Bruno von Boehmer

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bruno von Boehmer, 1941

Bruno von Boehmer (* 30th May 1866 in Potsdam ; † 26. June 1943 in Wiesbaden ; Complete name: Carl Bruno von Boehmer or Karl Bruno von Boehmer ) was a German hydraulic engineering - engineering and construction officer, Mr . From 1897 to 1907 he designed and managed the modernization of the water supply for large parts of Rheinhessen and is therefore considered a pioneer of municipal water supply in Germany at the beginning of the 20th century.

childhood

Bruno von Boehmer was the youngest child of the Prussian District Court Councilor Justus Henning Friedrich von Böhmer (1807–1867) and Friederike Auguste von Görzke (1823–1866) and was thus the fifth generation of Justus Henning Böhmer from the Böhmer / von Boehmer family of lawyers . Bruno's mother died of cholera less than two months after he was born , and his father of pulmonary tuberculosis another six months later . With this, Bruno von Boehmer and his three siblings still alive became orphans . They found shelter with various foster parents, Bruno initially with his paternal aunt, Clara von Boehmer, then for nine years with his maternal aunt, Carolina Louis, nee. von Görzke, in Berlin .

education

Bruno von Boehmer as a student, 1886

With financial support from his brother Hugo Erich von Boehmer , nine years older than him, he succeeded in studying mechanical engineering in Karlsruhe in the then Grand Duchy of Baden from 1891 to 1896, with a degree as an engineer. Shortly afterwards he moved to what was then the Grand Duchy of Hesse-Darmstadt to take up his profession .

Political and economic situation

In 1871 the Grand Duchy of Hessen-Darmstadt had become a federal state in the German Empire . One of its three provinces was Rheinhessen with Mainz as its capital. At the time of Boehmers, Grand Duke Ernst Ludwig (1868–1937) , who was considered liberal and promoted art and science, ruled . In 1918 the Grand Duchy first became the People's State of Hesse , and in 1942 the Reichsgau Hessen-Nassau was formed.

By the end of the 19th century, the population and economy of the then province of Rheinhessen had increased significantly. As a result of low local occurrences and a number of unusually dry years, the water supply could not keep up; gradually she was in critical condition. In addition, in most communities the water had to be drawn from springs and small bodies of water far away and brought in by ox carts for hours.

On April 30, 1895, the ordinance “for the management of local cultural and technical business” was issued in the Grand Duchy of Hesse. So-called cultural inspections should look for technical, but also for legal ways (mostly in the form of state-recognized "associations") to improve the supply of the population.

Planning and construction of the water supply

As a young hydraulic engineer, Bruno von Boehmer learned of this decree in the neighboring state, left Karlsruhe and joined the Grand Duke as a construction officer. Already in 1897 - only 31 years old - he was promoted to the position of the “Board of Directors of the Grand Ducal Cultural Inspection in Mainz”, that is to say, the head of the authority responsible for the technical infrastructure in the province of Rheinhessen . He was directly subordinate to the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Industry of the Ministry of the Interior. First he found out about the current water supply situation in the province. Then in 1902 he submitted the result to the Ministry of the Interior in the form of a comprehensive "report". In it, he described the previous situation, then the probable future water demand, made concrete suggestions as to how the technical, structural, legal and organizational procedures for the water supply in the province of Rheinhessen could be fundamentally improved, and supplemented these suggestions with detailed profitability calculations.

"Report" to the Ministry (1902), contract (1906), publication (1907):

  • Estimation of water needs

  • Contract for the Schwabenheim ad Selz elevated tank

  • View of Friesenheim

  • Section Friesenheim

  • Estimate of profitability

  • For the water supply of the Rhein-Selz area

  • Main elevated tank Engelstadt (1907)

  • Wintersheim elevated tank (1907)

Rheinhessen and its railway lines 1896

In essence, what was new in Boehmers' plans was based on technically changing the water supply from individual extraction from springs and local watercourses and road transport to systematic filtration of Rhine water ( bank filtration ), targeted technical improvement (treatment) and control of water quality, storage in water tanks in the form of elevated tanks , pressure maintenance through pumping stations and regional pipeline-based distribution of water (pipeline network). From a legal and organizational point of view, this technical infrastructure should be monitored, maintained, managed and accounted for by five special-purpose associations that have yet to be established . Members of the associations should primarily be the communities; the whole thing should be supervised by the authorities.

Boehmers' “report” to the minister was discussed and approved in 1904 by the provincial chambers of estates. In October 1904 the ministry approved the necessary funds. As early as the spring of 1905, the technical measures began with a test facility. After their evaluation, the project went into implementation in May 1906. Wilhelm Lenz was commissioned with the architectural design of the building.

The work was already completed in September 1907, after the inauguration ceremony, the water supply was put into operation. Apart from systems for the extraction and treatment of the Rhine water, the system included the pipeline, control and distribution network and numerous buildings for elevated tanks and some pumping stations. Locations were in particular Bechtolsheim - Biebelnheim , Dalheim , Dexheim , Dienheim , Dorn-Dürkheim , Eimsheim and Dolgesheim , Engelstadt , Friesenheim , Gabsheim , Guntersblum , Hahnheim , Hangen-Wahlheim , Hillesheim , Mainz-Mombach , Ludwigshöhe , Schornsheim , Uelversheim , Undenheim , Weinolsheim and Wintersheim . At that time, the drinking water was mainly distributed to over 60 localities, without pumping stations, simply by the gradient from the highest building in the system, the main elevated tank Wintersheim . A contemporary map of the railways in this area names several of these locations. The buildings were well integrated into the landscape. Of some, two were manufactured identically, but otherwise they each have their own "character". With their facades made of white and yellow Flonheim sandstone and their roofs made of red and brown painted titanium zinc sheet, their lines are shaped by the Art Nouveau of that time . Many of them are still included in Rheinhessen's water supply, some such as the Guntersblum pumping station and the Mainz-Mombach elevated reservoir are now considered industrial and cultural monuments .

Dalheim - Dorn-Dürkheim, view around 2008:

  • Dalheim elevated tank

  • Dalheim elevated tank

  • Dexheim elevated tank

  • Dienheim elevated tank

  • Dorn-Dürkheim elevated tank

  • Dorn-Dürkheim elevated tank

Eimsheim-Dolgesheim - Hangen-Wahlheim, view around 2008:

  • Eimsheim-Dolgesheim elevated tank

  • Friesenheim elevated tank

  • Guntersblum pumping station

  • Guntersblum elevated tank

  • Guntersblum elevated tank

  • Hahnheim elevated tank

  • Main elevated tank Hangen-Wahlheim

Hillesheim - Wintersheim, view around 2008:

  • Hillesheim elevated tank

  • Ludwigshöhe elevated tank

  • Mainz-Mombach elevated tank

  • Uelversheim elevated tank

  • Weinolsheim elevated tank

  • Main elevated tank Wintersheim II

The system designed by Boehmer basically proved itself, but it was continuously optimized in the following years. The machine technology of the pumping stations was adapted to the technical progress. The high iron content could be reduced by additional technical measures. The extraction and distribution of the bank filtrate changed according to later requirements.

further activities

In addition to his work as an official director, Bruno von Boehmer still found time to work in his field of journalism. It was seen as the capacity to combine modern technical processes with legal, organizational and economic aspects of regional water supply.

After the project was completed, Bruno von Boehmer took over the post of swimming pool director in Bad Nauheim on a provisional basis in 1915 . At that time, the bathing director was the highest-ranking official in the Grand Duchy on site; he was particularly responsible for technical matters, but he could also be authorized to issue instructions to other departments on economic issues. In 1916, von Boehmer received this job full-time and was also employed as head of the civil engineering department. He became the successor to Carl Eser (1854-1915). Bad Nauheim was one of the largest health resorts in the whole of Germany. It had numerous international guests, so it was one of the so-called world baths . During the First World War , many civil and military convalescents from the other Central Powers Bulgaria , Austria-Hungary and Turkey allied with the German Empire visited it . In 1915, in neighboring Wiesbaden , a “German convalescent home” was opened especially for the “ Austro-Hungarian , Ottoman and Bulgarian Army and Navy” in the presence of Bruno von Boehmers .

In 1920 the third function was that of the spa director. In 1923 he had the spa building in Nauheim equipped with the technical innovations of the time and a large theater stage, thus continuing the work of Wilhelm Jost .

Retirement, reactivation

In 1931 Bruno was retired by Boehmer because he had reached the age limit . With the beginning of the Second World War he was hired again as deputy spa director in Bad Nauheim . He carried out this activity until he was 75.

Marriage, offspring, death

In 1892 Bruno von Boehmer married Maria Carolina Fischer (1871–1964), daughter of the landowner Philipp Fischer and Josephine Müller from Germersheim . The only child, daughter Ilse (1894–1988), was also born in Karlsruhe. In 1918 she married the royal Prussian Colonel Louis-Ferdinand von Matthießen (1868–1926). Bruno spent the last few years in Wiesbaden, where he died. The tomb of Bruno von Boehmer, his wife and daughter is in the cemetery of the Evangelical Congregation Düsseldorf-Kaiserswerth.

Appreciation and honors

With a short break of three years, Bruno von Boehmer was head of the cultural inspection for almost two decades and is undoubtedly one of its most important department heads. Through talent and personal commitment, he succeeded in setting up an almost nationwide water supply system in Rheinhessen.

The surviving documents show that in this project he combined aspects of mechanical and hydraulic engineering with those of environmental protection, landscape and industrial architecture, politics, business and economics, and association and municipal law in a completely new way at the time.

Letters from the responsible ministry therefore repeatedly praised Bruno von Boehmer's administration.

After the opening of the Rhein-Selz water supply association, the Grand Duke awarded him the Knight's Cross First Class of the Grand Ducal Hessian Order of Merit of Philip the Magnanimous on October 14, 1907 in view of his services .

A first commemorative publication during Boehmers lifetime was published in 1932 on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Rhein-Selz group waterworks in Guntersblum .

The spacious structures and buildings that Bruno von Boehmer planned and had executed at the beginning of the 20th century are still partly used today by Wasserversorgung Rheinhessen GmbH (WVR) or are at least preserved as monuments. 100 years after completion, this company paid tribute to Bruno von Boehmer's work with a commemorative publication and several articles in regional newspapers.

Fonts

  • The group waterworks in the province of Rheinhessen and the Bodenheim area. R. Oldenbourg Verlag , Munich and Berlin 1906.
  • The water supply for the Selz-Wiesbach area. R. Oldenbourg Verlag, Munich and Berlin 1906.
  • The water supply for the Seebach area. R. Oldenbourg Verlag, Munich and Berlin 1906.
  • The water supply for the Rhein-Selz area. R. Oldenbourg Verlag, Munich and Berlin 1907. Digitized.
  • ... in: The Health Engineer 1905, p. 20.
  • ... in: Journal for gas lighting and water supply 1905, p. 1090.
  • ... in: Journal for gas lighting and water supply 1906, p. 8 and p. 121.
  • ... in: Journal for gas lighting and water supply 1907, p. 289 and p. 449.
  • ... in: Journal for gas lighting and water supply 1908, p. 29.

literature

  • 25 years of group waterworks Rhein-Selz area Guntersblum a. Rhine 1907–1932. Festschrift for the anniversary on December 10, 1932. 1932.
  • Ulrich Kleine-Hering: The buildings of the Rheinhessische water supply 1900–1914. A state organization demonstration. In: Lively Rhineland-Palatinate. Pp. 159–163 (without year)
  • Hans-Thorald Michaelis : History of the von Boehmer family - In continuation of the genealogy written by Hugo Erich von Boehmer in 1892 of the Boehmer and von Boehmer families descended from Justus Henning Boehmer as well as some of the families related to them . Rheinische Verlagsanstalt, Bonn-Bad Godesberg (1978), 247 pages. Private archive
  • State Office for Water and Waste Management Mainz (Ed.), Anton Klipp (Red.): From the Grand Ducal Culture Inspectorate to the State Office for Water and Waste Management Mainz. A centenary 1895–1995. Mainz 1995.
  • Water supply Rheinhessen GmbH (Ed.): 100 years of water supply Rheinhessen GmbH 1904–2004. Bodenheim and Guntersblum, 2003.
  • Frank Frey, Volker Sonneck, Peter Klöppel: 100 years of drinking water from the Guntersblum waterworks. Forum Verlag, Riedstadt 2007, ISBN 3-937316-27-2 .

Web links

Commons : Bruno von Boehmer  - collection of images, videos and audio files

credentials

  1. ↑ Arnd Friedrich: The learned schools in Marburg, Kassel and Korbach between Melanchthonianism and Ramism in the second half of the 16th century . Volume 47 of sources and research on Hessian history , self-published by the Hessian Historical Commission Darmstadt and the Historical Commission for Hesse, 1983, p. 36
  2. ↑ Alexa Geisthövel: Promenade mixes. Space and communication . P. 203 ff in: Alexander CT Geppert, Uffa Jensen (Hg): Local calls: Space and communication in the 19th and 20th centuries . transcript Verlag, 2005, ISBN 9783899423129
  3. ^ Christel Langefeld: Bad Nauheim: Structural and functional change in a traditional spa town since the 19th century . Volume 105 of Marburg geographical writings . Self-published by the Marburg Geographical Society, 1986
  4. ^ Opening of the "German Convalescence Home" for the "Austro-Hungarian, Ottoman and Bulgarian Army and Navy" in the presence of Bruno von Boehmers  in the German Digital Library
personal data
SURNAME Boehmer, Bruno von
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Boehmer, Carl Bruno von (full name); Boehmer, Karl Bruno von
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German engineer and construction officer
DATE OF BIRTH May 30, 1866
PLACE OF BIRTH Potsdam
DATE OF DEATH June 26, 1943
Place of death Wiesbaden