Uetersener water tower
| Uetersen water tower | |
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| Data | |
| Construction year: | 1925-1926 |
| Monument protection: | Cultural monument of particular importance |
| Tower height: | 39.65 m |
| Usable height: | 35 m |
| Container type: |
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| Volume of the container: | 20 m³ |
| Shutdown: | 1967 |
| Original use: | Urban water supply |
| Todays use: | unused |
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The Uetersener water tower is in the north of the city on the birch avenue. With its 39 m height it can be seen from afar in the area and is therefore seen in some books as a landmark of Uetersen. The water tower is registered as a technical and cultural monument of particular importance within the meaning of Section 5 of the Monument Protection Act .
Building
The tower was built between 1925 and 1926 by the Hamburg branch of the construction company Dyckerhoff & Widmann AG and the Bremen Francke works . He is regarded as a representative of an architecture between traditional and modern designs. The cylindrical water tank is on an open concrete - frame construction . In the area of the container, the construction is clad with brickwork with expressionistic stylistic elements. A small triangular window is inserted into each of the eight side walls, above - directly under the roof - a group of three larger windows. The generous glazing could indicate that the tower should also be used as a lookout tower . At the top, the building is closed by an octagonal mansard roof covered with sheet copper .
Building history
The construction of the tower turned out to be extremely difficult because the building site was very sandy. The eight pillars of the reinforced concrete structure had to be placed on large foundations. After the construction was in place, the water tank was put on. To protect the tower from twisting and swaying during storms, additional struts were incorporated into the reinforced concrete structure.
The open skeleton construction was not originally intended. The space between the concrete supports was to be bricked up so that a continuous octagonal structure with a brick facade would have been created. Due to the financial emergency of the city, the wall was not built.
History of Uetersen's water supply
The first plans for the water supply for Uetersen began before the First World War . In the period from 1925 to 1926 the waterworks was built on the edge of the Seestermüher Marsch (today Quellenweg) and the first water pipes were laid. The water came first from three and later from five filter wells . The pumping capacity of the pumps was initially 75 m³ and then rose to 180 m³ of water per hour. This was then pumped across the city to the highest point, where the water tower was built at the same time. However, the area there is only about 10 m above sea level .
In the first years of operation up to the Second World War , the water tower supplied around 7,500 Uetersen residents with drinking water . During the war there were considerations to blow up the water tower as it could be used as a guide for enemy aircraft.
In the post-war period until it was closed in 1967, it supplied up to 15,000 residents with water.
The Uetersener waterworks is now part of Holsteiner Wasser GmbH (as of 2009). The treated water is stored in two pure water tanks with a capacity of 1250 m³ each . Speed-controlled pumps then feed it into the drinking water network at a pressure of 6.2 bar. A water tower is no longer necessary to keep the pressure constant.
Time after shutdown
After the tower was taken out of operation, there were renewed considerations to blow up or demolish the tower, but this was not possible with the technology at the time, as houses had been built in the immediate vicinity in the meantime. Later there were ideas to use the water tower differently. So the tower should be converted into an apartment or a lookout tower. For cost reasons, these plans were not implemented, as the upper part of the tower can only be reached via a narrow open staircase and an additional elevator would have to be installed. The tower has been a listed building since October 1985 . The water tower acquired in 1970 by Schleswag , Schleswig-Holsteinische Stromversorgungs AG, was bought back in 1986 by the city of Uetersen. Lately it only served as a training object for the THW and the fire brigade , who were practicing height rescue there, and as a transmitter mast for a mobile phone provider. After the takeover (2016) by an architect's office, an extension was built in the lower area, which serves as an office. The water tower is still unused.
See also
- List of water towers in Schleswig-Holstein
- List of cultural monuments in Uetersen or picture table of cultural monuments in Uetersen
Web links
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- Uwe Barghaan: Uetersen and Moorrege. 1998. (CD-ROM)
- Hans Ferdinand Bubbe : Attempt of a chronicle of the city and the monastery Uetersen. Volume 1. Heydorn, Uetersen 1932–1934.
- Document from the Uetersen town hall, dated December 8, 1998.
- Conversation with Mr. Benn, Uetersener Rathaus, on September 20, 2012.
- Klaus Plath: The old tower is looking for new masters. In: Uetersener Nachrichten of August 29, 2012.
- Jens U. Schmidt: Water towers in Schleswig-Holstein. History and stories about the water supply in the north and its most striking buildings. Regia-Verlag, Cottbus 2008, ISBN 978-3-939656-71-5 .
- Uetersen local history museum
- Ralf Stowasser: No agreement on the water tower. In: Uetersener Nachrichten of September 24, 2012.
Coordinates: 53 ° 41 ′ 18.9 " N , 9 ° 40 ′ 56.3" E