Upper Harz watercourses
The Upper Harz watercourses are part of the Upper Harz water shelf . A watercourse is the underground part of the trenches (cf. Oberharzer Gräben ) of the historical Upper Harz silver mining, which were created to supply the mines with power water from the 16th century onwards. In the area of the Oberharzer Wasserregal there are over 35 watercourses with a total length of around 30 km.
Construction engineering
Although the explosives were already being used in the Upper Harz mining industry in the 17th century, the watercourses were driven much longer by hand, i.e. with a mallet and iron: Since one had difficulties with the correct dosage of the black powder, there was fear of the watercourses running close to the surface Day breaks or a fissure in the mountains and thus leaks. Almost all watercourses were driven in the opposite direction. Up until the 18th century, miners followed the softest rock when driving, sometimes creating a zigzag course that deviated considerably from the straight line. It was not until the 19th century that the watercourses were laid out with a strictly straight route and with the use of explosives.
The gradient required for the flow movement is often less than 1 ‰ (that is, less than 1 m height difference over a length of 1000 m). The cross-section of the routes in the old watercourses with mallet and iron work was sometimes only 1.20 m high and 0.80 m wide, but with the newer ones mostly 2 m high and 1 m wide.
Watercourses had the major advantage over ditches that the water to be conveyed could not freeze underground. They were primarily created to shorten a long mountain bypass. The abbreviation also resulted in a higher gradient (shorter distance with the same height difference results in more gradient). This increased the flow speed and with it the hydraulic performance of the trench tour. The disadvantage of the watercourses was the high investment costs.
List of active Upper Harz watercourses
Order after the last sorting by Preussag , which was based on the uses in the power plants.
| Surname | Construction year | length | course |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kellwasser watercourse I | 1821 | 170 m | Dammgraben (Blochschleife) to the Nabetal |
| Kellwasser watercourse II | 1821 | 229 m | Bloch loop to the cradle of the dam ditch |
| Rothenberger watercourse | 1868 | 775 m | Dammgraben: Crossing the Rothenberg |
| Coventhaier watercourse | 1852 | 540 m | Dam ditch: Crossing the Coventhaies |
| Dietrichsberger watercourse | 1863 | 1,044 m | Ditch from Fortuner pond to the "window" |
| Bielenwieser watercourse | 1864 | 357 m | Ditch from the "window" to the "division" (Mönchstal) |
| Mönchstaler watercourse | 1677 | 474 m | Dam ditch from Mönchstal in the Upper Hausherzberger pond |
| Franz Auguster watercourse | 1832 | 632 m | Ditch from the division in the lower peacock pond |
| Jägersbleeker watercourse | 1771 | 132 m | Träncke to the Jägersbleeker pond |
| Huttaler watercourse | 1763 | 783 m | Hirschler pond to the Huttaler counterbalance |
| Fortuner watercourse | 1785 | 777 m | Jägersbleeker dig in the middle peacock pond |
| Prince Valais watercourse | around 1740 | 563 m | Nassenwieser Graben in the Johann-Friedricher watercourse |
| Johann-Friedricher watercourse | 1673 | 805 m | from Johann-Friedricher pond to Dorotheer Kehrradsgraben |
| Kellerhalser watercourse | 1842 | 501 m | from mid. Kellerhalst. to the New Kellerhalser Graben, later used in the course of the Zellerfeld artificial grave |
| Winterwieser watercourse | before 1690 | 488 m | from the Zellerfelder Kunstgraben to the Jungfrauer Graben / Mittl. Colliery pond |
| Bremerhöher watercourse | 1704 | 732 m | Bremerhöher Graben to the Rosenhöfer district |
| Bärenbrucher watercourse | 1949 | 940 m | from the Bärenbrucher pond to the "Oberer Rosenhöfer Fall" |
| Upper Schwarzenbach watercourse | 1808 | 760 m | "Oberer Rosenhöfer Fall" for the Hasenbacher counterbalance |
| Upper Hasenbacher watercourse | 1811 | 638 m | "Upper Rosenhöfer Fall" from Hasenbacher Widerwaage |
| Upper Flambach watercourse | 1763 | 780 m | "Oberer Rosenhöfer Fall" from Flambach to Johannistal |
| Upper Johannistaler watercourse | 1839 | 1,014 m | "Oberer Rosenhöfer Fall" Johannistal to the Kleiner Clausthal |
| Upper Klein-Clausthal watercourse | 1776 | 492 m | "Oberer Rosenhöfer Fall" from the Kleiner Clausthal to the Rosenhöfer Revier |
| Ziegenberger watercourse | 1847 | 413 m | "Unterer Rosenhöfer Fall" From the Ziegenberger pond to the Schwarzenbach |
| Lower Schwarzenbacher watercourse | 1870 | 524 m | "Unterer Rosenhöfer Fall" from Schwarzenbach to Hasenbach |
| Lower Hasenbacher watercourse | 1845 | 959 m | "Unterer Rosenhöfer Fall" from Hasenbach to Flambach |
| Lower Flambach watercourse | 1844 | 973 m | "Unterer Rosenhöfer Fall" from Flambach to Johannistal |
| Lower Johannistaler watercourse I | 1835 | 558 m | “Unterer Rosenhöfer Fall” from the Johannistal to the Kleiner Clausthal |
| Lower Johannistaler Watercourse II | 1835 | 234 m | "Unterer Rosenhöfer Fall" (continuation from Johannistaler Wasserlauf I) |
| Lower Klein-Clausthal watercourse | 1792 | 791 m | "Unterer Rosenhöfer Fall" from Kl. Clausthal to the Rosenhöfer Revier |
| Dorotheer Rösche | before 1771 | 325 m | Drainage of the Radstube Kehrrad Grube Dorothea |
| Seen watercourse | 1698 | 722 m | Rehberger Graben zum Gesehr / St. Andreasberg |
| Schulte tunnel | 1838 | 1,220 m | from the innermost to the Wiemannsbucht (Bad Grund) |
| Upper Eichelberg watercourse | 1889 | 1,110 m | from Wiemannsbucht to Schönhofsblick |
| Lower Eichelberger watercourse | 1855 | 230 m | Derivation from the Knesebeck shaft |
List of passive Upper Harz watercourses
All watercourses that are not in operation are “passive”. Some of them are still completely intact, but others have largely fallen into disrepair. The following list does not claim to be complete.
| Surname | Construction year | length | course |
|---|---|---|---|
| Old Dietrichsberger watercourse | 1662 | 260 m | Dammgraben: bypassing the Dietrichsberg, became superfluous with the construction of the New Dietrichsberg Watercourse in 1863. |
| Old Upper Klein-Clausthal watercourse | 120 m | If. Rosenhöfer Fall: bypassing the Hüttenkopf | |
| Old Lower Klein-Clausthal watercourse | 200 m | Unt. Rosenhöfer Fall: bypassing the Hüttenkopf | |
| Benedict watercourse | 100 m | If. Sweeping ditch in the Hirschler pond | |
| Cold kitchen watercourse | 1821 | 410 m | Dammgraben: Crossing the Rothenberg, the watercourse was shut down with the construction of the Rothenberg watercourse in 1868. |
| Crane watercourse | 1878 | 600 m | from the bottom outlet crane pond (Hahnenklee) to the lower raft pond (Bockswiese) |
| Long watercourse | before 1815 | 150 m | Small bypass from the Oker region to the Langer Teich |
| Nassenwieser watercourse | 250 m | from the Nassenwieser Graben to the Johann-Friedricher watercourse | |
| Pisstaler watercourse | 1732 | 1,100 m | Stadtweger Graben (from Stadtw. Teich) to Bockswiese |
| Polsterberger watercourse | 1767 | 1.23 km | Originally a tunnel for iron stone mining: Between 1767 and 1813 connection from the Polsterberger Hubhaus to the Huttaler pond |
| Schwarzenberg watercourse | 1813 | 730 m | Connects the drainage area of the Söse with the Oker |
| Tannhaier watercourse | 1875 | 430 m | Connection Kellerhalsteich, Kellerhalser Wasserlauf to Bockswiese, laundry trench |
literature
- Walter Knissel , Gerhard Fleisch: “Oberharzer Wasserregal” cultural monument - an epoch-making achievement . Paper plane, Clausthal-Zellerfeld 2004, ISBN 3-89720-725-7 .
- Martin Schmidt : The water management of the Upper Harz mining industry . 3. Edition. Harzwasserwerke, Hildesheim 2002, ISBN 3-00-009609-4 (series of publications by the Frontinus Society, issue 13).
- Martin Schmidt: The cultural monument of the Upper Harz water shelf . Harzwasserwerke, Clausthal-Zellerfeld 2005 ( PDF ( Memento from July 19, 2011 in the Internet Archive )).
See also
Rammelsberg mine, old town of Goslar and Upper Harz water management