Upper iron hammer

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The Obere Eisenhammer is an iron hammer in the district of Exten of the city of Rinteln ; it is a cultural and historical industrial monument . The foundation goes back to the years around 1745. Since 1648 the county of Schaumburg belonged to the Landgraviate of Hessen-Kassel , or Electorate of Hesse for short . Elector Wilhelm IX./I. at this time had the first metalworking companies set up near Exten. Until 1970, spades, hoes and other tools were forged here by hand under a water-powered tail hammer by experienced blacksmiths .

history

In the 14th century the "Mühlenexter" was created, which supplied the mill of the Jakobikloster and the moat of Rinteln with water. In 1477 it is mentioned in chronicles that water mills were operated as grain mills in Exten. Even in dry years, e.g. B. during the great drought of 1512, the Exter still carried enough water to drive the mill wheels.

The iron hammers in Exten were built near the Ellermühle. Water was fed via hammer ditches to the mill wheels that drove the early tail hammers. Spring hammers with a drop weight of up to 120 kg were used later. Mainly agricultural commodities - straw knives, scythes, spades and shovels - were produced, up to 9000 pieces annually.

At the end of the 19th century, competition grew stronger, especially from the Solingen industry that used modern machines . Around 1910, the last two knife factories in town closed, leaving only two iron hammers of the once flourishing Exter iron industry. The raw material came primarily from the rolling mills in Peine and grindstones came from southern Germany. Only shovels, spades, axes, hatchets and garden tools were made.

building

The Obere Eisenhammer lies in the breakthrough valley of the Exter on a flat valley floor on the edge of the Lippe Keuperbergland between the slopes of the Kehl in the west and the Taubenberg in the east, at the end of the "Ossenbeeke" road.

The Obere Eisenhammer has been owned by the Karl Wille and Wilhelm Wille families since 1842. There were two hammers next to each other, of which only this one is almost unchanged. The preserved half-timbered building of the forge was erected around 1803. It is a single-storey half-timbered building with a gable roof, on the gable sides with a crooked hip. The stud frame is made of oak, the compartments made of wickerwork with clay plaster. The foundations are made of rubble stones, as is the base on which the framework stands. The sole is made of tamped clay. It is about 1.10 m higher than the Hammergraben spout, which runs right next to the building.

There is a reservoir behind the building. This is fed with water from the Exter via a hammer ditch. A water art was used to regulate the flow of water to the overshot water wheels on both sides. These were mounted on a large wooden shaft that reached into the interior of the building. This powered the early tail hammers, grindstones and transmissions for all machines and blowers.

The tail hammer was dismantled in 1953 and replaced by modern, more productive spring and drop hammers. Around 1960, instead of a water wheel, an Ossberger cross- flow turbine was installed on the west side of the building to generate electricity. The transmission was now operated.

The company was shut down in 1970. After the closure, efforts were made to preserve the early industrial monument. As early as 1979, the building assessor FH Sonnenschein, who was the leading state building director and museum director in Hagen , wrote an expert opinion. He realized:

"For the Weser region, the object represents an extremely important" key fossil "in the history of technology, which would also have to be given priority at the federal level .... Based on the inspection findings, it must be established that the historical hammer forge" Oberer Eisenhammer "is a valuable technical one Cultural monument of the first order ... It should therefore be attempted under all circumstances to preserve the object in situ and make it accessible to all interested parties as a museum object. "

Nevertheless, the building and the remaining technology fell into disrepair over the decades. The remaining waterwheel was removed, and the turbine is no longer operational.

restoration

For 40 years, the "Association for Homeland Care and Culture Exten eV" endeavored through all political bodies and instances to preserve the Upper Iron Hammer as an industrial and architectural monument and to prepare it as a museum . In 2011–2013 this finally succeeded. The technical equipment and tools that were still available were stored, the building secured and then extensively renovated and restored. Wood damage to the framework, partitions and broken stone base were repaired. Measures against the ingress of water were taken between the building and the reservoir. The intake structure, which was badly damaged after a flood in 2007, was repaired, windows and doors were replaced.

In 2017 a water wheel made of oak from the Schaumburg Forest with 24 Corten steel shovels was installed (Ø: 2.40 m, shovel width: 1.20 m). A massive waterwheel shaft (Ø 55 cm, length: 5.25 m) drives a 2 kW permanent magnet generator to generate electricity by means of a chain drive and gearbox. The historic tail hammer has been completely reconstructed and can be operated again.

Today there are again some historical items of equipment in the building: a large double eater, the motor-driven iron scissors, and a grinding machine. Fragments of a brick forge with leather bellows and a large grindstone have been preserved. Likewise, the transmissions with an electric motor / generator. The turbine, which is no longer operational, is in the open air.

The measure was supported by the Lower Saxony State Office for Monument Preservation , Hanover . The Obere Eisenhammer was reopened as a technical museum and a recognized Lower Saxony architectural monument and can be visited.

  • Monument protection plaque from 2018

tourism

The Obere Eisenhammer is located on the Lower Saxony Mühlenstrasse

hike

The Obere Eisenhammer is the second station of the Geological Hiking Trail No. 1 in the Grafschaft Schaumburg through the Lippe Keuperbergland

See also

literature

Web links

Coordinates: 52 ° 9 ′ 41.1 ″  N , 9 ° 6 ′ 28.8 ″  E