Stolberg (Rhineland)

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coat of arms Germany map
Coat of arms of the city of Stolberg (Rhineland)
Stolberg (Rhineland)
Map of Germany, position of the city of Stolberg (Rhineland) highlighted

Coordinates: 50 ° 46 '  N , 6 ° 14'  E

Basic data
State : North Rhine-Westphalia
Administrative region : Cologne
Circle : City region Aachen
Height : 260 m above sea level NHN
Area : 98.48 km 2
Residents: 56,466 (Dec. 31, 2019)
Population density : 573 inhabitants per km 2
Postcodes : 52222, 52223, 52224
Primaries : 02402, 02408 , 02409Template: Infobox municipality in Germany / maintenance / area code contains text
License plate : AC, MON
Community key : 05 3 34 032
LOCODE : DE STG
City structure: 17 districts

City administration address : 		Rathausstrasse 11–13
52222 Stolberg (Rhld.)
Website : www.stolberg.de
Mayor : Patrick Haas ( SPD )
Location of the city of Stolberg (Rhld.) In the city region of Aachen
Belgien Niederlande Kreis Düren Kreis Euskirchen Kreis Heinsberg Aachen Alsdorf Baesweiler Eschweiler Herzogenrath Monschau Roetgen Simmerath Stolberg (Rheinland) Würselenmap
About this picture

Stolberg (Rheinland) [ ʃtɔlbɛʀk ], officially Stolberg (Rhineland.), Is a Grand Mittelstadt a regional center and a region belonging to the city in Westphalia North Rhine- Aachen region . The name of the city comes from the Stolberg Castle , located in the middle of the old town of Stolberg , where the origins of the place lie and which is the symbol of the city. Stolberg's nicknames Copper City and Oldest Brass City in the World - Copper City has also been the official title of Stolberg since July 24, 2012 - point to the long tradition of its metalworking industry , which brought the city an economic boom , but also contaminated sites . In addition to the old town, the Galmeiflora and the numerous copper yards and riding stables are particularly worth seeing.

geography

Location and neighboring communities

Geographically, Stolberg is located in the foothills of the Fens in a valley through which the Vichtbach flows near the border triangle of Germany-Belgium-Netherlands near Aachen .

The valley floor of the Vichtbach is only 300 m wide between Hammerberg and Bauschenberg , and only 250 m between the Donnerberg, a 287 m high hill between Stolberg and the Eschweiler city forest and Burgstüttgen. From the bottom of the valley, which is 180 to 200 m above sea level, the ascent to the high-altitude districts of Donnerberg in the east and Münsterbusch in the west is around 90 m. The highest elevations over 300 m are the Hedchensknepp (near Zweifall , 335 m above sea level), the Burgberg (near Vicht , 333 m above sea level) and the Große Kranzberg (near Vicht, 300 m above sea level).

Eschweiler Long suffering
Aachen Neighboring communities Huertgenwald
Roetgen Simmerath

Breakdown of the area

Landmark of Stolberg, the castle
  • Total area 9,831 ha, of which:
    • Agricultural land 2,622 ha
    • Forest areas 4,822 ha
    • 130 hectares of water
    • Building and open space 1,404 ha
    • Traffic areas 414 ha
    • Other use areas 439 ha
  • Largest north-south extension 13.35 km
  • Largest east-west extension 13.50 km
  • Highest point 483 m above sea level (city limit city of Stolberg - municipality of Hürtgenwald to Raffelsbrand )
  • Lowest point 160 m above sea level ( Steinfurt sewage treatment plant )

After Simmerath and Aachen, Stolberg is the third largest municipality in the Aachen urban region in terms of area.

Vichtbach in Oberstolberg

Waters

The most important rivers in Stolberg are the Vichtbach and the Inde . The Vichtbach flows through the urban area from south to north and flows into the Inde at the Steinfurt-Velau district. After entering the urban area behind Aachen-Freund, the Inde flows around the Stolberg district of Münsterbusch, flows through the districts of Kohlbusch and Hamm and reaches the Steinfurt sewage treatment plant in the Eschweiler urban area. It is also called Münsterbach exclusively in the vernacular of the Stolberg , as the areas through which it flows belonged to the little Münsterländchen , named after the Reichsabbey Kornelimünster . Other rivers are the Omerbach , which flows through Gressenich, the heavily polluted Saubach near Steinfurt, and the Mausbach from the town of Mausbach and the Wehebach , which flows through Schevenhütte after it emerges from the dam of the same name . The Wehebachtalsperre , whose dam is located in the Stolberg area, forms the largest standing water. There are also artificial ponds on the Vichtbach from the time of early modern metalworking .

geology

Stolberg is located on the edge of the Rhenish Slate Mountains in the Lower Rhine or Cologne Bay , one of three main earthquake regions in Germany. The urban area offers an elevation through the history of the earth from the clay slate of the Cambrian to the "colorful slates" from the Lower Devon , the mass limestone and dolomite from the turn of the Middle to the Upper Devon to the Famenne slate and Condroz sandstone from the end of the Devons, which alternate three times due to a fold with the mighty coal-limestone stone banks that were created in the Lower Carboniferous. The last layer is formed by the Upper and Lower Stolberg Layers, which arose in the Upper Carboniferous and stretch from Münsterbusch via Oberstolberg to Donnerberg .

Biotopes and nature conservation

Nature reserve at the Mausbach spring

An ordinance of the then Aachen district as the lower nature conservation authority of November 8, 1973 protects 19 natural monuments : the Schleicher Park on Fettberg, the renatured Schlossberg heap, the Bergstrasse cemetery, the renatured quarries Obersteinfeld and Gehlen as well as the forest area that covers half of the area Stolbergs and the Wehebachtalsperre. 80% of the open space is under landscape or nature protection; half of the urban area is designated as a landscape protection area such as B. the nature reserve Schomet and, as a major part, the Vennvorland as part of the nature park North Eifel . Many species are on the “ red list ”. In 1979 there was the Werther Heide, the first nature reserve in Stolberg, ten years later there were already six protected landscape elements (gLB) and 14 nature reserves (NSG).

The two most important pedobiomes are firstly the Galmeiflora as part of an Ice Age alpine relict flora with the information center Schlangenberg in Breinig , secondly limestone areas with orchid species and thirdly wetlands: Saubach, Lehmsief near Steinbachshochwald , Inde on the border with the city of Eschweiler, Wehebachtäler and Leyberg on the border to Hürtgenwald community, Gedautal and Tatternsteine . Other nature reserves include a heathland in Münsterbusch in the north of Stolberg and former quarries: Schomet, Auf der Rüst , Bärenstein , Brockenberg , Binsfeldhammer / Bernhardshammer and Obersteinfeld - some with fossils.

Stolberg's early industrialization brought pollution to the people in and around the city due to sulfuric acid , slag and heavy metals (such as cadmium , zinc and lead ). One of the main polluters for heavy metal emissions was the Binsfeldhammer lead smelter . Although exhaust gas electrostatic precipitators and other measures were installed, there were always increased and unhealthy heavy metal precipitates, which manifested themselves in the Stolberg diseases and phenomena of lead children in humans and Gressenich disease in animals. In 1965 cases of Gressenich disease from Diepenlinchen , Gressenich and Oberstolberg became officially known. While the lead and cadmium levels in the blood of Stolberg children in the summer of 1982 were at a maximum of 38.5 µg Pb / 100 ml blood, in 1990 it was now 15.5 µg Pb / 100 ml blood.

Rehabilitated heaps

As part of the environmental protection program, numerous heaps were rehabilitated as secondary heavy metal emitters and have been renatured for local recreation or recultivated as commercial space. A large part of the Diepenlinchen ore mine dump was prepared as commercial space, and the landfill that was on another part was recultivated. Natural growth forms on unused parts. Opposite the Diepenlinchen heap is the Weißenberg heap , which consists of flotation residues from ore enrichment. Its slopes were secured in the 1970s, their surface was grounded and all gaps in the natural vegetation were closed. In addition, measures were taken to protect the groundwater.

Around 1970 the Schlossberg dump was recultivated, the material of which came from the lead and zinc smelters in Münsterbusch. The clearing ash heaps Kohlbusch Süd and Nord were dismantled for the purpose of further utilization and then planted. The lead slag dump Münsterbusch , the material of which was mostly used for the construction of dykes in the Netherlands , was recultivated by adding soil and greening and has since served as a green area with a football field and playground. The Räumaschenhalde Birkengang , known for the Birkengang factory settlement located in its center and popularly known as the Devil's Island , was acquired by the city of Stolberg from Stolberger Zink AG in 1980 and from 1987 to 1992 for 2,280,000 DM through leveling , covering with soil, planting and draining the Recultivated leachate . The lead slag dump Binsfeldhammer is still in operation today.

By diverting the seepage water that pollutes the adjacent rivers Inde and Saubach to the Steinfurt sewage treatment plant, the so-called Vegla polder and the residual material dump of soda production, consisting of calcium sulfide , ash , lime and coal residues, will be built using the Leblanc method next to the premises of the former Chemischen Fabrik Rhenania AG and Kali Chemie in the Atsch are to be renovated.

The zinc and lead values ​​in the Stolberg drinking water mostly corresponded to the regulations of the Drinking Water Ordinance, whereas the cadmium limit value was exceeded several times during investigations in years. After the renovation of the water treatment plants, the zinc and cadmium levels fell below the limit of the drinking water ordinance. Between 1974 and 1981, thanks to significant reductions by the main emitter, Stolberger Metallwerke, solid matter emissions fell by 87 percent from 386,851 kg / a to 57,689, and zinc emissions from 215,130 kg / a by 95 percent to 10,769 kg / a. The lead emissions fell by 44 percent from 33,087 kg / a to 18,456 kg / a. The low-emission QSL process has been used in the Binsfeldhammer lead works , which in 1983 was still responsible for 99.6 percent of lead emissions and 91.2 percent of cadmium emissions, since 1991 . In 1990, an environmental-medical-epidemiological study on heavy metal pollution of the population, commissioned by the city of Stolberg and the Aachen district health office in Eschweiler, was presented, which came to the conclusion that further observation was no longer necessary.

Instructional and fitness trails, bike and riding trails

There is an educational forest trail in Solchbachtal near Zweifall, the Roggenläger nature trail between Zweifall and Breinig and an educational trail about the lime distillery in the renatured Gehlen quarry. The network of circular hiking trails covers over 200 km. There are also bike paths and fitness trails as well as over 60 km of bridle paths.

climate

Stolberg is located in the cool, temperate to oceanic climatic zone , in which humid winds from west and south-westerly directions from the North Sea prevail outside the Vicht valley . Precipitation falls here in all seasons . The average annual rainfall is 862 mm. The winters are comparatively mild and the summers are comparatively cool. The annual average temperature is 9.6 ° C. In Stolberg there is a greater frequency of northeast, east and especially southeast winds. The latter are particularly common at the southeast entrance of the Stolberg valley area. Another special feature is that the wind speed in the Stolberger Tal is significantly slower. On average it is only 0.7 m / s in the center and 1.2 m / s in Stolberg-Süd compared to 2.8 m / s in Aachen. In the lower reaches of the narrow Vicht valley there can therefore be an oppressive humidity in summer, while the winter temperatures in the south, closer to the Eifel, are lower. Multi-storey buildings in the Vichtbachtal mean that especially in the inner city area, when the weather conditions are poor, a lake of cold air forms that traps emissions . The heights and the outskirts, on the other hand, are well ventilated.

City structure

Stolberg is divided into the 17 districts of Atsch , Breinig , Breinigerberg , Büsbach , Donnerberg , Dorff , Gressenich , Mausbach , Münsterbusch , Oberstolberg , Schevenhütte , Unterstolberg , Venwegen , Vicht , Vicht-Breinigerberg , Werth and Zweifall .

No official districts are Mühle, Velau , Steinfurt , Duffenter and Birkengang am Donnerberg, Hamm and Kohlbusch near Atsch as well as districts of districts (the Liester between Büsbach and Münsterbusch; in Büsbach the Bauschenberg ; in Breinig Breinigerheide ; in Gressenich Buschhausen ; in Mausbach Fleuth , Krewinkel and Diepenlinchen ; in Vicht Münsterau and Stollenwerk ; in Zweifall Finsterau ).

Population

Since the municipal reorganization in 1972, Stolberg has been the second largest municipality in the Aachen City Region with 56,191 inhabitants after Aachen and just before Eschweiler (as of December 31, 2013). The following table shows the distribution of the population across the 17 districts (still based on the 2005 figures):

district Residents *
Atsch 4,090
Breinig 4,987
Breinigerberg 971
Büsbach 7,192
Donnerberg 5,610
Dorff 611
Gressenich 2,566
Mausbach 4,657
Munsterbusch 6,948
Oberstolberg 7,608
Schevenhütte 706
Unterstolberg 5,579
Venwegen 1,491
Vicht 1,879
Vicht-Breinigerberg 41
Werth 1,032
Doubt 2,055
Stolberg 58.023

*: As of December 31, 2005

history

The history of the city is shaped by its location in the narrow valley of the Vichtbach and its natural resources. Politically, Stolberg was limited to the lower Vichttal until the 20th century, while large parts of today's urban area belonged to the imperial abbey Kornelimünster, to Eschweiler or later to the independent communities of Breinig, Büsbach, Gressenich, Hastenrath and Roetgen.

The oldest traces of human settlement were found near Büsbach on the forest-free Brockenberg from the early Mesolithic period, as well as finds from the Neolithic period elsewhere. The names of the waters Inde, Vicht and Wehe come from the Celtic language of Stolberg, and the remains of a Celtic fortress from the Iron Age have been found near the dam of the Wehebachtalsperre near Schevenhütte . Finds suggest an origin of the brass industry and iron smelting in the Celtic and Roman times.

The oldest surviving depiction of Stolberg Castle from the 16th century

Stolberg was first mentioned in a document in 1118, when Reinardus von Staelburg co-signed the founding deed of the St. Georgs Stift zu Wassenberg . The seat of the Lords of Stalburg was Stolberg Castle, and in the 13th and 14th centuries the lords of the castle were a line of the von Salm-Reifferscheid family and then Reinhard II von Schönforst from today's Aachen district of Forst . Stolberg came to the Duchy of Jülich in 1396 . According to J. Fabricius, Stolberg in the Duchy of Jülich was "originally a castle and a knight's seat in the Eschweiler office on the border with the Wilhelmstein office and the area of ​​the imperial abbey Kornelimünster on the other side of the Vichtbach".

In 1324 the "village of Staylburg" was mentioned for the first time, whose annual interest amounted to 58 capons and 8 chickens. From the middle of the 15th century, craftsmen who smelted iron, copper, lead, gold and silver settled in the shadow of the castle. Around 1600 the lord of the castle of Effern allowed Protestant copper masters from Aachen to move to his area after they had fled from there due to the Aachen religious unrest. They brought with them knowledge of brass production , in which copper was alloyed with the local calamine or zinc blende and further processed using the water power of the Vichtbach. Since it was not yet clear about the role of zinc, which was only recognized as an element much later, brass was also called "yellow copper", from which the terms "copper master" and "copper city", which are still used today, come. A local community with a mayor developed - probably supported by the self-confidence of the copper masters - by the end of the 17th century, which can be seen as the beginning of local self-government in Stolberg.

On the upper reaches of the Vichtbach and the Wehebach in Schevenhütte, the riding masters operated iron extraction and processing in today's Stolberg urban area. Some of their production facilities, the riding facilities, are still preserved today. An economic upswing was initiated by the copper masters and riding masters, and Stolberg was one of the few centers of brass production worldwide and had almost a monopoly position in Europe. Against this background, Stolberg likes to call itself the “oldest brass town in the world”. Numerous monuments such as the copper yards and the copper master cemetery with numerous upper-class graves still bear witness to this heyday of early industrialization . Furthermore, the Vogelsang Church was built in Stolberg in 1647 as the first Lutheran church on the left bank of the Rhine , while a Calvinist church was built on the Finkenberg .

After the occupation of Aachen by the French and the battle of Aldenhoven , they moved in via Münsterbusch in Stolberg, and while the area on the left bank of the Rhine was part of France from 1794 to 1815, Stolberg formed a mairie , which, like the mairies Gressenich and Büsbach, belonged to the canton of Eschweiler in the arrondissement d'Aix-la-Chapelle in the Département de la Roer founded in 1798 . The continental barrier helped the Stolberg brass industry, which had been ailing since the second half of the 18th century, to take a break and to flourish.

Art Nouveau house in Stielsgasse

In 1815, after the fall of Napoleon , Stolberg fell to Prussia and in 1816 became a mayor's office . Conrad Esajas Michels became the first mayor, and Stolberg was the smallest municipality in the Aachen district in the Prussian Rhine province with just under 2,600 inhabitants . At today's Kaiserplatz, a new town hall in the classical style was built in 1837 , and in 1856 Stolberg received the Prussian town charter, although it did not have the required 10,000 inhabitants, but became a member of the provincial parliament because of its commercial structure .

In 1841, with the opening of the valley railway line , Stolberg was connected to the railway network and received its own stop. With the construction of the Stolberger Talbahn in Vichtbachtal in 1867, 1881 and 1889, the railway connection of the Stolberg companies was improved and a connection to the Vennbahn was established. In 1888 the station with the name "Stolberg Bf." Was built. Also in 1888, the industrialist Moritz Kraus bought Stolberg Castle and had it rebuilt in its current form.

Former district court on Kaiserplatz

In Stolberg, too, the end of the Weimar Republic was marked by clashes between democratic and radical parties. In the mid-1920s, 1,800 of the 17,000 inhabitants in Stolberg were unemployed. In 1935 the urban area was expanded, which also increased the population by 11,000, including Donnerberg, Birkengang, Velau, Steinfurt, Steinbachshochwald, Atsch, Büsbach, Dorff, Münsterbusch and Kohlbusch.

As a result of flight and deportation, the small Jewish community in Stolberg , which in 1933 still had 76 members, dissolved completely at the end of the 1930s .

Memorial for deported Roma families at Stolberg Central Station

The metalworking industry, especially the Prym and Stolberger Metallwerke companies, switched to armaments production during World War II . According to the EBV , the Stolberg industry, with around 2,500 forced laborers (including 600 prisoners of war), was the largest location for forced laborers in what was then the Aachen district. In total there were at least 38 larger forced labor and prisoner of war camps in the entire city area.

Tunnels under the castle and on Zweifallerstraße were used for air raid protection during World War II. Even before the Allied conquest of Aachen on October 21, 1944, US troops advanced to Stolberg and Schevenhütte on September 12, 1944. The fighting over this so-called " Stolberg Corridor " brought destruction and inflicted great suffering on the civilian population. About 10,000 people stayed behind in Stolberg.

After the Second World War, Stolberg became part of the British zone of occupation and has belonged to the state of North Rhine-Westphalia since 1947. Refugees and displaced persons from eastern Germany built the Donnerberger Siedlung and Velau with stones that they had broken themselves. In 1956 the new building of the Bethlehem Hospital was inaugurated and a new vocational school building was opened. The city was present in the media across Germany in the 1960s through the drug Contergan produced by the pharmaceutical company Chemie Grünenthal GmbH based in Stolberg ; the hearings and trials in the so-called Contergan scandal, however, took place in Aachen, the company's headquarters, and in Alsdorf . The discovery of health problems in Stolberg children, the so-called lead children, and in grazing cattle due to heavy metals, the so-called Gressenich disease, gave the impetus to environmental protection efforts after 1965 . In the course of the 1960s, Stolberg grew in a kind of 'head-to-head race' with neighboring Eschweiler to become one of the most populous municipality in the Aachen district.

BurgCenter Stolberg (opened in August 2009)

During the communal territorial reform, the city area experienced a considerable expansion to the southeast on January 1, 1972 in accordance with the wishes of the administration and was more than tripled. In the following years, the renovation of the heavy metal dumps was largely completed and the old town of Oberstolberg restored. In 1996 the Museum Zinkhütter Hof opened as an industrial museum, and in 1998 the administration of the EWV moved into the converted building of the Ketschenburg brewery .

In 2001 the Euregiobahn went into operation with new and renamed stops and has since opened up the Stolberg city center on tracks for public transport. In 2004 Stolberg bought a southern piece of the Propsteier forest from the city of Eschweiler in order to set up a new industrial area for small businesses on the former military site of Camp Astrid .

Overview of the area and population development

  • Early modern times: Herrlichkeit, Marie and Mayor's Office Stolberg 318 ha
  • 1823 Incorporation of the Mühle district (today Unterstolberg) of Eschweiler
  • 1913 Schneidmühle and Jordansberg from the municipality of Büsbach
  • 1920 the Hammerberg area from the municipality of Hastenrath
  • In 1925 the urban area covers 456 hectares (with around 17,000 inhabitants).
  • 1932 Incorporation of the so-called Hastenrather Zipfels (Burgholzer Hof, Niederhof, Hochweger Hof and Steffenshof, a total of 268 hectares) by the municipality of Hastenrath
  • 1935 Incorporation: The urban area triples to 2,890 ha:
    • Donnerberg, Duffenter, Birkengang, Velau, Steinfurt and the southwest of the Propsteier Forest (Steinbachshochwald) (around 500 ha area) from Eschweiler
    • Atsch from Eilendorf
    • Municipality of Büsbach with the districts of Büsbach, Dorff, Münsterbusch and Kohlbusch
  • January 1, 1972: Incorporation as part of the municipal regional reform:
    • Community of Gressenich 41.12 km², 9,415 inhabitants
    • Breinig, Venwegen (from Kornelimünster ) 17.25 km², 5,343 inhabitants
    • Zweifall (von Roetgen) 20.37 km², 2,030 inhabitants
  • January 1, 1972: Border corrections: Bayerhaus at Aachen (40 ha) and area near Steinfurt an Eschweiler (3 ha)
  • 2004 Purchase of a southern part of the Propsteier Forest in Eschweiler

Historical legends, originals and mythical creatures

The fact that today's castle goes back to a hunting lodge of Charlemagne is a legend that arises from the proximity to Charles Palatinate in Aachen. It is also part of the realm of legend that Napoleon stopped in Stolberg with his horse on his hasty return to Paris after the end of the Great Army .

An Alt-Stolberger original was "Jumbo", which formed a one-man combo with a drum on his back, a harmonica in front of his mouth and other musical instruments in his hand and on his moped with this drum on his back for the fun of the children moved from fair to fair.

An old Stolberger figure is the bird singer, originally a resident of the Vogelsang district, which was named after the chirping of birds on the nearby Hammerberg (see Finkenberg). In terms of folk etymology, however, the bird singer was interpreted as someone who sings with birds and is also depicted in a statue next to the town hall. A song alludes to the bird singer's joy in singing and living.

In the pits near Gressenich and Mausbach-Diepenlinchen, the Quärrismännchen (from Middle High German 'Querge' = dwarf) or Roman males were settled, little males who, according to legend, lived in tunnels and borrowed crockery from people for nightly celebrations Day brought back clean. They are neighbors of the Killewittchen .

The complex of legends about the city of Gression is also located around Stolberg. Gressenich is said to have been the real Gression or at least the center of this city. Above all through ore mining, she had become very rich. Gression was ultimately destroyed by a flood or by enemy action. The historical core of the saga may be traced back to the late Roman period.

Economic history

For centuries coal and ores and the resulting iron, zinc, lead and brass processing industries shaped the economic structure in the Stolberg area . The copper masters left their mark on the city. Glass-producing plants, “chemical companies” and, recently, an increasing number of services are additional pillars.

politics

Old and new town hall on Kaiserplatz

Administrative affiliation

Stolberg belongs to the administrative district of Cologne , to the district of the Eschweiler district court , to the Hürtgenwald forestry office and, within the Aachen police headquarters, to the district police station, security and district service south district.

Coalitions in the city council

  • 1946–1948: CDU
  • 1948–1952: CDU / SPD
  • 1952–1961: CDU / FDP
  • 1961–1964: CDU
  • 1964–1969: CDU / FDP
  • 1969–1972: CDU
  • 1972-1979: CDU / FDP
  • 1979-1984: SPD / FDP
  • 1984–1989: SPD / Greens
  • 1989-1994: CDU / FDP
  • 1994–1997: SPD / UWG
  • 1997–1999: CDU / UWG
  • 1999-2004: CDU
  • 2004–2009: SPD / Greens / FDP / ABS
  • 2009–2011: SPD / Greens / FDP
  • 2011 – now: CDU / SPD

Local election September 26, 2004

Political party % Seats on the city council
CDU 38.7 19th
SPD 36.8 18th
FDP  8.7  4th
Alliance 90 / The Greens  6.9  3
UWG (Independent Voting Association)  3.8  2
NPD  3.0  2
DVU  1.2  1
ABS (alternative citizens' list Stolberg)  1.0  1

In the election for mayor, the challenger Ferdinand Gatzweiler (SPD) prevailed against incumbent Hans-Josef Siebertz (CDU) with 59% of the valid votes cast.

With Mathias Prusseit's transfer from the SPD to Die Linke in April 2008, the latter is also represented with a seat on the city council.

Local election August 30, 2009

Political party % Seats on the city council
SPD 37.7 17th
CDU 36.7 16
FDP  8.8  4th
Alliance 90 / The Greens  6.7  3
The left  3.5  2
UWG  2.9  1
NPD  2.2  1

In the election for mayor, incumbent Ferdinand Gatzweiler (SPD) was clearly confirmed in office with 47.7%. His strongest competitor, Paul M. Kirch from the CDU, only received 38.2% of the vote. The Greens have given Gatzweiler an election recommendation in advance and thus, unlike all other parties and associations, have not put up their own candidate.

Local election May 25, 2014

Political party % Seats on the city council
CDU 47.35 21st
SPD 31.47 14th
Alliance 90 / The Greens  5.66  2
The left  4.11  2
FDP  3.55  2
UWG  3.02  1
Pirate party  2.21  1
NPD  1.52  1

The challenger Tim Grüttemeier from the CDU was already surprisingly clear against incumbent Ferdinand Gatzweiler (SPD) with 51.75% in the first ballot in the election of the mayor (Gatzweiler received 28.97%).

Since the size of the city council comprises 44 seats, the CDU, if you include the mayor, just missed out on the absolute majority with one seat.

Mayoral election 2019

Due to the election of the previous incumbent Grüttemeier to the municipal council, a new mayor election was held outside the usual cycle. In order to be able to re-elect the mayor's office at the same time as the local elections in the future, the term of office of the elected mayor has been extended until the next but one regular local election in 2025. Patrick Haas (SPD) prevailed in the first ballot with 49.44% against Andreas Dovern (CDU, 41.51%) and Bernd Engelhardt (FDP, 9.05%). Patrick Haas (SPD) won the runoff election, which had just become necessary, with 58.57% against Andreas Dovern (CDU). The turnout in the runoff election (43.95%) was above average.

Right-wing extremism

No space for neo-Nazis at the entrance to the Stolberg town hall

Stolberg has been a focus of right-wing extremist activities in the Aachen region since the 1950s and, besides Aachen, is the only other municipality in the region to have an independent NPD local association . Antifascist groups refer to Stolberg as a “stronghold of the right ”. Supraregional activities and the public presence of right-wing extremist individuals and groups led to state or even nationwide media attention and to an increase in local protest events, for example when the NPD, which wants to develop Stolberg into one of its strongholds, on April 16, 2005 with prominence from federal and state State party celebrated its 40th anniversary in the Stolberg town hall. A request from the NPD for another major event was refused by the private tenant of the town hall. At the end of 2003, a new district association Aachen / Heinsberg of the DVU was founded in Stolberg .

Since the beginning of the 1950s, a group of the mutual aid community of soldiers of the former Waffen-SS worked in Stolberg , whose members ran for elections, now for the FAP , now for the DVU and for Hans Rantz, a former Waffen-SS man , worked and promoted the release of imprisoned war criminals of the SS . From 1967 until they moved to Berlin in 1991 , Wolfgang and later Wolfram Nahrath ran the federal headquarters of the Wiking youth together with Sascha Wagner from their private home in Stolberg-Büsbach .

For the first time in the post-war period, after the five percent hurdle fell in the 1999 local elections, Willibert Kunkel, a representative of right-wing extremist parties for the DVU, made the leap to the city council. Kunkel switched to the NPD during the electoral term. On August 29, 2000, the Stolberg City Council passed a resolution against racism and discrimination. In the local elections in September 2004, Willibert Kunkel and Oliver Harf, two NPD members and Rudi Motter, a representative of the DVU, entered the Stolberg city council. The inaugural meeting of the Council on 19 October 2004 took place under police protection because Kunkel, Harf and Motter accompanied by 20 KAL - skinheads appeared. In the election for Mayor of Stolberg, Kunkel received four votes, including one from the non-right-wing camp.

As a reaction to the entry of two right-wing extremist parties into the city council in the 2004 local elections, the CDU, SPD, FDP and Greens changed the main statute so that groups below the parliamentary group size only take part in the committees with an advisory vote, which, however, also affects the UWG and ABS lists .

On September 1, 2007, visitors to a rock concert in the Münsterbusch district were attacked and injured by right-wing extremists, while an NPD event with a right-wing extremist songwriter was taking place nearby. In these incidents, the police were charged with assessing the situation as too calm, failing to pursue the perpetrators and failing to help counter-demonstrators.

In April 2008, three neo-Nazi demonstrations with a total of more than 1000 participants from all over Germany took place in Stolberg. The reason was the murder of a 19-year-old by a stateless person of Lebanese descent with four stab wounds, which, according to the investigation, was probably an act of relationship. The right-wing scene announced that they wanted to develop Stolberg into a “place of pilgrimage” through an annual “funeral march”. The right-wing extremists tried to develop Stolberg into a major event. In the following years, between 500 and 800 right-wing extremists gather every year in April to create a symbolic date with which a nationwide, if not Europe-wide, march should be created and a partly tactically divided scene should be united. They were opposed by a broad-based “alliance against radicalism”, which was able to successfully prevent the attempts of the right-wing extremists. Right-wing extremist marches have not taken place since 2013.

Citizens' initiatives

Environmental pollution, especially heavy metal pollution with the consequences of lead children and Gressenich disease , led to the “Action Concerned Citizens - Stolberg” in the 1970s. Likewise the conflicts between environmental and landscape protection on the one hand and the expansion of the infrastructure and economic development on the other hand contributed to this action.

The peace initiative founded in the 1980s was transformed into "Group Z" in the 1990s. After the NPD celebrated its 40th birthday in the Stolberger Stadthalle, on the initiative of Mayor Ferdinand Gatzweiler (SPD), the cross-party “Stolberg Alliance Against Radicalism” was brought into being.

mayor

  • 1815–1845: Konrad Esajas Michels
  • 1845–1894: Friedrich von Werner
  • 1894–1906: Werner Fleusters
  • 1906–1934: Walther Dobbelmann ( DNVP ) (applied for his retirement under pressure from the NSDAP, which took place on October 1, 1934)
  • 1934–1935: Anton Braun (head of the Gaurevisions department, acts as mayor)
  • 1935–1944: Engelbert Regh ( NSDAP ) (removed from office on October 1, 1944 by the American military authorities)
  • 1944–1945: Friedrich Deutzmann (from October 1, 1944 to July 31, 1945, appointed by the American military government)
  • 1945–1946: Eduard Voss (from August 1, 1945 to March 31, 1946, thereafter city director until December 31, 1957)
  • 1946–1948: Peter Conrads (CDU)
  • 1948–1950: Peter Meuser (CDU)
  • 1950–1952: Nikolaus Vonderbank (SPD)
  • 1952–1979: Bernhard Kuckelkorn (CDU)
  • 1979–1989: Hermann-Josef Kaltenborn (SPD)
  • 1989–1994: Wolfgang Hennig (CDU)
  • 1994–1997: Hans Fischer (SPD)
  • 1997–1999: Wolfgang Hennig (CDU)
  • 1999-2004: Hans-Josef Siebertz (CDU)
  • 2004–2014: Ferdinand Gatzweiler (SPD)
  • 2014–2019: Tim Grüttemeier (CDU)
  • since 2019: Patrick Haas (SPD)

Coat of arms and city colors

The city coat of arms shows a red escutcheon , which is sprinkled with golden rectangular stones. The number is not fixed and varies in common layouts between twelve and fourteen pieces. In the field there is an erect, left-leaping silver lion with a knocked-out golden tongue, which is covered with a black five-pointed tournament collar . The lion has three-fingered claws that are armored in blue.

Stolberg has had this coat of arms since 1880. It was proposed by the city archivist to the then mayor Friedrich von Werner and goes back to the seal and coat of arms of the former lords of the castle, the noblemen of Stolberg-Frenz-Setterich . Since they came from the Limburg ducal house, they took over the Limburg lion as heraldic animal, which in turn appears in the Stolberg coat of arms. Tournament collars and stones are distinguishing features that are typical in their shape in the Rhineland. The tournament collar, which is normally housed in the main shield, is lowered so as not to impair the lion's shield figure.

The city colors are based on the basic colors of the city coat of arms, red and yellow.

City partnerships and friendships

Economy and Infrastructure

Dalli works in Stolberg
Prym factory premises
Saint-Gobain Glass and Saint-Gobain Sekurit
Peltzer company
Service center Münsterbusch
Stolberger KMB machine factory
Stolberger Feinmetall

The economy has traditionally been rather medium-sized, while the areas that were incorporated in 1972 are increasingly being used for agriculture and forestry. With around 16,000 jobs, Stolberg is the most important industrial location in the Aachen city region, alongside the Aachen regional center. The purchasing power index in Stolberg in 2004 was 99.6% of the national average, while the centrality index was only 59%, which means that the money earned in Stolberg is hardly spent there.

Because of the cramped valley location, company foundings in the Vichttal have always led beyond the city limits. The Hoesch family began as riding masters in what is now the Vicht district, before a member of the family went to Dortmund via Lendersdorf and Eschweiler-Stich .

In addition to the traditional manufacturing industry, the service sector has recently emerged, for example in the Steinfurt industrial park and in the service center in Münsterbusch.

Industrial companies

The largest industrial companies in Stolberg are:

  • the heavy Halbzeugwerk GmbH & Co. KG, the largest Vorwalzbandproduzentin the world with over 300,000 t / year, at the same time supplier of pure copper slabs; it was founded in 1972 by the Prym works and the copper and brass works Langenburg with 50% each and has been the 50% subsidiary of Aurubis AG and Wieland-Werke since 2002
  • Aurubis Stolberg GmbH & Co. KG is one of the leading manufacturers of strips, profiles and wires made of copper and copper alloys in Europe; While the primary material for the copper and brass strips comes from Schwermetall Halbzeugwerk GmbH & Co. KG, Prymetall still casts the material for bronze itself; The profiles and wires are also completely cast in-house , with the exception of pure copper, which comes from Aurubis AG or Schwermetall
  • the Dalli-Werke and Mäurer & Wirtz
  • the Peltzer works
  • the glassworks Saint-Gobain Glass Germany
  • the Berzelius rental works Binsfeldhammer
  • Grünenthal (headquarters and location)

Accommodation establishments

Stolberg currently has ten accommodation establishments with a total of around 400 beds.

media

Stolberger daily newspapers

In the Donnerberg district, the West German Broadcasting Corporation has been operating a transmission system for MW since the 1950s , which today broadcasts FM and television. A 231 m high, guyed steel truss mast with a cross section of 1.76 m, erected in 1993, serves as the antenna carrier instead of the old round and smaller transmitter mast. Part of the former transmitter shed can still be seen in front of the fire station of the “Donnerberg fire fighting group”.

The Aachener Nachrichten and Aachener Zeitung have a common local section called “Stolberg”. Furthermore, "Super Sunday" and "Super Wednesday" are throughout the city "Kleng Ziedung", and in its eastern part Eschweiler film post distributed free of charge.

For some time now, the people of Stolberg have been finding out about local events via social media on the local news platform "Mein Stolberg", which gives Stolbergers the opportunity to send information to the platform and then distribute it to the readers free of charge.

Public facilities

Administrative seat of the ERA

Natural gas and electricity are supplied by EWV, whose administrative headquarters have been located on the site of the former Ketschenburg brewery since 1998. The company enwor supplies drinking water . The drinking water obtained from former mining tunnels in the coal lime makes Stolberg the only city in the Aachen district to be independent of the Rurtalsperre . A sewage treatment plant is located in the Steinfurt district. The TENP natural gas pipeline runs through Stolberg and operates a compression station in the city.

An office of the AOK Rheinland is in Stolberg as is a branch of the Aachen employment agency . The “Menschenskind” association is dedicated to promoting, caring for and advising sick children and their families. There are six day care centers for the elderly. The Arbeiterwohlfahrt, the Stolberger Tafel e.V., strive to alleviate social emergencies. V., the Diakonisches Werk of the Protestant church community and the church district Jülich, the church social center Rolandshaus and other social services.

Bethlehem Health Center (formerly: Bethlehem Hospital)

Bethlehem Health Center

The Bethlehem Health Center Stolberg , established in 1863 by Roland Ritzefeld in the former Kupferhof Steinfeld , is a basic and standard care hospital and an academic teaching hospital of the RWTH Aachen with almost 1,000 employees. It has 327 beds for around 13,500 inpatients and 33,000 outpatients annually and is divided into the seven specialist departments of surgery , orthopedics and trauma surgery , gynecology and obstetrics , internal medicine , anesthesia including pain therapy and operative intensive care medicine , pediatrics with children's intensive care unit, radiology and nuclear medicine as well as one ENT documentation department. It is the hospital with the largest number of births in the Aachen city region; more than 1,100 children are born here every year.

From 2009 onwards, the Bethlehem Health Center was modernized for 3 years while the clinic was still in operation. Bethlehem Gesundheitszentrum Stolberg gGmbH was sponsored by the Catholic Church Community of St. Lucia, Stolberg, for more than 130 years until 2009. At the end of 2009, the St. Lucia Catholic Church Congregation established an independent church foundation, the “St. Lucia Catholic Church Congregation Foundation”. This foundation is now a partner of the Bethlehem Health Center Stolberg gGmbH.

Until October 30, 2006, the Sisters of the Order of the Sisters of the Poor of St. Francis founded by Franziska Schervier performed their service to sick people. Since October 1, 2001, the Catholic character of the house has been supported by the sisters of the Indian order “Sisters of the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament (SABS)”.

With more than 170 trainees, the hospital is one of the largest training companies in the Aachen city region.

The emergency medical service of the old district of Aachen is handled by the Bethlehem Health Center and the St. Antonius Hospital Eschweiler on a weekly basis.

Sports facilities

The city of Stolberg maintains the “Glashütter Weiher” stadium and indoor swimming pool and supports or supports the operation of seven football fields, 13 sports centers, 19 sports and gymnasiums, 14 sports fields and a fitness trail on the Breinigerberg. Other private sports facilities are three fitness studios, a squash facility , six tennis facilities, a shooting range (DJV), an archery facility, a glider facility, an integrative-inclusive sports facility and equestrian facilities.

education

The care offerings of the kindergartens , seven of which are municipal, five Catholic and one Protestant, is supplemented by several day-care centers , predominantly municipal. The city also has four youth clubs and eight elementary schools . There are two Catholic primary schools in Büsbach and Atsch. The secondary schools Goethe- Gymnasium , Ritzefeld-Gymnasium , Städtische Gesamtschule , Kupferstädter Gesamtschule (under construction since the school year 2017/18), Realschule Mausbach (expires in the school year 2021/22) and all-day secondary school Kogelshäuserstraße (expires in the school year 2018/19 ) are sponsored by the city, the municipal secondary school is being set up (since the 2013/2014 school year). A special school with a special focus on learning, language and emotional and social development (Talstrasse special school) and a special school with a special focus on intellectual development (rainbow school) are sponsored by the Aachen City Region . A special school with a special focus on language is sponsored by the Rhineland Regional Association (Gutenberg School). The vocational school is divided Stolberg Simmerath .

In Stolberg there is a town hall with around 1,000 seats, which is operated by a private tenant, as well as the Helene-Weber-Haus family education center operated together with the town of Alsdorf. The Zinkhütter Hof and the Rolandshaus also have a meeting room. The districts of Büsbach and Mausbach have town houses, the districts of Atsch, Vicht and Breinig have multi-purpose halls. The Stolberg City Library offers 62,375 media on 1,206 m² of public space, making it the largest library in the Aachen city region (outside of Aachen). In the Frankental cultural center, which used to be the home of the St. Vinzenz orphanage , the city library, the adult education center and a music school were merged in 1989 , and concerts, cinema and theater performances take place in the converted chapel of the former orphanage. Otherwise there is no cinema.

traffic

Euregiobahn course through the city center
Stolberg (Rheinl) Hbf, 2014
Information sign Vennbahn

Street

Stolberg can be reached by car via the motorway junctions Eschweiler-West , Eschweiler-Ost and Weisweiler ( A 4 ), Aachen-Brand and Broichweiden ( A 44 ) and Würselen / Verlautenheide ( A 544 ). The L 238 carries through traffic in a north-south direction.

buses

Stolberg belongs to the Aachener Verkehrsverbund (AVV). The Mühlen train station is a bus hub.

In Stolberg there was a tram network until the 1970s, which was abandoned in favor of regular bus services and is operated by the Aachen Transport Association and its affiliated companies. For the individual lines see the article Tram Aachen .

rail

Railway development in the 19th century in Stolberg

The Stolberg main station is located on the Aachen-Cologne railway line . The city has been connected to Aachen, Eschweiler, Herzogenrath , Merkstein and Alsdorf since June 10, 2001 by the regional train line RB 20 (Euregiobahn) . In addition to Stolberg (Rheinl) Hbf , the stops are Stolberg-Schneidmühle , Stolberg-Mühlener Bahnhof , Stolberg-Rathaus and Stolberg-Altstadt .

Stolberg has been a railway junction in the region and especially in the Aachen district since the 19th century . Here met and hit multiple routes to each other: in addition to the railway line Aachen-Cologne nor the railway Stolberg-Alsdorf Herzogenrath , the railway Stolberg-Würselen-Kohlscheid , the railway Stolberg-Münsterbusch that Mönchengladbach-Stolberg railway (locally known as the Eschweiler-Valley Railway) and the Stolberg – Walheim railway line (locally called the Stolberger Talbahn).

Bike trails

The city of Stolberg is connected to a number of cycle paths :

religion

In addition to Catholic and Protestant churches, there is a New Apostolic congregation, a Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses and Muslim associations in Stolberg .

Catholic

Stolberg has 17 parishes. In 1925 the Deanery Stolberg was established. The pastor of St. Lucia Schmitz became the first dean. Since the mayor of Eschweiler protested against the inclusion of the Donnerberg parish of St. Josef, it was only added in 1935 with the incorporation of the district. The Deanery Stolberg was divided into the Deaneries Stolberg-Nord and Stolberg-Süd within the Aachen-Land region in 1973 after the municipal reorganization. The parish Venwegen remained in the dean's office Aachen-Kornelimünster in the Aachen-Stadt region.

St. Lucia

The dean's office Stolberg-Nord includes the parishes of the old city area before 1972: In Atsch St. Sebastian, in Büsbach St. Hubert, on the Donnerberg St. Josef, in Dorff St. Mariä Concept, on the Liester St. Hermann Josef, in Münsterbusch Herz Jesu, St. Lucia in Oberstolberg, St. Maria Himmelfahrt in Unterstolberg and St. Franziskus in Velau.

The Deanery-Stolberg-Süd comprises the parishes of the areas added in 1972: In Breinig St. Barbara , in Mausbach St. Markus, in Gressenich St. Laurentius, in Vicht St. Johann Baptist, in Werth St. Josef, in Schevenhütte St. Josef and in two cases St. Rochus.

The Bethlehem Hospital has its own Catholic chaplain and chapel. At the Bethlehem Hospital, which has been sponsored by the parish of St. Lucia for 130 years, the sisters of the congregation of the Sisters of the Poor of St. Francis are active, and at the Good Samaritan retirement home, sponsored by the Diocese of Aachen, the Order of Christian Sisters . He also runs the Haus Maria im Venn monastery in Venwegen, which has been the mother house of the order since September 16, 1973 , to which a senior citizen center, a kindergarten and an indoor swimming pool are attached. In Zweifall there is a Carmelite convent of Maria Königin from 1954/55, in whose wafer bakery the wafers for the diocese of Aachen are made.

Evangelical

At least since 1564 there was a Reformed community in Stolberg under the protection of the lord of the castle. The smaller Lutheran congregation probably came into being a few years later. In the 19th century, the two communities united to form the Evangelical Church Community of Stolberg.

Both communities built their churches on the edge of the old town: The Reformed Finkenberg Church on the Finkenberg opposite the castle dates from 1725, the tower was taken over from the previous building from 1688. The Lutheran Vogelsang Church in the Vogelsang Old Town was inaugurated in 1648. This makes it the oldest Lutheran church in the Aachen area.

In addition to the churches in Vogelsang and on the Finkenberg, the Protestant community of Stolberg, to which Aachen-Brand also belongs, has a community center in Frankental. In 1965 a parish hall was inaugurated in Mausbach after the influx of displaced people had brought about a strong increase in the number of Protestants in this area.

In the district of Zweifall there is another Protestant - originally Lutheran - parish with the Evangelical Church of Zweifall from 1683. This also extends beyond the Stolberg urban area to the Aachen districts of Kornelimünster and Walheim .

Sights and culture

Torburg of the Stolberg Castle
Museum Zinkhütter Hof
Copper Master Cemetery

Numerous buildings, especially in the old town of Oberstolberg, but also the historic Alt-Breinig street in the Breinig district with its quarry-stone houses are listed . With the Oberstolberg old town and Alt-Breinig, Stolberg is a member of the working group for historic city centers in North Rhine-Westphalia and a member of the ring of European forging cities . The copper yards and riding stables are particularly typical.

Oberstolberg was redeveloped in the 1970s and 1980s with the support of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Today, in addition to the castle, churches and sculptures from the 1970s, there are 110 monuments under monument protection. In the old town of Oberstolberg are the oldest copper yards, the Catholic Church of St. Lucia and the castle. St. Lucia stands in the immediate vicinity of the castle on the site of the former castle chapel. Until 1745 the church was a vicariate of the Eschweiler main parish church St. Peter and Paul , since then it has been an independent parish. Since 1945 the church tower has had an onion dome instead of a pointed tower.

Cemeteries worth seeing

The copper master cemetery of the Lutheran Reformed congregation was laid out on the Finkenberg in 1686 after a joint use of the cemetery with the Catholics had led to many disputes. In the oldest part of the mountain cemetery directly on Bergstrasse, graves of manufacturers and upper-class citizens from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries can be seen. In the tower view , near the Gehlen quarry , is the small cemetery of the former Jewish community with graves from the 19th and 20th centuries. It was created in 1860.

Museums

The Museum Zinkhütter Hof presents exhibits on the Stolberger, Eschweiler and partly Aachen industrial, economic and social history. The history of the materials brass and zinc as well as needle production in Aachen form the focus of the permanent exhibition.

The castle houses the museum in der Torburg , a local history and handicraft museum run by an association. On four floors there are exhibits on glass, copper, brass and soap production, minerals and fossils, as well as some historical workshops such as a cobbler's shop, saddlery, blacksmith shop and coffee roastery. The museum operators also maintain a herb garden in the lower courtyard to the south, in which aromatic and medicinal herbs typical of the area are grown.

The Vennbahn Museum near the Stolberg train station presents a permanent exhibition on the history of the Vennbahn and a collection of railway equipment, uniforms, signals and historical documents.

The museum sawmill Zweifall, which opened in 2009, is also worth seeing .

Suburbs

Hubertus Church in Büsbach
Altbreinig with St. Barbara's Church

For the suburbs see the corresponding place articles. A small selection: the Stockum estate in Breinig, the Schwarzenburg in Dorff, the Burghof in Gressenich, the Mausbacher Hof, the neo-Gothic St. Hubertus Church in Büsbach, built in 1846, which the residents call the “Cathedral of the Voreifel”, St. Barbara in Breinig and the church of the evangelical community in Zweifall from 1683, which is characterized by a pulpit altar made of white marble and dark blue painted wood and a trumpet angel on the tower.

Public and cultural life

The city fair is celebrated every summer. In late summer there is an open studio day with many exhibitions in the old town. Every year the city organizes a city festival with a medieval market in the castle area. Every year a school theater festival takes place in Stolberg. The “Kupferstädter Christmas Days” have been taking place for more than 20 years.

The castle with the municipal collection of paintings and the churches are much used places for concerts and exhibitions. Mainly artists from the Aachen region such as Herbert Falken, Win Braun , Jupp Linssen , Karl Fred Dahmen and Emil Schumacher are exhibited. The “Alter Markt” copper courtyard houses studios. The Europäische Kunsthof Vicht shows works by well-known artists, such as Hartmut Ritzerfeld , Pablo Picasso and HAP Grieshaber . In addition to the Westdeutscher Rundfunk, which broadcast its “Chamber Concerts Series” from there for many years, two musicians from Stolberg hosted the international guitar festival “ Saiten-Klänge”, the EUREGIO composition competition and the sound art festival “… KLÄNGE “Organized. Music is made in over three dozen associations, two associations play theater and the "Burghaus '81 e. V. “organizes poetry readings.

Stolberg has more than 170 clubs. Sports clubs like the Stolberger SV, the Stolberger Turngemeinde or the Stolberger Schachverein have recently been forced to cooperate or merge due to a lack of young talent and urban pressure. There are a total of three fishing clubs, four billiards clubs, 16 football clubs, four martial arts clubs, five motor sports clubs, three cycling clubs, two riding clubs, four swimming and diving clubs, four tennis clubs, six gymnastics clubs, six sports clubs, eleven company sports clubs and ten other clubs, including the including multi-discipline association Tabalingo Sport & Kultur integrativ e. V. counts. The Stolberger Huns and the Copper City Pioneers 1. Country Club Stolberg e. V. has its own ranch in Stolberg-Finsterau.

The ERA supports the professional cycling team Kuota-Indeland . The team has had the status of a Continental team since 2005 and emerges from the ComNet-Senges team.

In Stolberg, carnival is celebrated the Rhenish way . There is a Stolberg Carnival Prince, and the fool's greeting is "(Stolbersch) Alaaf!". The Prince proclamation takes place in the Knights Hall of the castle, the keys Fat Thursday on the imperial square outside the Town Hall and Rose Monday trains instead of through the city center, Mausbach, two case and Breinig. Further parades go through the city districts on Tulip Sunday and Carnation Saturday. The oldest of Stolberg's carnival associations is the Schevenhütter Carnevals-Gesellschaft 1882 e. V. in the Schevenhütte district. In 1929 the traditional Oberstolberg company "Erste Große" was founded. Over 1,000 exhibits from the history of the Stolberg Carnival have been in the Eschweiler Carnival Museum since 2007 .

The oldest of Stolberg's twelve rifle brotherhoods , the St. Hubertus rifle brotherhoods 1623 Büsbach and Dorff, can trace their origins back to the time of the Thirty Years' War . Like the St. Sebastianus-Schützen in 1659 Stolberg-Stadtmitte, they served to protect the population in troubled times against military aggression, robbers and marauding soldiers. The other rifle brotherhoods are later founded and are mostly under the patronage of St. Hubertus .

Since 2011 the new Stolberg cultural association City Starlights has committed itself to supporting the cultural life of the city. In 2013 the association took over the maintenance of the tradition of the living nativity scene.

The rock concert Woodstöckchen takes place in Gressenich every year .

dialect

The "Stolberjer Platt" is a local variety of the Ripuarian dialect group . A distinctive peculiarity of the Stolberjer Platt is the insurance particle "ömme?", Merged from öff net? = or not? while in Aachen “wa?” and in Eschweiler “ne?” are said. The dialect of today's urban area is by no means uniform due to its rural heterogeneity, but rather diverse due to the long special political development of areas that came to Stolberg in the 20th century. The word for “woman” in the Stolberjer Platt is “Fromesch” (woman-human), in the Breiniger dialect, which is closer to the Öcher Platt, it is “Framinsch”. The dialect lost its function as a colloquial language in the second half of the 20th century. In contrast to Kölsch, the Stolberg dialect shortens long vowels in Monosyllaba: "Mach-et jott" (Stolberg) versus "Mach-et joot" (Cologne) and omits the final n: "fröi-isch misch" (Stolberg) versus "fröin- isch misch ”(Cologne). The High German sound group -cht appears as -t (e.g. "Naat") instead of -ch ("Naach") as in Cologne. In terms of vocabulary, there are certain similarities between Öcher Platt and Kölsch and Eischwiele Platt: “mulle” for talking (Eschweiler and Cologne: kalle, schwaade) or “Oamelseke” for ant (Eschweiler: Seksoamel). With Aachen and Limburg dialect, words like tösche , van , au , Oamelseke and öf (between, von, old, ant, or) are common, with Kölscher and Eschweiler Platt only a few words like Hätz and isch hann (heart, I have) .

City mascot

Since May 2013 the city of Stolberg has had its official city mascot, the “Stolbärchen”. On the initiative of the Stolberger Kulturverein City Starlights e. V., the life-size mascot of the copper city was realized in cooperation with the local youth welfare office and with the participation of the mayor Ferdi Gatzweiler. The basis for the Stolbärchen is the campaign of the Stolberg Youth Welfare Office "Strong partners for strong children", which created the Stolbärchen as a two-dimensional leading figure. The blue cap and the red T-shirt with the castle silhouette are distinctive for its appearance. The Stolbärchen appears on special occasions and not only delights the little Stolbergers with its own small entertainment program. With the Stolbärchen the city of Stolberg signals its openness and diversity. The Stolbärchen is also the umbrella figure of the Stolberg Holiday Games and opens the current holiday program at the start of the summer on Kaiserplatz. The Stolbärchen can also be seen at the many city events such as city fair, Stolberg goes, city party and the Kupferstädter Christmas Days.

Personalities

Personalities who were born in today's urban area

The list is sorted chronologically by year of birth.

Other personalities associated with the city

The list is sorted chronologically by year of birth.

Honorary citizen

  • 1893: Pastor Roland Ritzefeld (1808–1900)
  • 1922: Manufacturer August Prym (1843–1927)
  • 1933: Adolf Hitler (1889–1945), revoked in 1986
  • 1948: Josefine Wirtz (1868–1957)
  • 1955: General Manager Adam Lambertz (1881–1973)
  • 1955: Manufacturer Hans Prym (1875–1965)
  • 1988: Bernhard Kuckelkorn (1913–1989), Mayor 1952 to 1979

literature

  • Clemens, Dominik: Myth Stolberg - On the instrumentalization of an act of violence by neo-Nazis. Books on Demand, Norderstedt 2012, ISBN 978-3-8482-0082-5 .
  • Monnartz, Rainer: The garrison and military history of the cities of Aachen, Eschweiler and Stolberg 1814 to 1960. , Helios Verlag, Aachen 2010, ISBN 978-3-86933-043-3 .
  • Manfred Bierganz: The story of suffering of the Jews in Stolberg during the Nazi era . Stolberg 1989.
  • August Brecher and the Stolberger Heimat- und Geschichtsverein e. V .: History of the city of Stolberg in data . Contributions to the history of Stolberg and local history vol. 17, Aachen 1990. ISBN 3-89124-100-3 .
  • ... moved to Auschwitz . Stolberg: Stations of the Nazi terror and persecution in a small town in the Rhineland. A documentation of Group Z - Future without xenophobia, fascism and war.
  • Ulrich Haese: Stolberg - nature conservation in an industrial city . Rhenish landscapes 31, Neuss 1987
  • Friedrich Holtz and Birgit Engelen: Galmeiveilchen Meyer & Meyer Verlag Aachen 2000. ISBN 3-89124-684-6 .
  • Stefan Krebs: Forced labor in Stolberg / Rhld: a first inventory ( memento from July 1, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) . Burg-Verl. Gastinger, 2003. (Contributions to the Stolberg History, Vol. 26). ISBN 3-926830-17-4 .
  • Kutsch Franz, Stolberg, Rhld., 2nd edition Stolberg 1978.
  • Gustav Lohmann, Kurt Schleicher: History of the Protestant churches in Stolberg and the Finkenberg cemetery. Contributions to the history of Stolberg and local history, Vol. 10, Stolberg 1957.
  • Dieter Mätschke: Stolberger walks. Vol. 1: Through the copper city , Meyer & Meyer Verlag Aachen.
  • Dieter Mätschke: Stolberger walks. Vol. 2: In the Nordeifel Nature Park , Meyer & Meyer Verlag Aachen 1991. ISBN 3-89124-105-4 .
  • Christian Meyer: Out and about in Stolberg and the surrounding area. The most beautiful bike tours . Eupen 2001. ISBN 90-5433-144-5 .
  • Ministry of Labor, Health and Social Affairs of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia (ed.), Environmental problems caused by heavy metals in the Stolberg area, Düsseldorf 1983.
  • Nokixel: reference work on the Stolberg dialect (self-published)
  • Gerd Rosenbrock: Am Baum des Lebens - a Reformed community in Stolberg from 1571 until it was united with the Lutheran community in 1860 . Contributions to the history of Stolberg, Vol. 24, Stolberg 1999. ISBN 3-926830-14-X .
  • Heinrich Schauerte: Stolberg - industrial center and city of culture . Photography: Ursula Böhmer. Edited by Bettina and Wolfgang Krüpe. Heidelberg 1990.
  • Karl Schleicher: History of the Stolberg brass industry . Stolberg 1956. (Home books of the city of Stolberg / Rhineland; Issue 6)
  • Karl Schleicher: Firestorm over Stolberg, the suffering of the civilian population from the beginning of September to the end of November 1944; according to records, diaries and personal memories . Contributions to the history of Stolberg Vol. 22, Stolberg 1994. ISBN 3-926830-09-3 .
  • Karl Schleicher (editor): Stolberg after the war 1945–1949 . Contributions to the history of Stolberg and local history, vol. 16, Stolberg 1988.
  • Stolberg as it used to be. Published by the city of Stolberg (Rhld) on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of the city's development in 1981 . Stolberg 1981.
  • Stolberg 1945-1970. Reconstruction report . Published by the council and administration. Stolberg 1971.
  • Stolberg 1971-1977 . Published by the council and administration. Stolberg 1978.
  • Stolberg 1978-1984 . Published by the council and administration. Stolberg 1985.
  • Stolberg 1985-1991 . Published by the council and administration. Stolberg 1991.
  • Stolberg 1992-1998 . Published by the council and administration. Stolberg 1999.

Web links

Commons : Stolberg (Rheinland)  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files
Wikivoyage: Stolberg (Rhineland)  - travel guide

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Population of the municipalities of North Rhine-Westphalia on December 31, 2019 - update of the population based on the census of May 9, 2011. State Office for Information and Technology North Rhine-Westphalia (IT.NRW), accessed on June 17, 2020 .  ( Help on this )
  2. ↑ Federal Statistical Office - Area changes from January 1st to December 31st, 2012
  3. ↑ Study by the Aachen District Health Office and the Medical Institute for Environmental Hygiene from July 15, 1989 ( Memento from March 14, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
  4. ↑ a b Climate Stolberg. At de.Clima-Data.org, accessed on October 20, 2019.
  5. ^ 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. 305 .
  6. ↑ Friedrich Holtz: From ores, sagas and stories, Stolberg 1992
  7. ↑ http://www.pressglas-korrespondenz.de/aktuelles/pdf/pk-2000-1w-garcke-stolberg-siegwart.pdf Glass from Stolberg
  8. ↑ Results of the local elections on August 30, 2009 at the Aachener Nachrichten ( Memento of the original of July 8, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.an-online.de
  9. ^ Results of the mayoral election on August 30, 2009 at WDR.de
  10. ↑ Results of the local elections of May 25, 2014 at wahlen.regioit.de ( Memento of the original of May 27, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / wahlen.regioit.de
  11. ↑ Results of the mayoral election of May 25, 2014 at wahlen.regioit.de ( Memento of the original of May 27, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / wahlen.regioit.de
  12. ↑ Results of the mayoral election on May 26, 2019 at wahlen.regioit.de ( Memento from May 27, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
  13. ^ The failure of the decent at heise.de from May 12, 2005
  14. ↑ The NPD is building a martyr for itself (taz, April 29, 2008)
  15. ↑ Laura Beemelmanns and Jürgen Lange: No marches: Peaceful festival in Stolberg . In: Aachener Zeitung . ( Online [accessed March 9, 2018]).
  16. ↑ Quality Report 2010 ( Memento of the original from December 3, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 4.2 MB) @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.bethlehem.de
  17. ↑ Notarztdienst in bethlehem.de ( Memento of the original from January 24, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. downloaded on February 19, 2012 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.bethlehem.de
  18. ^ Jürgen Lange: Realschule Mausbach and secondary school are converted. In: Aachener Zeitung . June 16, 2016, accessed March 21, 2018 .
  19. ↑ Stolberger Vennbahnroute