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Basic data
State :	Lower Saxony
County :	Wolfenbüttel
Joint municipality :	Sank
Height :	160 m above sea level NHN
Area :	13.34 km 2
Residents:	890 (Dec. 31, 2019)
Population density :	67 inhabitants per km 2
Postal code :	38173
Area code :	05305
License plate :	WF
Community key :	03 1 58 012
Association administration address:	Am Kamp 12 ; 38173 Sickte
Mayor :	Heinrich Füchtjohann ( SPD )
Location of the municipality of Erkerode in the Wolfenbüttel district

Erkerode is a place and a municipality in the district of Wolfenbüttel in Lower Saxony . It is located on the western edge of the Elm ridge and around 17 kilometers southeast of Braunschweig . The approximately 3 km long Reitlingstal , which leads into the Elm, begins east of the village .

geography

Geographical location

Erkerode is located in the southeast of the city of Braunschweig and belongs to the Wolfenbüttel district . The place is in the western part of the Elm-Lappwald Nature Park , on the western edge of the Elm . The honeycomb crosses here from the Reitlingstal into the foreland. Erkerode is the capital of the municipality of Erkerode. The closest medium-sized centers are Helmstedt , Königslutter am Elm and Wolfenbüttel .

Neighborhoods

* Distance information relates to the distance to the town center.

City of Hanover (76 km)	City of Braunschweig (17 km)	City of Wolfsburg (25 km)	City of Königslutter am Elm (10 km)
City of Peine (40 km)	Sickte (6 km)	Cremlingen municipality (9 km)
City of Wolfenbüttel (13 km)	Lucklum district (1 km)		Reitlingstal Reitling-Weidehof (3 km)	City of Helmstedt
City of Salzgitter (30 km)	Municipality of Dettum (5 km)	Evessen community (2 km)	Schöppenstedt (5 km)
		Asse mountain range (12 km)

Community structure

The municipality of Erkerode consists of the districts Erkerode (652 inhabitants) and Lucklum (362 inhabitants), the latter a former medieval commander of the Teutonic Order . Before Erkerode belonged to the district of Braunschweig , after that the place or the community became part of the district of Wolfenbüttel . Erkerode belongs to the Samtgemeinde Sickte and with its 13.34 square kilometers protrudes far into the Elm ridge. There is also the north-easternmost area of the municipality of Sickte.

geology

Trochites from Erkerode

Erkerode is located on the edge of the Elm , a ridge whose formation began in the Triassic around 200 million years ago. In an earlier sea, the geologically named Germanic Basin , lived marine animals, the Terebratel . When they died, they formed a limestone layer and from this layer the Elm limestone was formed through compaction . Over a period of 100 million years, the sea floor bulged up to the Elm , caused by a 900 m thick salt deposit. The salt rock, which is lighter than the limestone above, pushed the Elm upwards.

The rocks in the Elm are limestone and used to be broken at the so-called Westhölzchen in Erkerode. It is a special limestone, the Erker or Trochitenkalk , which originated in the Upper Muschelkalk in the Trochitenkalk formation . This limestone is locally limited to the Erkerode area. It emerged from deposits of dead sea lilies in the warm, moving shallow sea. Sea lilies (crinoids) are a species of Encrinus liliiformis and are not plants. They were animals that fed on plankton . These animals were attached to the seabed by a stalk and carried a goblet-shaped body with arms at the top. The petrified stalk members are wheel-shaped and are called trochites . The sea lilies were so frequently found in the sea that after they died they piled up to form a layer of rock. In Erkerode, the church, walls and numerous stone house bases are made of this natural stone .

history

In 1175 the place Erkerode was first mentioned as Erikeroth . For a long time the village belonged to the noble court of Destedt and was owned by the von Veltheim family since the 12th century . The village is still dominated by farms of the medieval hook and streck farm types . The three-sided courtyard , which is also known as the “Erkeroder type”, can be found here and there.

In 1868 the pastor Gustav Stutzer from Erkerode, the doctor Oswald Berkhan and the Brunswick citizen Luise Löbbecke founded the "Idioten-Anstalt zu Erkerode". It should provide a home for sick and disabled people. A little later, between Lucklum and Sickte , four kilometers from the founding place of Erkerode, the "Evangelical Foundation Neuerkerode " , which is still known nationwide, was formed . Today, with over 900 employees, it is the largest employer in the Wolfenbüttel district.

The former Pfarrwitwenhaus in which this institution was created, was later used as a village school and since the 1980s the village community center .

Excursion restaurant Elm wait at the Elmrand

In 1902 the restaurant "Elm warte " was built above the town on the edge of the Elm . It developed into a popular excursion destination, especially for Braunschweig citizens. The location at around 200 meters above sea level is a vantage point from which a view far into the country to the west (Braunschweig) and south ( Harz - Brocken ) is possible. In the 1950s and 1960s, a development with weekend houses was built in the area between the town center and the Elmwarte and on the hillside to Reitlingstal . The houses were not only built by short vacationers from Berlin (because of their proximity to the Helmstedt border crossing ), but also by lawyers and tax advisors from Braunschweig who used their bungalows as permanent homes. In addition, in the 1950s, single-family houses were built on the outskirts of the town center by people who had been expelled from their homeland and those who moved from the GDR.

In the local elections in 1968, one of the two mayoral candidates at the time led to an election fraud . The election was declared invalid by the court and repeated in 1969.

Incorporations

On March 1, 1974, the neighboring community of Lucklum was incorporated and Hötzum was incorporated into the new community of Sickte.

Explanation of the place name

Old names of the place are 1175 Erikeroth, 1179 Erikeroth, 1268 Erekerode, 1343 Erkerode, 1378 Erkerode and 1440 Erkerod. The place name is an education with the basic word -rode . The defining word is the personal name Erik. Its basis is controversial; presumably one can assume a personal name formation with “aro” for “eagle”. This can also be based on a derived short name or a full name with the second component “‑rik”. This is to be assigned to the personal name tribe “ricja” for “rich, powerful”. A decision as to which of the two is the correct interpretation of the origin of the place name is not possible. Both personal name elements were frequently used in Old Saxon.

politics

Municipal council

The Erkerode council, elected in the Lower Saxony local elections on September 10, 2006, consisted of 11 members.

The CDU provided 6 mandate holders, the SPD was represented by 3 people and Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen had 2 seats on the council. Johann-Heinrich von Henninges (CDU) was confirmed in office as mayor, who has held this office since June 1998 from the deceased long-time official Albert Nolte. Nolte was mayor of the town and the municipality of Erkerode for more than 25 years.

The municipal council elected in Lower Saxony's local elections in September 2011 and 2016 consists of 9 members. On November 16, 2011, Dr. Claus Harmsen (SPD) elected mayor by the local council with an absolute majority. In January 2013, Mayor Claus Harmsen announced his resignation for personal reasons. The new election led to the appointment of Dr. Heinrich Füchtjohann (SPD) as the new mayor of the municipality of Erkerode, who also received by far the most individual votes of all applicants in the 2016 local elections. The general administrative representative of the mayor is building authority manager Michael Waßmann.

The 2016 mandate distribution resulted in four seats for the SPD, four seats for the CDU and one seat for Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen. The SPD and Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen have formed a group in the council. Dr. Heinrich Füchtjohann (SPD) was re-elected as mayor. Deputy mayors are Peter Streilinger (CDU) and Carsten Marowsky-Brée (Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen).

coat of arms

In 1985 the municipality of Erkerode received a coat of arms . It shows an ammonite in the heraldic right field, which points to the earlier limestone quarries on the edge of the Elm (as on "Westhölzchen"). The water wheel in the heraldic left field is reminiscent of the water mills that once existed on the honeycomb that flows through the village. The cross in the lower field symbolizes the coming of the Teutonic Knight Order in the parish of Lucklum .

Culture and sights

The honeycomb in Erkerode

From what were once several watermills along the honeycomb, one is still in operation today. The watermill is a station on the Lower Saxony Mill Road . It can be viewed on Whit Monday during the "German Milling Day ". The plant is run by the Mühlenverein Erkerode e. V. entertain.

Own fixed currency

On the annual German Mill Day on Whit Monday, a mill festival takes place in the courtyard of the watermill on Evessener Straße. At this event, the euro can be exchanged for the substitute currency “Elmtaler”. These are small wooden coins with the image of a mill wheel. The Elmtaler can be divided up to a maximum of a quarter, 25 cents accordingly.

Buildings

St. Peter's Church, bricked with bay windows or trochitic lime

The St. Petri Church was built in the 14th century and was built in the Romanesque style. It is equipped with an organ by the master organ builder Johann Christoph Zuberbier from 1747.

societies

Sports club Rot / Weiß Lucklum Erkerode e. V .: The sports club founded in 1949 has several tennis and soccer fields.

Men's choir: In the summer of 1866, at the suggestion of Pastor Gustav Stutzer, the men's choir was founded at a foundation festival. Since the number of active singers was steadily declining, in 1993 the association entered into a choir association with the male choir Groß Denkte .

Friends of the Erkerode / Lucklum volunteer fire brigade to support the local fire brigade

Citizens' association of the municipality of Erkerode / Lucklum: Association for the promotion of local homeland maintenance and other charitable tasks as well as for the organization of events such as village festivals, founded in April 2010.

Regular events

Easter fire annually on the evening of Holy Saturday at “Westhölzchen” near the Elmrand
Lively advent calendar of the parish Erkerode-Lucklum
Maypole , erected on May 1, 2006 for the first time since 1938. The tree is popularly known as asparagus .
Mill Festival, annually on Whit Monday on the grounds of the watermill

Economy and Infrastructure

The "SOWIWAS-Energie (sun, wind and water) GmbH", which generates energy from regenerative sources, has its headquarters in the watermill on the Wabe . At the end of March 2009, the only restaurant in town with a restaurant with a large hall was closed, and in September 2011 the village shop was closed due to poor profitability. There is a carpentry shop and a hairdresser in the village. Between May 2011 and April 2017 there was a meeting place for all residents in the former fire station on the Wabe under the Low German name "Klönstuv".

traffic

Due to its location in the Elm-Lappwald nature park, Erkerode is away from major traffic routes. The place is connected by a district road to the state road 625 running about one kilometer west of the place and the L 290 running about 7 km east of the place. The L 625 crosses the federal motorway 39 after about 8 km .

Public institutions and buildings

Lucklum village community center, former Lucklum school, today used by the "Rot-Weiss Lucklum / Erkerode sports club from 1949" and as refugee accommodation.
Fire brigade and civil defense as non-police security: The Erkerode volunteer fire brigade was founded in 1876 . Since then, she has provided fire protection and general help, especially at local level. On May 8, 1999, the Erkerode youth fire department was founded as a department of the fire department. In 2002, the Lucklum and Erkerode fire departments merged .
Erkerode kindergarten, a local polling station since 2013
Klönstuv an der Wabe, Erkerode, former fire station, built in 1954, still an occasional meeting place for citizens today.

environmental Protection

The Reitlingstal amphibian protection group has existed in Erkerode since the end of the 1980s and is responsible for the continued existence of toads, frogs and salamanders. In spring and autumn the group accompanies the amphibians on their hikes in Reitlingstal .

Personalities

Gustav Stutzer (1839–1921), pastor in Erkerode, founder of the Evangelical Foundation in Erkerode and Neuerkerode
Karl von Schwartz (1873–1943), Lutheran pastor, cathedral preacher in Braunschweig
Claus Harmsen (* 1947), lawyer, accredited journalist in the Bundestag, former mayor of Erkerode, no longer resident in Erkerode
Michael Fuder (born May 16, 1957), local politician from Alliance 90 / The Greens and member of the 2009 Federal Assembly

Web links

Commons : Erkerode - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Municipality of Erkerode on the website of the Samtgemeinde Sickte
Erkerode on Braunschweig tours
Wassermühle Erkerode e. V.

Individual evidence

↑ State Office for Statistics Lower Saxony, LSN-Online regional database, Table 12411: Update of the population, as of December 31, 2019 ( help ).
^ Federal Statistical Office (ed.): Historical municipality directory for the Federal Republic of Germany. Name, border and key number changes in municipalities, counties and administrative districts from May 27, 1970 to December 31, 1982 . W. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart / Mainz 1983, ISBN 3-17-003263-1 , p. 267 .
^ Jürgen Udolph (research): The "place name researcher". In: website NDR 1 Lower Saxony . Archived from the original on December 3, 2016 ; accessed on August 4, 2019 .
↑ Local elections 2016. Samtgemeinde Sickte, accessed on September 14, 2016 .

[Metadaten_Einwohnerzahl_DE-NI-1] State Office for Statistics Lower Saxony, LSN-Online regional database, Table 12411: Update of the population, as of December 31, 2019 ( help ).

[2] Federal Statistical Office (ed.): Historical municipality directory for the Federal Republic of Germany. Name, border and key number changes in municipalities, counties and administrative districts from May 27, 1970 to December 31, 1982 . W. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart / Mainz 1983, ISBN 3-17-003263-1 , p. 267 .

[3] Jürgen Udolph (research): The "place name researcher". In: website NDR 1 Lower Saxony . Archived from the original on December 3, 2016 ; accessed on August 4, 2019 .

[4] Local elections 2016. Samtgemeinde Sickte, accessed on September 14, 2016 .