Wetter (Ruhr)
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Wetter (Ruhr) is a town in western Germany and belongs to the area of Ruhr area and the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The river Ruhr flows through the urban area and separates the district of Altwetter from the districts of Esborn, Grundschöttel, Volmarstein and Wengern. The cities of Dortmund and Bochum can be reached within 20 minutes by train or car.
Population
(each measured at 12/31) 1998: 29.735, 1999: 29.946, 2000: 29.851, 2001: 29.675, 2002: 29.545, 2003: 29.337, 2004: 29.221History
In the documents the town Wetter is first mentioned in the year 1214 in relation with the Castle Wetter and the knights Bruno and Friedrich. Another famous castle ruin is the Castle Volmarstein which was build in the 11th century by the archbishop of Cologne. The castle is resided on the other side of the Ruhr in the district of Volmarstein which belongs to Wetter since the municipal community-reform in 1970.
In 1819 Friedrich Harkort founded the first mechanical workshop on the Castle Wetter to produce steam engines and gas light instruments. Next to his obligation in education and social policy he therefore laid the cornerstone of the early industrialization in the area of Ruhrgebiet and Germany. In the honor of Friedrich Harkort the storage lake between Wetter and the neighboring place Herdecke (Harkortsee) and the highest mountain (Harkortberg) was named after him.
Due to the lowering bombardments in 1944/45, during the second world war, the town became the domicile of the Reichsgau south-Westfalia, originally residing in Bochum.
Town Twinnings
- South Elmsall
- Turawa
- Stadtilm
Personalities
- Henriette Davidis. Today the Henriette-Davidis-museum reminds visitors of her.
- Friedrich Harkort
- Hoffmann von Fallersleben
- Freiherr vom Stein was between 1784 and 1793 headmaster of the mining-office in Wetter. He restructured the accountancy and is considered as the initiator of the municipal self-administration.
- Eduard Scheve. Born in 1836 in the district of Volmarstein was the originator of the deaconry of the Fellowship of the Protestant Free Churches.
Economy
- Demag Cranes & Components GmbH
- Taprogge GmbH
- ABUS
- Burg Wächter
External links
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