Travers NE

NE is the abbreviation for the canton of Neuchâtel in Switzerland and is used to avoid confusion with other entries of the name Travers .

Traverses

State :

Switzerland

Canton :

Neuchâtel (NE)

District :

No district division

Municipality :

Val-de-Travers

Postal code :

2105

former BFS no. :

6510

Coordinates :

541 965 / 199237 coordinates: 46 ° 56 '30 " N , 6 ° 40' 35" O ; CH1903: five hundred forty-one thousand nine hundred sixty-five / 199237

Height :

735 m above sea level M.

Area :

24.65 km²

Residents:

1226 (December 31, 2007)

Population density :

50 inhabitants per km²

Website:

travers.ne.ch

Traverses

map

Parish before the merger on January 1st, 2009

Until December 31, 2008, Travers was a political municipality in the Val-de-Travers district of the Swiss canton of Neuchâtel , around the village of the same name.

Since January 1, 2009, Travers has been part of the newly formed municipality of Val-de-Travers together with Boveresse , Buttes , Couvet , Fleurier , Les Bayards , Môtiers , Noiraigue and Saint-Sulpice .

geography

Travers is 735 m above sea level. M. , 20 kilometers west-southwest of the canton capital Neuchâtel (linear distance ). The village stretches for the most part on the northern side of the Areuse in the broad Val de Travers , surrounded by the heights of the Neuchâtel Jura .

The area of the 24.7 km² former municipal area comprises the eastern section of the Val de Travers, which has a flat valley floor around 600 m wide. East of the village, the Areuse curves to the north, passes the narrow point between the steep slopes of the Côte Lambercier and Côte de Rortier and then enters the Noiraigue basin, the western part of which also belonged to Travers. In the south, the municipality extended over the densely wooded steep slope ( Bois des Lacherels ) to the anticline of the Chasseron . In the far southeast of the Soliat it reached to the top of the rock arena of Creux du Van , where at 1410 m above sea level. M. the highest point of Travers was. To the north, the municipality extended over the plateau of Rotel and the Crêt de Sapel ( 1210 m above sea level ) up to the height of Roumaillard ( 1263 m above sea level ) and into the dry valley Combe Pellaton . This is located in the catchment area of the high valley Vallée des Ponts , of which the extreme southwest belonged to Travers. Especially on the Rotel plateau and on the Crêt de Sapel there are extensive Jura high pastures with the typical mighty spruce trees , which either stand individually or in groups. In 1997, 4% of the municipal area was in settlements, 43% in forests and woodlands, 52% in agriculture and a little more than 1% was unproductive land.

The hamlets of Vers chez Montandon ( 730 m above sea level ) on the right of the Areuse, Vers chez le Bois ( 837 m above sea level ) on the northern slope of the valley and Le Sapelet ( 1098 m above sea level ) on the southern slope of the Crêt belonged to Travers de Sapel as well as numerous individual farms on the valley slopes and on the Jura heights. Neighboring communities of Travers were Couvet , La Brévine , Les Ponts-de-Martel , Brot-Plamboz , Noiraigue and Gorgier in the canton of Neuchâtel and Provence in the canton of Vaud .

Historic aerial photo by Walter Mittelholzer from 1919

population

Population development
year	Residents
1850	1471
1880	1945
1900	2093
1950	1653
1960	1550
1970	1445
1980	1176
1990	1206
2000	1180

With 1226 inhabitants (end of 2007) Travers was one of the medium-sized communities in the canton of Neuchâtel. 91.0% of the residents are French-speaking, 3.1% German-speaking and 2.0% Italian-speaking (as of 2000). The population of Travers rose rapidly in the 19th century, peaking in 1884 with 2,152 inhabitants. Thereafter it remained almost constant until after 1920. In the further course up to 1980 a decrease of almost 50% was recorded due to strong emigration. Since then, the population has remained stable.

economy

Until the middle of the 19th century, Travers was a mainly agricultural village. Then a rapid economic upturn began with the establishment of the watch industry . At the same time, the exploitation of the asphalt mine La Presta (southwest of the village) was important. The La Presta plant was one of the most important asphalt mines in Europe and led the Val-de-Travers into the industrial age. The tunnels, which are over 100 km long, were exploited from 1712 to 1986. The asphalt deposit was discovered in 1711 by the Greek doctor Eirini d'Eirinis , who was interested in the therapeutic use of the substance. After delivering asphalt for over 250 years, the mines were shut down due to a lack of profitability. Today the buildings of the former mine house a museum. During the tour you will learn a lot about how the tunnels were stripped with wood. In addition, an exhibition shows the history of the use of asphalt since its prehistoric beginnings.

Since the 1970s, industrial activity has decreased significantly due to the closure of several companies. Today there are still jobs in the construction industry, in mechanics and in the wood industry. Agriculture, especially cattle breeding , dairy farming and cheese production, also play an important role in the income structure of the village. Since Travers has developed into a residential community over the past few decades, many employed people are commuters who work in the rear Val de Travers or in Neuchâtel.

traffic

The former community is well developed in terms of traffic. It is located on the main road from Neuchâtel via the Les Verrières border crossing to Pontarlier in France . On July 25, 1860, the inauguration of the railway line from Auvernier to Les Verrières with a train station in Travers took place. The uphill section of this line begins west of Travers on the northern slope of the Val de Travers in order to overcome the 200 m difference in altitude to the pass at Les Verrières. It wasn't until around 20 years later, on September 24, 1883, that the Travers - Saint-Sulpice valley line opened.

history

The first written mention of the place took place in 1202 under the name Transversum . The current name, derived from the name of the Val de Travers valley, has existed since 1229 . Since the 13th century the village belonged to the Counts of Neuchâtel. In 1648 Neuchâtel became a principality and from 1707 was linked to the Kingdom of Prussia through a personal union. In 1806 the area was ceded to Napoleon I and came to the Swiss Confederation in the course of the Congress of Vienna in 1815 , whereby the kings of Prussia until 1848 (formally until the Neuchâtel trade in 1857) also remained princes of Neuchâtel. On September 13, 1865, numerous houses fell victim to a village fire.

Attractions

A church in Travers was mentioned as early as 1228. The current building of the Reformed Church of Saint-Côme was built in 1569, the steeple is from 1632. Next to the church is the castle from the 17th and 18th centuries. The Saint-Joseph Catholic Church was built in 1939. The four-bay stone bridge over the Areuse, built in 1665, is also remarkable. The houses in the town center show a uniform style, as they were all built around the same time after the village fire.

The asphalt mines in La Presta , which are a bit outside the village, with their museum and the guided tours are also part of the sights . (compare section Economy )

photos

reformed Church
Travers Castle
Pont sur l'Areuse

literature

Jean-Pierre Jelmini: Travers (NE). In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
Jean Courvoisier: The art monuments of the canton of Neuchâtel. Volume III: Les districts du Valde-Travers, du Val-de-Ruz, du Locle et de La Chaux-de-Fonds. (= Art Monuments of Switzerland. Volume 56). Edited by the Society for Swiss Art History GSK. Bern 1968.

Web links

Commons : Travers NE - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Information on the former municipality of Travers

Individual evidence

↑ Travers' Asphalt Mines - Presentation

[1] Travers' Asphalt Mines - Presentation