Höhr-Grenzhausen

Basic data
State :	Rhineland-Palatinate
County :	Westerwaldkreis
Association municipality :	Höhr-Grenzhausen
Height :	250 m above sea level NHN
Area :	15.89 km 2
Residents:	9261 (Dec. 31, 2019)
Population density :	583 inhabitants per km 2
Postal code :	56203
Area code :	02624
License plate :	WW
Community key :	07 1 43 032
City structure:	3 districts
Association administration address:	Rathausstrasse 48 ; 56203 Höhr-Grenzhausen
Website :	www.hoehr- Grenzhausen.de
City Mayor :	Michael Thiesen
Location of the town of Höhr-Grenzhausen in the Westerwaldkreis

Höhr-Grenzhausen is a town in the Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate . It is a center of the ceramic industry in the Kannenbäckerland with the University of Applied Sciences for Ceramics or School for Ceramic Design, hence the nickname “Kannenbäckerstadt”.

Höhr-Grenzhausen, aerial photo (2014)

The city belongs to the association of the same name , whose seat it is. Höhr-Grenzhausen is designated as a middle center according to state planning .

geography

Höhr-Grenzhausen is located in the Kannenbäckerland and the Niederwesterwald on the edge of the Nassau Nature Park . The city is located on the Montabaurer Höhe about 4 km west of the alarm pole .

The most important bodies of water in the municipality are the Brexbach , the Aubach (rises in Grenzhausen), the Ferbach (rises in Höhr) and the Masselbach , a tributary of the Brexbach near Grenzau.

The districts of Höhr-Grenzhausen are Höhr, Grenzau and Grenzhausen. The neighboring communities are Alsbach , Hilgert , Hillscheid , Kammerforst , Ransbach-Baumbach , Vallendar ( Mayen-Koblenz district ) and Weitersburg (Mayen-Koblenz district).

history

Grenzhausen

Grenzhausen is first mentioned in a document in 1281. The place seems to have been part of Isenburg at first , later between Wied and Kurtrier . Grenzau received city rights in 1346. It is possible that Grenzhausen already had its own parish in the 14th century, but in 1504 it belonged to the parish of Vallendar . The church was first mentioned in 1510, but the building can be traced back to the early or high Middle Ages due to its Romanesque west tower. The Reformation was introduced in Grenzhausen in 1578.

During the Thirty Years War a battle between Bavarian troops under Johann von Werth and Hessian troops, which the Hessians lost, occurred near Grenzhausen . They had tried to break the ring of siege that the French occupation of the Ehrenbreitstein fortress had placed on them.

In 1878 the church in Grenzhausen was extensively rebuilt, replacing a Gothic choir and a nave with new buildings. In 1879 Grenzhausen became the seat of a local court . At the end of the 19th century, a paint mill went into operation in the village.

For Grenzhausen, 33 houses have been handed down in 1664, 108 families for 1734, 47 of them kannenbaker (pottery) and eight tobacco pipe maker families. In 1789 there are 1000 inhabitants, in 1832 930 and in 1885 1577.

Grenzau

Today's Grenzau district goes back to the castle of the same name , in whose truce it was located together with Kammerforst . In a document from 1338 there is talk of a house and a bailey at Grenzau Castle. It should have been the core of the village of Grenzau. In 1346 Baldwin of Luxembourg gave it city rights under Frankfurt law, but these were never used. Even after the castle was no longer used, the castle truce area remained, so that the residents of Grenzau were free from compulsory labor in 1756. The place seems to have been closely connected with Kammerforst at times. In 1723 Grenzau and Kammerforst are mentioned as a common municipality, in 1813 a common mayor is mentioned for both. In 1775, however, Kammerforst had its own mayor.

The seat of the responsible parish was Alsbach until the introduction of the Reformation in 1578 , then Nauort . Until the construction of the Church of St. Peter and Paul in 1792, the people of Grenzau used the castle chapel. In 1785 a school in the village is mentioned for the first time.

The local economy in the 17th century was essentially limited to pottery, wool and linen weaving. Agriculture was only practiced to a small extent and mainly as grassland farming. The tavern, first mentioned in 1614, was of importance as it had the right to ban and for which a stately half-timbered building was built in 1631. There also seems to have been hop growing in the 17th century and before that there was viticulture. A mill is first recorded in 1464. In 1666 an oil mill was also built, but in 1752 it was described as derelict. In 1804 a quarry is mentioned in the district.

The first information on the population dates back to 1720 and mentions 30 houses. In 1723 21 marriages and two widows are mentioned, in 1813 37 families, 23 of them with cattle. In 1787 there are 143 inhabitants, in 1823 169 and in 1826 193.

Höhr-Grenzhausen

The town of Höhr-Grenzhausen was formed on April 1, 1936 from the previously independent communities of Höhr, Grenzhausen and Grenzau. At the same time the new community was elevated to the status of a city.

Population development

The development of the population of Höhr-Grenzhausen based on today's urban area; the values from 1871 to 1987 are based on censuses:

year	Residents
1815	1,902
1835	2,523
1871	3.213
1905	5,537
1939	5,936
1950	7,026
1961	8,402

year	Residents
1970	8,430
1987	8,199
1997	10,064
2005	9,790
2011	9,177
2017	9,353
2019	9,261

politics

City council

The city council in Höhr-Grenzhausen consists of 24 council members who were elected in a personalized proportional representation in the local elections on May 26, 2019 , and the honorary city mayor as chairman.

The distribution of seats in the city council:

choice	SPD	CDU	Green	FDP	FWG	total
2019	4th	6th	4th	1	9	24 seats
2014	5	7th	3	-	9	24 seats
2009	6th	8th	2	1	7th	24 seats
2004	5	10	2	1	6th	24 seats

FWG = Free Voting Group Kannenbäckerland e. V.

City Mayor

Michael Thiesen (FWG) became mayor of Höhr-Grenzhausen on July 6, 2009. In the direct election on May 26, 2019, he was confirmed in office for another five years with 67.09 percent of the votes cast.

Thiesen's predecessor Jürgen Johannsen held the office from 1991 to 2009.

coat of arms

	Blazon : "The coat of arms shows three blue Frankfurt pitchers in silver."

Town twinning

Höhr-Grenzhausen has twinned cities with the Italian city of Laigueglia / Riviera (since 1972) and the French city of Semur-en-Auxois / Burgundy (since 1987).

Culture and sights

Museums

In the city there is the Ceramic Museum Westerwald with a collection of historical and contemporary modern ceramics and a museum for city history. Furthermore, there is the private Museum of Ceramics in Can furnace ( "pottery and museum in the can stove") in the last kiln surviving buildings (technical monument) for the formerly burned in an open wood fire at 1250 ° C typical blue-gray salzglasierte Westerwald stoneware .

The Kultur-Kasino has been in existence on Kasinostraße since 2007, and until 2016 there were regularly changing ceramic exhibitions to visit. Since then you can find a permanent exhibition of handmade ceramic products from all over Germany in the rooms. A small café is attached.

Buildings

Evangelical Church
Grenzau Castle
UNESCO World Heritage Site Upper Germanic-Raetian Limes in the urban area

→ Main article Small fort Ferbach .

See also the list of cultural monuments in Höhr-Grenzhausen

Sports

The table tennis Bundesliga team TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau is at home in the Grenzau district of Höhr-Grenzhausen , and the Olympic table tennis center in Rhineland-Palatinate is also located there.

Economy and Infrastructure

economy

The largest employer in Höhr-Grenzhausen is the Steuler Holding GmbH with approx. 600 employees at the Höhr-Grenzhausen location (approx. 2500 employees worldwide). The Steuler Group produces in particular special ceramics for use in industry and plant construction. In addition to Steuler, there are around 20 smaller ceramic companies, mostly family-owned, based in Höhr-Grenzhausen, which mainly specialize in artistic ceramics. Once a year (June) one of the largest ceramic markets in Germany takes place in Höhr-Grenzhausen.

The Association of the Refractory Industry e. V. will move from Bonn to a new building near the University of Applied Sciences in Höhr-Grenzhausen.

Furthermore, in Höhr-Grenzhausen RASTAL GmbH & Co. KG (450 employees in Höhr-Grenzhausen) and the SAHM GmbH & Co. KG (about 500 employees at the headquarters in Höhr-Grenzhausen) resident. Both companies are active as manufacturers of decorated drinking vessels, especially beer glasses.

In addition, the software company IBS with 175 employees is based in Höhr-Grenzhausen. The Linus Wittich publishing house is still located in the Höhr district. He publishes official gazettes and newsletters throughout Rhineland-Palatinate and Germany. Around 900 people are employed in the publishing group.

tourism

Höhr-Grenzhausen has two large four-star superior hotels which, together with other private rooms and holiday apartments, offer over 110,000 overnight stays a year. Most tourists visit Höhr-Grenzhausen because of the ceramic factories, the ceramic museum or the numerous hiking, cycling and Nordic walking trails in the area.

Bike trails

The German Limes Cycle Path leads through Höhr-Grenzhausen . This follows the Upper German-Raetian Limes over 818 km from Bad Hönningen on the Rhine to Regensburg on the Danube .

traffic

The station Höhr-Grenzhausen was on a branch of Engers-Au railway ; during the summer months and events leading to the Brexbachtalbahn eV, which for the reopening of the railway line for the regional rail transport uses some special trips per year with rail buses through.

The closest connections to local rail transport are at Koblenz-Ehrenbreitstein and Engers stations. There is a connection to long-distance rail traffic at Koblenz main station and at Montabaur station .

There are various bus routes, including a. as part of the Koblenz city bus ( EVM ).

education

Colleges

In Höhr-Grenzhausen there is a campus of the Koblenz University of Applied Sciences , which specializes in the fields of artistic ceramics as well as materials technology glass and ceramics and trains future bachelors and masters of engineering.

schools

Höhr-Grenzhausen has a primary school with the Goethe School. There is also a school center with the Ernst-Barlach- Realschule plus and the grammar school in the Kannenbäckerland. There is also a technical college for ceramic technology and ceramic design. There is also a BBS Montabaur vocational school for ceramics there. The Schillerschule is a special school for children with learning disabilities .

sons and daughters of the town

Friedrich Held (1801–1878), bailiff and member of the state parliament
Georg Steuler (1878–1952), founded the family company Steuler Industriewerke in 1908. He invented the world's first acid-resistant glass putty. In 1910, Steuler began producing acid-resistant and refractory stone grades in Höhr-Grenzhausen, where the company's headquarters are still today.
Hermann Geisen (1899–1943), communist, fighter in Spain and resistance fighter against National Socialism
Werner Klein (1914–1964), entrepreneur and politician (FDP)
Hermann Hoffmann (1922–2010), designer and farmer
Wendelin Stahl (1922–2000), ceramist and artisan
Ernst Wolfgang Buchholz (* 1923), social researcher, sociologist and population scientist
Paul Zimmerling (1927-2006), artist ( ceramics )
Karlheinz Zöller (1928–2005), flautist
Manfred Reimann (* 1928), politician (SPD)
Anni Schneider (1930–2001), politician (SPD)
Heiner Balzar (* 1937), ceramist
Klaus Budewig (1941–2020), President of the Saxon Constitutional Court
Vera Vehring (* 1944), artist (ceramics)
Anke Maggauer-Kirsche (* 1948), poet and aphorist
Ulrich Mäurer (* 1951), lawyer and politician (SPD)
Klaus Norbert Steuler , until January 2001 managing director of Steuler Industriewerke for 23 years

literature

Heribert Fries: Kurrimurri: Memories of the Kannenbakers in Höhr-Grenzhausen . City of Höhr-Grenzhausen, Höhr-Grenzhausen 1993, ISBN 3-9801311-3-0 .
Heribert Fries: Alt- Höhr- Grenzhausen , Ed .: City of Höhr-Grenzhausen, Höhr-Grenzhausen 1986.
Werner Baumann, Angelika Mischler-Hoffmann: Euler , Ed .: Stadt Höhr-Grenzhausen, 1983.
Angelika Mischler-Hoffmann: The technical language of the Euler in Kannenbäckerland , state examination thesis Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz 1979.
Hellmuth Gensicke : The parishes Alsbach and Grenzhausen . In: Nassau Annals . Volume 68, 1957, pp. 246-261 .
Hellmuth Gensicke: Grenzau and Kammerforst . In: Nassau Annals . 73rd Volume, 1962, pp. 250-262.