Egerkingen
| Egerkingen | |
|---|---|
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| State : |
 Switzerland
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| Canton : |
 Solothurn (SO)
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| District : | Gäu |
| BFS no. : | 2401 |
| Postal code : | 4622 |
| Coordinates : | 626 901 / 241322 |
| Height : | 440 m above sea level M. |
| Height range : | 426–966 m above sea level M. |
| Area : | 6.95 km² |
| Residents: | 3683 (December 31, 2018) |
| Population density : | 530 inhabitants per km² |
| Website: | www.egerkingen.ch |
 View from the "Höchi Flue" above Egerkingen towards the Alps |
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| Location of the municipality | |
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Egerkingen is a municipality in the Gäu district in the canton of Solothurn in Switzerland .
geography
Egerkingen is located at the northeastern end of the Gäu district. Its neighboring communities are in the north Langenbruck , northeast Hägendorf , east Gunzgen , southeast Härkingen , south Neuendorf , southwest Oberbuchsiten and in the northwest Holderbank SO . Egerkingen thus borders the Olten and Thal districts of its own canton, while the border with the canton of Basel-Landschaft is shared with the hamlet of Bärenwil in the municipality of Langenbruck . The northern half is covered by the Unterwald forest, while the southern half is made up of settlements and arable fields.
history
Egerkingen, a village in the former Buchsgau at the southern foot of the Jura , of which the chronicler Haffner wrote in 1666 that it was a semi-earthly paradise , is one of the oldest settlements in the canton of Solothurn. The Olten soil researcher Theodor Schweizer has excavated a prehistoric, Neolithic refuge on the Ramelen foothill . The Roman period is also represented by several sites, for example at the Kleinfeld schoolhouse, at the “Halbmond” restaurant, in the part of the village behind the church and at today's “Fridau Clinic”. A Roman manor was excavated in the “Santel”, and the Catholic St. Martin's Church also stands on Roman walls. In 1957 an Alemannic burial ground was discovered.
The Alamanni , who advanced into this area around 500, became the successors of the so-called Helveto - Romans . A clan of the Alemanni settled here under their leader and namesake Agarich after the final collapse of the Roman Empire. The name of the village changed from Agarichingen to Egrachingen, Egrichen (first mentioned in a document in 1201), to Egerchingen (1212) to Egerkingen .
From the group of German-speaking Alemanni, the nobles gradually emerged from the Führer families, whose counts served as the highest judges in the Gäu in the name of the king.
The Landgraviate of Buchsgau, with Neuendorf and Egerkingen, was donated to the diocese of Basel in 1080 by King Heinrich IV . In 1402 Hans von Blauenstein sold Neu-Falkenstein Castle and the four villages of Egerkingen, Härkingen, Neuendorf and Wolfwil to the city of Solothurn. With the accession to the sovereign territory of Solothurn, the Counts of Froburg took over the scepter in the community. In 1478 they still owned a documented farm in Egerkingen, from which they received their tithes . In 1481 Egerkingen became federal together with Solothurn .
The history of the old (upper) mill goes back even further: in 1385 it belonged to the knight Hug von Falkenstein, who bequeathed it to his wife Anna von Durrach. The current shape of the building dates from 1614. After the closure in 1970 and the renovation in 1991, the old mill is available as a conference venue and meeting place for the public.
Around 1724 the village stretched along the Flüebach down to the upper mill, then along the road from the Halbmond restaurant to the Kreuz restaurant, and finally up on the mountain slope as a suburb to the “Färch”. The original village center with gardens and farmsteads was surrounded by a box fence to protect it from grazing cattle, which has been partially preserved in the area of the “Jakobsleiter” and the “Flüehloch”. The majority of the villagers pursued a trade: blacksmith, weaver, tailor, rope maker, beekeeper, shoemaker, to name but a few.
The Catholic St. Martin's Church is one of the oldest churches in Switzerland. It was first mentioned in a document in 1294 and is now under the protection of the Swiss Confederation.
After the opening of the railway line between Solothurn and Olten ( Gäubahn ) in 1876 had only minor effects on local industry, the strong population growth in the last 50 years was mainly triggered by the construction of the national roads, which resulted in the settlement of a large number of companies. From 1970 Egerkingen was at the intersection of the two most important road connections in Switzerland, the A1 and A2 motorways. This development was positive for both job and service offerings.
Egerkingen is also popular as a congress location; every eighth night in the canton of Solothurn is booked here.
population
| Population development | |
|---|---|
| year | Residents |
| 1837 | 949 |
| 1850 | 1011 |
| 1900 | 983 |
| 1950 | 1440 |
| 2004 | 2882 |
| 2005 | 2868 |
| 2006 | 2935 |
| 2007 | 2974 |
| 2008 | 3098 |
| 2009 | 3160 |
| 2010 | 3136 |
| 2011 | 3153 |
| 2012 | 3294 |
| 2013 | 3308 |
| 2014 | 3399 |
Attractions
The Catholic St. Martins Church in the historic part of the village in the north and the Reformed Paulus Church in the south are features of the village. At irregular intervals, a large wooden cross shines above Jacob's ladder, which was erected by a charity group of the Catholic Marting community.
The direct connection to the motorway or the nearby motorway junction is important for the development of the community.
coat of arms
The coat of arms of Egerkingen shows a green Zweiberg on a blue background, each with a green fir tree, topped by three yellow lilies, of which the middle one has fallen.
Personalities
- Urs Josef Hammer (1779–1843), captain in the service of Napoleon , knight of the Legion of Honor and holder of the Order of Louis
- Josef Meinrad Rauber (1861–1939), school teacher , cultural promoter and father of singers
- Othmar von Arx (* 1919), sculptor
- Reto von Arx (* 1976), ice hockey player
Web links
- Official website of the municipality of Egerkingen
- Urs Wiesli: Egerkingen. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Permanent and non-permanent resident population by year, canton, district, municipality, population type and gender (permanent resident population). In: bfs. admin.ch . Federal Statistical Office (FSO), August 31, 2019, accessed on December 22, 2019 .