Otto Tower
The Ottoturm in Siegerland is an 18.59 m high observation tower at 406.7 m above sea level. NHN high Kahlenberg . It is located near the Kirchen district of Herkersdorf in the Rhineland-Palatinate district of Altenkirchen ( Germany ).
Geographical location
The Ottoturm stands in the Kirchen urban area between the districts Katzenbach in the north-northeast, Herkersdorf in the south and the Kirchener core city in the west on the wooded Kahlenberg, which is also called Kahlberg according to other sources at a height of 405.9 m ; this height refers to a mountain point near the mountain top, and the tower is 180 m west-northwest of the summit. The Sieg flows north and west past the mountain at a distance of at least 1 km to the north .
History and description
Old tower
The first observation tower on the Kahlenberg was a 16 m high, listed steel lattice tower built in 1911 . The tower was donated by Otto Stein, an industrialist from Kirchen (Sieg). The construction costs amounted to 2000 gold marks . After the first donation of 1000 marks, which was not enough for the construction costs, Otto Stein decided to take over the remaining costs. In 1912 the tower was named "Ottoturm" in his honor.
Because of its steel construction, it was supposed to be demolished and melted down during World War II to meet the shortage of iron and steel. The population resisted this plan and was able to prevent the destruction.
Since the tower was made of rust-prone Thomasstahl , structural defects increasingly occurred over the years, so that the tower could no longer be climbed since the spring of 2006 due to its ailing condition. In December 2006 the “Friends of the Otto Tower” association was founded in Herkersdorf, which campaigned for its reconstruction even before the tower was demolished. The old tower, for which renovation was ruled out due to the nature of the steel, was demolished in May 2009.
New tower
From June 17, 2010, a new observation tower, also called the Ottoturm, was built at the same location. The Friends' Association took on more than half of the total cost of 120,000 euros, with an amount of over 50,000 euros for the stairs alone, all of which were donated with sponsorship.
The tower is 18.59 m. high. A left-hand metal staircase leads over 102 steps and 15 intermediate platforms to the viewing platform at a height of 17.34 m. Four orientation boards are attached to the parapet.
Opportunities for viewing
The Ottoturm provides a panoramic view of parts of the Siegerland, the view of the Giebelberg and the Siegtal - including the Siegtalbrücke of the A 45 and parts of Siegen in the northeast, Betzdorf in the southwest, Kirchen in the west and Herkersdorf in the south. In addition, the view falls over to the Rothaargebirge and in good visibility conditions to the Siebengebirge .
Web links
Ottoturm churches ( Memento from March 6, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e f g h Photo of the information board on the tower, on commons.wikimedia.org
- ↑ a b Map service of the landscape information system of the Rhineland-Palatinate Nature Conservation Administration (LANIS map) ( notes )
- ↑ Map services of the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation ( information )
- ↑ The new Ottoturm in Kirchen has been opened on August 29, 2010, accessed on February 14, 2016, on ak-kurier.de
Coordinates: 50 ° 48 ′ 19 ″ N , 7 ° 54 ′ 7 ″ E