and to the iron mining and smelting industries already developed here. The boundary with Cologne, formed by the valley of the Hönne
river southeast of Hemer, was protected by Klusenstein Castle
, built in 1353. Local government in the parish of Hemer was the responsibility of the "Amt" of Iserlohn
until 1647, when it was transferred to the family of Wachtendonk, who owned Haus Hemer at that time.
The Reformation
reached Hemer in the second half of the 16th century, when the church of St. Vitus became Protestant (it was demolished in 1818, and replaced by the new Ebbergkirche nearby, built in 1819/20). Between 1697 and 1700 Jobst Edmund of Brabeck, the bishop of Hildesheim and a relative of the new owners of Haus Hemer, built the church of Saints Peter
and Paul
in Baroque
style as the new church for the Roman Catholics.
During the Napoleonic period Hemer was a "mairie" in the "arrondissement
" of Hagen in the "département" of the Ruhr
of the Napoleonic satellite Grand Duchy of Berg.
s (Rittergut) of Edelburg, Haus Hemer and Klusenstein. The Amt was part of the Kreis Iserlohn. In 1910 Niederhemer and Oberhemer were merged into Hemer. In 1920 Lössel became part of the Amt Oestrich.
The three industrial municipalities of Hemer, Sundwig and Westig had already grown into a single urban area by World War I
. The idea of merging the three municipalities had already been mooted before the war, but due to the war it was not until 1920 that it was formally proposed. However, neither Sundwig nor Westig was initially enthusiastic and both later opposed the merger, mostly because the industrialists in the two places were worried that the tax rates would rise to the higher rates of Hemer. At the same time the city of Iserlohn
unsuccessfully tried to incorporate several municipalities: Letmathe and Oestrich to the west, and also the industrial municipalities of the Amt Hemer. Because of the opposition, the merger of the three municipalities was delayed until 1929, when it was carried out by order of the Prussia
n Ministry of the Interior. At the same time the municipality of Calle was split into four parts: the northern Griesenbrauck was added to Landhausen; Bilveringsen passed to Hemer; the central part around Wermingsen was incorporated into Iserlohn; and the southern parts passed to Westig. With effect from August 1, 1929, Hemer, Sundwig and Westig, as well as Landhausen and the remains of Calle were merged together, covering an area of 26.82 km² (10.36 mi²) and having a population of 13,809.
Also with effect from August 1, 1929, the municipality of Brockhausen was incorporated into Deilinghofen. The rural Brockhausen had only 588 inhabitants, and because of its low income was not considered to be financially viable as an independent unit.
On January 30, 1936 the municipality of Hemer received the right to call itself a city
(Stadt).
In December 1934 temporary barracks for one battalion were also built in Hemer. On October 30, 1936 an official garrison contract between Hemer and the state was signed, which included the building of permanent barracks. Construction was still unfinished when World War II
started in 1939, but was then rushed through and the buildings were reassigned as a prisoner of war
camp, the Stalag VI-A.
The first Polish POWs arrived in October 1939, and had to sleep on the floor as the beds were still not finished. Inadequate equipment remained a problem throughout the whole of the war, both because the material was needed at the front, and also because the camp was permanently overpopulated. At first the inmates were mostly from Poland
and France
, but after the beginning of the war with the Soviet Union
in 1941 Soviet POWs quickly became the majority.
It is estimated that during the six years of the war more than 200,000 inmates were held in the camp. Those who were capable of forced labour usually lived near their places of work, so the main camp was in a sense a "dying camp" for those who fell ill because of the bad living conditions and the hard labour. At an unconfirmed estimate, about 24,000 POWs were buried in Hemer. The fictional film Hart's War
is set in the camp in early 1945.
After the war the barracks of the Stalag, renamed to Camp Roosevelt were at first used as a camp for detaining Nazi prisoners. 1947 it was renamed to Casernes Ardennes and were used by the Belgian
army till 1955. After the establishment of the German Bundeswehr
the barracks became home of a tank battalion in 1957. Originally simply named after its location on the Jüberg hill, it received its final name, Blücher-Kaserne, in 1964.
In 1953 Canadian
troops moved into newly built barracks in Deilinghofen (Forts Macleod and Prince of Wales) as well as two former German barrack complexes in Iserlohn (Forts QuèAppelle and Beausejour). Canadian soldiers and their families resided in two separate locations in Hemer. The main location centered around Berliner Strasse where the school and community center were located. The secondary location centered around Bredde Strasse, the site that was formerly used by the Belgians. In 1970 the Canadian military was transferred to bases in the Black Forest Region (Baden-Baden and Lahr) and most of the former Canadian holdings, including Married Quarters in Hemer, were taken over by British military. In 1994 the British left and the Deilinghofen barracks were converted to civil use with the barracks in Iserlohn either transferred back to the Bundeswehr or also converted to civil use.
Due to the changing duties of the Bundeswehr, tanks are not needed as much as they were during the Cold War
. The closure of the barracks was announced in 2004, and on January 23, 2007 the last soldiers left Hemer, 50 years after the Bundeswehr moved into the barracks.
in 1969. In 1974 Kesbern became part of Iserlohn
, while the other municipalities of Becke, Deilinghofen, Frönsberg and Ihmert were added to the town of Hemer.
was an honorary post with only formal duties, while the actual head of administration was the Stadtdirektor. This system was introduced in 1946 by the British military government, and was abolished in 1999. However, when Reiner Hermann was forced to resign in 1994, shortly after the new system was adopted, Hemer became the first commune of North Rhine-Westphalia to get a professional mayor in 1995.
Five Roman Catholic parishes are located in the city - St. Peter and Paul (Niederhemer, Becke), Christ König (Stadtmitte), St. Peter Canisius (Westig), St. Mary (Bredenbruch, Ihmert) and St. Bonifatius (Sundwig, Deilinghofen). All five parishes work together in a parish cluster (Pastoralverbund). They are member of the deanery
Märkisches Sauerland within the Archdiocese of Paderborn.
The Heinrichshöhle is a Devonian limestone
cave in Hemer, officially discovered in 1812, but probably known by locals long before. 470m of the cave system are accessible to visitors, with some stalactite
s and the skeleton of a cave bear
on display.
The Felsenmeer nearby is a small Karst
area, partially created by medieval mining, now located in a beech
forest.
Shared with Menden
and Balve
is the Hönnetal, a narrow valley with some beautiful cliffs carved into the same limestone bedrock by the river Hönne
.
on the left side is derived from the arms of the Counts of the Mark. The current coat of arms of the city was originally used by the Amt, but when the Amt was dissolved into the city in 1975 the city adopted it. It was chosen because it was heraldically and esthetically more satisfying, but also because the adoption of the coat of arms of the Amt symbolized the fact that the enlarged city continues the tradition of the Amt. The coat of arms was officially granted on March 16, 1976.
The former coat of arms of the city used the same heraldic elements, but in a different arrangement. The red and white motif was used in the form of a bordure
round the whole shield, which was completely black with the three yellow wolf-hooks in the middle. This coat of arms was granted by the president of the province of Westphalia
on January 14 (Amt) and January 15 (city) 1936.
In 1926 the municipality of Hemer was already planning the creation of a coat of arms. A draft using industrial symbols was made by Treude, but the director of the Prussian state archive in Münster
, Professor Schmitz-Kallenberg, advised against it. Instead he suggested two designs using the heraldic elements of families of Brabeck and of the Counts of the Mark. Hemer created new drafts using heraldic elements from the arms of previous owners of Haus Hemer (the families Overlacker and Wachtendonck), but in 1928 the topic was discontinued. When it was restarted in the 1930s the original suggestion of Professor Johannes Bauermann of the Prussian state archive was followed, with final artwork by the herald Waldemar Mallek.
In 1939 the other municipalities of the Amt also received coats of arms. All six took the three wolf-hooks as their common symbol, showing their membership in the Amt. Becke, Deilinghofen and Frönsberg combined them with coats of arms of former noble families of the municipality, while Evingsen, Ihmert and Kesbern combined them with symbols representing their main industries - shoe making for Evingsen, wire production for Ihmert and agriculture for Kesbern.
See also: Coat of arms in the Amt Hemer
, Hemer has a long industrial history. The most important industries in the beginning of the 20th century were wire
production and wire manufacturing industries, but also rolling mills, foundries and machine production. Paper production was already declining at that time. In 1927 Hemer and Ihmert together had 27 wire factories - 23.7% of all wire factories in Germany at that time. However, as the factories were rather small the percentage is much less impressive when compared by number of employees.
During the Great Depression
as well as in the final part of World War II
many companies went into bankruptcy, but even today the industrial sector is above average in Hemer. The worldwide known fitting
s producers Grohe and Keuco are based in Hemer.
has been delayed ever since, as the original route was supposed to go through a nature reserve in Menden.
Hemer was connected to the railway system on September 1, 1882, when the track from Menden to Hemer was inaugurated. In 1885 the extension to Iserlohn was opened. In 1891 a short track was built as far as Sundwig; it was originally planned that this should be extended to Neuenrade
but the extension was never built. Hemer had two railway stations - one in Oberhemer and one in Westig. Because of a significant decline both in passenger numbers and in quantity of goods traffic, the service was wound up, and the last regular train went through Hemer on May 27, 1989. The track to Iserlohn was taken up, while the track to Menden was thereafter only used by the Bundeswehr for transporting their tanks. As the barracks are scheduled to be closed by 2007 these tracks will then fall into disuse as well.
Besides the regular railway, a narrow gauge railway using gauge first reached a municipality of the Amt Hemer in 1909, when Buchenwäldchen (Calle) was connected with Iserlohn. It was quickly extended: in 1913 almost all the municipalities of Hemer were connected to the network of the Westfälische Kleinbahnen AG. The railway was used both for a tram and for goods transport, with the railway station at Westig serving as the junction between the narrow gauge and the regular gauge railway.
Renamed Iserlohner Kreisbahn AG in 1942, operations were only briefly interrupted after World War II. In the 1950s however more and more sections of the narrow gauge railway had to be closed because they were no longer profit-making. The trams were replaced by buses, and trucks made the goods transport obsolete. In 1964 the goods transfer in Westig was closed; the trams had already closed in 1959.
with French
cities from the former municipalities of the Amt Hemer. Ihmert started a twinning with Beuvry
in 1968, and Becke with Steenwerck
in 1966/67. Long-running city friendships exist with the German city Bretten
and with Obervellach
in Austria
. On June 8, 1991 a friendship with the city of Doberlug-Kirchhain
in Brandenburg
was started. On January 25, 1992 a friendship with the Russia
n city of Shchyolkovo
became official.
Märkischer Kreis
The Märkischer Kreis is a district in central North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighbouring districts are Unna, Soest, Hochsauerland, Olpe, Oberbergischer Kreis, Ennepe-Ruhr, and the city of Hagen.-History:...
district, in North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia is the most populous state of Germany, with four of the country's ten largest cities. The state was formed in 1946 as a merger of the northern Rhineland and Westphalia, both formerly part of Prussia. Its capital is Düsseldorf. The state is currently run by a coalition of the...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
Geography
Hemer is located at the north end of the SauerlandSauerland
The Sauerland is a rural, hilly area spreading across most of the south-eastern part of North Rhine-Westphalia, in parts heavily forested and, apart from the major valleys, sparsely inhabited...
near the Ruhr river. The highest elevation, at 546 metres (1,791 ft), is in the Balver Wald in the south of the city. The lowest elevation, at 160 metres (525 ft), is at the Edelburg in the northeast.
History
Burial moundsTumulus
A tumulus is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds, Hügelgrab or kurgans, and can be found throughout much of the world. A tumulus composed largely or entirely of stones is usually referred to as a cairn...
show that around 1250 BC, Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
shepherds and farmers lived in the area. Graves from the time of the Merovingian Franks
Franks
The Franks were a confederation of Germanic tribes first attested in the third century AD as living north and east of the Lower Rhine River. From the third to fifth centuries some Franks raided Roman territory while other Franks joined the Roman troops in Gaul. Only the Salian Franks formed a...
around the year 650 were found near the present city centre.
Hemer was first mentioned in 1072 by its old name Hademare in a document of bishop Anno II of Cologne
Archbishopric of Cologne
The Electorate of Cologne was an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire and existed from the 10th to the early 19th century. It consisted of the temporal possessions of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cologne . It was ruled by the Archbishop in his function as prince-elector of...
, granting lands to the newly founded Benedictine
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
Grafschaft Abbey
Grafschaft Abbey
Grafschaft Abbey is a community of the Sisters of Mercy of Saint Charles Borromeo, formerly a Benedictine monastery, in Schmallenberg in the Sauerland, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.-First foundation:...
, including St. Vitus
Vitus
Saint Vitus was a Christian saint from Sicily. He died as a martyr during the persecution of Christians by co-ruling Roman Emperors Diocletian and Maximian in 303. Vitus is counted as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers of the Roman Catholic Church....
' church and two farms, the later Haus Hemer and the Hedhof. In 1124 the parish of St. Vitus was separated from the parish of Menden.
Hemer remained an unimportant settlement without market rights, even when the Counts of the Mark gained independence from the episcopal state of Cologne in the 13th century, when Hemer found itself on the boundary of the two states. But despite the political insignificance of the Kirchspiel Hemer ("Hemer parish"), it was already quite densely settled, thanks to its location on the old road from the Rhineland
Rhineland
Historically, the Rhinelands refers to a loosely-defined region embracing the land on either bank of the River Rhine in central Europe....
to Middle Germany (now Bundesstrasse 7), and to the iron mining and smelting industries already developed here. The boundary with Cologne, formed by the valley of the Hönne
Hönne
The Hönne is a left tributary river to the Ruhr, flowing through the northern Sauerland hills in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The spring of the Hönne is located in the west of Neuenrade at 437m above sea level. After 33 km the river ends near the town of Fröndenberg...
river southeast of Hemer, was protected by Klusenstein Castle
Klusenstein Castle
Klusenstein is a castle in Hemer, Germany, located on a 60m high cliff above the valley of the Hönne river. The castle was built in 1353 as a boundary fortification of the earldom Mark.-History:...
, built in 1353. Local government in the parish of Hemer was the responsibility of the "Amt" of Iserlohn
Iserlohn
Iserlohn is a city in the Märkischer Kreis district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the largest city by population and area within the district and the Sauerland region.-Geography:...
until 1647, when it was transferred to the family of Wachtendonk, who owned Haus Hemer at that time.
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
reached Hemer in the second half of the 16th century, when the church of St. Vitus became Protestant (it was demolished in 1818, and replaced by the new Ebbergkirche nearby, built in 1819/20). Between 1697 and 1700 Jobst Edmund of Brabeck, the bishop of Hildesheim and a relative of the new owners of Haus Hemer, built the church of Saints Peter
Saint Peter
Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
and Paul
Paul of Tarsus
Paul the Apostle , also known as Saul of Tarsus, is described in the Christian New Testament as one of the most influential early Christian missionaries, with the writings ascribed to him by the church forming a considerable portion of the New Testament...
in Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
style as the new church for the Roman Catholics.
During the Napoleonic period Hemer was a "mairie" in the "arrondissement
Arrondissement
Arrondissement is any of various administrative divisions of France, certain other Francophone countries, and the Netherlands.-France:The 101 French departments are divided into 342 arrondissements, which may be translated into English as districts. The capital of an arrondissement is called a...
" of Hagen in the "département" of the Ruhr
Ruhr
The Ruhr is a medium-size river in western Germany , a right tributary of the Rhine.-Description:The source of the Ruhr is near the town of Winterberg in the mountainous Sauerland region, at an elevation of approximately 2,200 feet...
of the Napoleonic satellite Grand Duchy of Berg.
Creation of Amt Hemer
On October 31, 1841 the Amt Hemer was created by 14 municipalities previously administered by the Landbezirk Iserlohn. It originally consisted of the municipalities of Becke, Brockhausen, Calle, Deilinghofen, Evingsen, Frönsberg, Ihmert, Kesbern, Landhausen, Lössel, Niederhemer, Oberhemer, Sundwig and Westig, as well as the manorManorialism
Manorialism, an essential element of feudal society, was the organizing principle of rural economy that originated in the villa system of the Late Roman Empire, was widely practiced in medieval western and parts of central Europe, and was slowly replaced by the advent of a money-based market...
s (Rittergut) of Edelburg, Haus Hemer and Klusenstein. The Amt was part of the Kreis Iserlohn. In 1910 Niederhemer and Oberhemer were merged into Hemer. In 1920 Lössel became part of the Amt Oestrich.
Communal reform of 1929
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. The idea of merging the three municipalities had already been mooted before the war, but due to the war it was not until 1920 that it was formally proposed. However, neither Sundwig nor Westig was initially enthusiastic and both later opposed the merger, mostly because the industrialists in the two places were worried that the tax rates would rise to the higher rates of Hemer. At the same time the city of Iserlohn
Iserlohn
Iserlohn is a city in the Märkischer Kreis district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the largest city by population and area within the district and the Sauerland region.-Geography:...
unsuccessfully tried to incorporate several municipalities: Letmathe and Oestrich to the west, and also the industrial municipalities of the Amt Hemer. Because of the opposition, the merger of the three municipalities was delayed until 1929, when it was carried out by order of the Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
n Ministry of the Interior. At the same time the municipality of Calle was split into four parts: the northern Griesenbrauck was added to Landhausen; Bilveringsen passed to Hemer; the central part around Wermingsen was incorporated into Iserlohn; and the southern parts passed to Westig. With effect from August 1, 1929, Hemer, Sundwig and Westig, as well as Landhausen and the remains of Calle were merged together, covering an area of 26.82 km² (10.36 mi²) and having a population of 13,809.
Also with effect from August 1, 1929, the municipality of Brockhausen was incorporated into Deilinghofen. The rural Brockhausen had only 588 inhabitants, and because of its low income was not considered to be financially viable as an independent unit.
On January 30, 1936 the municipality of Hemer received the right to call itself a city
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
(Stadt).
Military
In 1934 Hemer became a garrison town. In January 1934 it was decided to build three barracks in neighboring Iserlohn, which however was unable also to provide enough free land for a training area. At a meeting in June, land around the village of Apricke was selected, of which 3 km² was bought by the state in autumn of the same year. The hospital was also inspected and later acquired as a military hospital. This was very welcome to Hemer, as the hospital had turned out to be far too big and too expensive for the Amt, and in this way it was possible later to build a new smaller hospital.In December 1934 temporary barracks for one battalion were also built in Hemer. On October 30, 1936 an official garrison contract between Hemer and the state was signed, which included the building of permanent barracks. Construction was still unfinished when World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
started in 1939, but was then rushed through and the buildings were reassigned as a prisoner of war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
camp, the Stalag VI-A.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, but after the beginning of the war with the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
in 1941 Soviet POWs quickly became the majority.
It is estimated that during the six years of the war more than 200,000 inmates were held in the camp. Those who were capable of forced labour usually lived near their places of work, so the main camp was in a sense a "dying camp" for those who fell ill because of the bad living conditions and the hard labour. At an unconfirmed estimate, about 24,000 POWs were buried in Hemer. The fictional film Hart's War
Hart's War
Hart's War is a 2002 film about a World War II prisoner of war based on the novel by John Katzenbach starring Bruce Willis, Colin Farrell, Terrence Howard and Marcel Iureş...
is set in the camp in early 1945.
After the war the barracks of the Stalag, renamed to Camp Roosevelt were at first used as a camp for detaining Nazi prisoners. 1947 it was renamed to Casernes Ardennes and were used by the Belgian
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
army till 1955. After the establishment of the German Bundeswehr
Bundeswehr
The Bundeswehr consists of the unified armed forces of Germany and their civil administration and procurement authorities...
the barracks became home of a tank battalion in 1957. Originally simply named after its location on the Jüberg hill, it received its final name, Blücher-Kaserne, in 1964.
In 1953 Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
troops moved into newly built barracks in Deilinghofen (Forts Macleod and Prince of Wales) as well as two former German barrack complexes in Iserlohn (Forts QuèAppelle and Beausejour). Canadian soldiers and their families resided in two separate locations in Hemer. The main location centered around Berliner Strasse where the school and community center were located. The secondary location centered around Bredde Strasse, the site that was formerly used by the Belgians. In 1970 the Canadian military was transferred to bases in the Black Forest Region (Baden-Baden and Lahr) and most of the former Canadian holdings, including Married Quarters in Hemer, were taken over by British military. In 1994 the British left and the Deilinghofen barracks were converted to civil use with the barracks in Iserlohn either transferred back to the Bundeswehr or also converted to civil use.
Due to the changing duties of the Bundeswehr, tanks are not needed as much as they were during the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
. The closure of the barracks was announced in 2004, and on January 23, 2007 the last soldiers left Hemer, 50 years after the Bundeswehr moved into the barracks.
Communal reform of 1975
With the reorganization of the districts and municipalities in 1974 the Amt was dissolved. Evingsen had already become part of AltenaAltena
Altena is a town in the district of Märkischer Kreis, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The town's castle is the origin for the later Dukes of Berg. Altena is situated on the Lenne river valley, in the northern streches of the Sauerland.-History:...
in 1969. In 1974 Kesbern became part of Iserlohn
Iserlohn
Iserlohn is a city in the Märkischer Kreis district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the largest city by population and area within the district and the Sauerland region.-Geography:...
, while the other municipalities of Becke, Deilinghofen, Frönsberg and Ihmert were added to the town of Hemer.
Municipalities as of 1904
- Becke - consisting of the settlements (Wohnplätze) Brelen, Edelburg, Höcklingsen, Mesterscheid, Oese, Urbecke. Area 5.50 km² (2.12 mi²), population 501.
- Brockhausen - Apricke, Bäingsen, Brockhausen, Grevenborn, im Hagen, Hönnetal, Klusenstein, Riemke. Area 9.29 km² (3.59 mi²), population 526.
- Calle - Bilveringsen, Bredenbruch, zur Calle, Düingsen, Franzberg, Griesenbrauck, Magney, Schleddenhof, Wermingsen. Area 8.59 km² (3.32 mi²), population 900.
- Deilinghofen - Bautenheide, Deilinghofen, Habichtseil, Hembecke, Hohenstein, Langenbruch, Nierungsen. Area 9.68 km² (3.74 mi²), population 1124.
- Evingsen - Evingsen, Giebel, Heide, Heidermühle, Heidersiepen, Hüingsen, auf der Hütte, Kohlberg, Löttringsen, Löttringserhahn, Nettenscheid, Rüssenberg, Schwarzpaul, Springen, Stodt, Tüssenberg. Area 6.97 km² (2.69 mi²), population 1049.
- Frönsberg - Beckmerhagen, Drubbelhelle, Ebberg, Frönsberg (or Frönspert), Heppingsen, Heppingserbach, Hestern, Hültershagen, Ispei, Rohland, Stephanopel, Wachmecke, Winterhof (or Winterhoff). Area 6.03 km² (2.33 mi²), population 323.
- Ihmert - Bredenbruch, Dieckgraben, Elfenfohren, Hasberg, Holmecke, Ihmert, Ihmerterbach, Ihmerterort, Johannistal, Rottmecke, Stemmessiepen, Stümpen, Sülberg, Tüttebelle, Westendorf. Area 9.00 km² (3.47 mi²), population 987.
- Kesbern - Attern, Bräke, Oberdahlsen, Niederdahlsen, Eichholz, Eileringsen, Gunzenheide, im Hagen, Hardorn, Hegenscheid, vorm Hey, Kesbern, Lohsiepen, Lennenstück, Meerbrauck, Osthelle, im Schlaa, Siepen, Voswinkel, Wixberg. Area 13.40 km² (5.17 mi²), population 552.
- Landhausen - Krebsbach (Tannenberg), Landhausen, Stübecken. Area 5.12 km² (1.98 mi²), population 338.
- Lössel - Bühle, Dümpel, Düsternsiepen, Emberg, Großenstück, Häken, Heide, Hilkenhohl, Langenstück, Liehard, Lieth, Lössel, Lüsecken, Mooskamp, Pillingsen, Pillingserbach, Roden, Roland, Saat, Schmidthacke, Schorhelle, Selberg, Sieschotte, Silbering, Stümpen, Stübke, am Ühler. Area 6.86 km² (2.65 mi²), population 1214.
- Niederhemer - Haus Hemer, Niederhemer, Rosenhoff. Area 3.15 km² (1.22 mi²), population 2477.
- Oberhemer - area 3.43 km² (1.32 mi²), population 2,524.
- Sundwig - Dieken, Eichenufer (Eickenufer), Grüntal (Grünental), Siegeloh, Sundwig, Sundwigerbach, Wenhagen. Area 6.23 km² (2.40 mi²), population 1,383.
- Westig - Westig, Westigerbach, Westigerkreuz. Area 4.11 km² (1.59 mi²), population 1,756.
List of mayors
Until 1995 the mayorMayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
was an honorary post with only formal duties, while the actual head of administration was the Stadtdirektor. This system was introduced in 1946 by the British military government, and was abolished in 1999. However, when Reiner Hermann was forced to resign in 1994, shortly after the new system was adopted, Hemer became the first commune of North Rhine-Westphalia to get a professional mayor in 1995.
| Mayors | Stadtdirektor |
|---|---|
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Religion
As of 2005, 15.982 citizens were Protestants, 11,998 Roman Catholic, and 10,111 have other or no religion.Five Roman Catholic parishes are located in the city - St. Peter and Paul (Niederhemer, Becke), Christ König (Stadtmitte), St. Peter Canisius (Westig), St. Mary (Bredenbruch, Ihmert) and St. Bonifatius (Sundwig, Deilinghofen). All five parishes work together in a parish cluster (Pastoralverbund). They are member of the deanery
Deanery
A Deanery is an ecclesiastical entity in both the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or residence of a Dean.- Catholic usage :...
Märkisches Sauerland within the Archdiocese of Paderborn.
Points of interest
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
cave in Hemer, officially discovered in 1812, but probably known by locals long before. 470m of the cave system are accessible to visitors, with some stalactite
Stalactite
A stalactite , "to drip", and meaning "that which drips") is a type of speleothem that hangs from the ceiling of limestone caves. It is a type of dripstone...
s and the skeleton of a cave bear
Cave Bear
The cave bear was a species of bear that lived in Europe during the Pleistocene and became extinct at the beginning of the Last Glacial Maximum about 27,500 years ago....
on display.
The Felsenmeer nearby is a small Karst
KARST
Kilometer-square Area Radio Synthesis Telescope is a Chinese telescope project to which FAST is a forerunner. KARST is a set of large spherical reflectors on karst landforms, which are bowlshaped limestone sinkholes named after the Kras region in Slovenia and Northern Italy. It will consist of...
area, partially created by medieval mining, now located in a beech
Beech
Beech is a genus of ten species of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia and North America.-Habit:...
forest.
Shared with Menden
Menden (Sauerland)
Menden is a town in the district Märkischer Kreis, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located at the north end of the Sauerland near the Ruhr river.-History:...
and Balve
Balve
Balve is a town in the Märkischer Kreis district, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in Hönnetal, a narrow valley created by the river Hönne, which is near the Sorpesee, formerly part of Balve, and at the north end of the Sauerland, near Dortmund...
is the Hönnetal, a narrow valley with some beautiful cliffs carved into the same limestone bedrock by the river Hönne
Hönne
The Hönne is a left tributary river to the Ruhr, flowing through the northern Sauerland hills in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The spring of the Hönne is located in the west of Neuenrade at 437m above sea level. After 33 km the river ends near the town of Fröndenberg...
.
Coat of arms
The three golden wolf-hooks are derived from the arms of the Brabeck family, the owners of the manor Haus Hemer. The red and white fessFess
In heraldry, a fess or fesse is a charge on a coat of arms that takes the form of a band running horizontally across the centre of the shield. Writers disagree in how much of the shield's surface is to be covered by a fess or other ordinary, ranging from one-fifth to one-third...
on the left side is derived from the arms of the Counts of the Mark. The current coat of arms of the city was originally used by the Amt, but when the Amt was dissolved into the city in 1975 the city adopted it. It was chosen because it was heraldically and esthetically more satisfying, but also because the adoption of the coat of arms of the Amt symbolized the fact that the enlarged city continues the tradition of the Amt. The coat of arms was officially granted on March 16, 1976.
Bordure
In heraldry, a bordure is a band of contrasting tincture forming a border around the edge of a shield, traditionally one-sixth as wide as the shield itself...
round the whole shield, which was completely black with the three yellow wolf-hooks in the middle. This coat of arms was granted by the president of the province of Westphalia
Westphalia
Westphalia is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Arnsberg, Bielefeld, Dortmund, Minden and Münster.Westphalia is roughly the region between the rivers Rhine and Weser, located north and south of the Ruhr River. No exact definition of borders can be given, because the name "Westphalia"...
on January 14 (Amt) and January 15 (city) 1936.
In 1926 the municipality of Hemer was already planning the creation of a coat of arms. A draft using industrial symbols was made by Treude, but the director of the Prussian state archive in Münster
Münster
Münster is an independent city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also capital of the local government region Münsterland...
, Professor Schmitz-Kallenberg, advised against it. Instead he suggested two designs using the heraldic elements of families of Brabeck and of the Counts of the Mark. Hemer created new drafts using heraldic elements from the arms of previous owners of Haus Hemer (the families Overlacker and Wachtendonck), but in 1928 the topic was discontinued. When it was restarted in the 1930s the original suggestion of Professor Johannes Bauermann of the Prussian state archive was followed, with final artwork by the herald Waldemar Mallek.
In 1939 the other municipalities of the Amt also received coats of arms. All six took the three wolf-hooks as their common symbol, showing their membership in the Amt. Becke, Deilinghofen and Frönsberg combined them with coats of arms of former noble families of the municipality, while Evingsen, Ihmert and Kesbern combined them with symbols representing their main industries - shoe making for Evingsen, wire production for Ihmert and agriculture for Kesbern.
See also: Coat of arms in the Amt Hemer
Coat of arms in the Amt Hemer
After the city and the Amt Hemer were granted coat of arms in 1936, all of the remaining municipalities in the Amt received coat of arms until 1939...
Economics
Like most of the northern part of the present Märkischer KreisMärkischer Kreis
The Märkischer Kreis is a district in central North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighbouring districts are Unna, Soest, Hochsauerland, Olpe, Oberbergischer Kreis, Ennepe-Ruhr, and the city of Hagen.-History:...
, Hemer has a long industrial history. The most important industries in the beginning of the 20th century were wire
Wire
A wire is a single, usually cylindrical, flexible strand or rod of metal. Wires are used to bear mechanical loads and to carry electricity and telecommunications signals. Wire is commonly formed by drawing the metal through a hole in a die or draw plate. Standard sizes are determined by various...
production and wire manufacturing industries, but also rolling mills, foundries and machine production. Paper production was already declining at that time. In 1927 Hemer and Ihmert together had 27 wire factories - 23.7% of all wire factories in Germany at that time. However, as the factories were rather small the percentage is much less impressive when compared by number of employees.
During the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
as well as in the final part of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
many companies went into bankruptcy, but even today the industrial sector is above average in Hemer. The worldwide known fitting
Fitting
Fitting can refer to:* A dress fitting.* Any machine, component, piping or tubing part that can attach or connect two or more larger parts. For examples, see coupling, compression fitting or piping and plumbing fittings....
s producers Grohe and Keuco are based in Hemer.
Transport
Hemer is located on the highway A46, which has ended in the Iserlohn quarter of Bilveringsen just at the border of the Hemer since 1976 . The connection with another section of the A46 at ArnsbergArnsberg
Arnsberg is a town in the Hochsauerland district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the location of the Regierungsbezirk Arnsberg's administration and one of the three local administration offices of the Hochsauerlandkreis.-Geography:...
has been delayed ever since, as the original route was supposed to go through a nature reserve in Menden.
Neuenrade
Neuenrade is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, located in the hills of the Sauerland in the Märkischer Kreis.-Geography:The highest elevation in the town area is the Kohlberg with an altitude of 514 m above sea level. The lowest elevation is at Hölmecke with 190 m...
but the extension was never built. Hemer had two railway stations - one in Oberhemer and one in Westig. Because of a significant decline both in passenger numbers and in quantity of goods traffic, the service was wound up, and the last regular train went through Hemer on May 27, 1989. The track to Iserlohn was taken up, while the track to Menden was thereafter only used by the Bundeswehr for transporting their tanks. As the barracks are scheduled to be closed by 2007 these tracks will then fall into disuse as well.
Besides the regular railway, a narrow gauge railway using gauge first reached a municipality of the Amt Hemer in 1909, when Buchenwäldchen (Calle) was connected with Iserlohn. It was quickly extended: in 1913 almost all the municipalities of Hemer were connected to the network of the Westfälische Kleinbahnen AG. The railway was used both for a tram and for goods transport, with the railway station at Westig serving as the junction between the narrow gauge and the regular gauge railway.
Renamed Iserlohner Kreisbahn AG in 1942, operations were only briefly interrupted after World War II. In the 1950s however more and more sections of the narrow gauge railway had to be closed because they were no longer profit-making. The trams were replaced by buses, and trucks made the goods transport obsolete. In 1964 the goods transfer in Westig was closed; the trams had already closed in 1959.
Twin towns and city friendships
The city of Hemer inherited two twinningsTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
cities from the former municipalities of the Amt Hemer. Ihmert started a twinning with Beuvry
Beuvry
Beuvry is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France.-Geography:A suburban town immediately southwest of Béthune, southwest of Lille, at the junction of the D945, D72 and N41 roads...
in 1968, and Becke with Steenwerck
Steenwerck
Steenwerck is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It is located about north of Lille and as of 2003 has a population of 3260....
in 1966/67. Long-running city friendships exist with the German city Bretten
Bretten
Bretten is a town in the state of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located on Bertha Benz Memorial Route.-Geography:Bretten lies in the centre of a rectangle that is formed by Heidelberg, Karlsruhe, Heilbronn and Stuttgart as corners. It has a population of approximately 28,000. The centre of...
and with Obervellach
Obervellach
Obervellach is a municipality in the district of Spittal an der Drau in Carinthia in Austria. It is situated in the valley of the Möll river, on the southern slope of the Hohe Tauern mountain range...
in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
. On June 8, 1991 a friendship with the city of Doberlug-Kirchhain
Doberlug-Kirchhain
Doberlug-Kirchhain is a town in the district of Elbe-Elster, Brandenburg, Germany. -History:937. The town of Kirchhain was built by Margrave Gero. A document written in 1005 mentions the town Doberlug for the first time. In 1165 the Cistercian Dobrilugk Abbey was founded by Margrave Dietrich of...
in Brandenburg
Brandenburg
Brandenburg is one of the sixteen federal-states of Germany. It lies in the east of the country and is one of the new federal states that were re-created in 1990 upon the reunification of the former West Germany and East Germany. The capital is Potsdam...
was started. On January 25, 1992 a friendship with the Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n city of Shchyolkovo
Shchyolkovo
Shchyolkovo is a city and the administrative center of Shchyolskovsky District in Moscow Oblast, Russia, located on the Klyazma River , northeast of Moscow. Population: 112,865 ; 109,255 ; 91,000 . The settlement dates back to the 16th century. Town status granted to it in 1925...
became official.
Famous people from Hemer
- Willibrord BenzlerWillibrord BenzlerWillibrord Benzler OSB was the Roman Catholic Bishop of Metz from 1901 to 1919.Born as Karl Heinrich Johann Eugen Benzler in Niederhemer, Westphalia, the eldest son of Karl Benzler, an innkeeper, and his wife, Klementine , he was baptized at SS Peter and Paul Church on 24 October 1853...
(1853–1921), bishop of Metz - Hans PrinzhornHans PrinzhornHans Prinzhorn was a German psychiatrist and art historian.Born in Hemer, Westphalia, he studied art history and philosophy at the University of Vienna, receiving his doctorate in 1908. He then went to England to receive voice training, as he planned to become a professional singer...
(1886–1933), psychiatrist - Wolfgang BeckerWolfgang BeckerWolfgang Becker is a German film director and writer. He is best known to the international audience for his work Good Bye Lenin! .-Biography:...
(1954- ), film director
Literature
- Stopsack, Hans-Hermann (ed., for the Volkshochschule Menden-Hemer-Balve): Hemer 1944–1949. Erinnnerungen, Zeitzeugenberichte und Dokumente aus einer Zeit des Umbruchs. Self-published, Menden/Hemer 2004.
- Stopsack, Hans-Hermann: Vom Amt zur Stadt. Zur Geschichte von Amt und Stadt Hemer von 1900 bis zur Gegenwart. Self-published, Hemer 2000. ISBN 3-00-006685-3
- Thomas, Eberhard; Fischer, Klaus: Hemer. Stadt-Bild-Verlag, Leipzig 1996. ISBN 3-931554-12-0
- Stopsack, Hans-Hermann; Thomas, Eberhard (eds., for the town of Hemer and the Volkshochschule Menden-Hemer-Balve): Stalag VI A Hemer. Kriegsgefangenenlager 1939–1945. Eine Dokumentation. Hemer 1995.