Shipyards on the Lower Weser
Of the shipyards on the Unterweser that had settled here over the past 200 years, only a few survived the transition from timber to iron and steel shipbuilding. Global competition, developments in world trade such as the global economic crisis and the oil crises in the 20th century as well as the financial crisis in 2008 led to further shipyard closings on the Unterweser .
Lower Weser
From the Weser weir in Bremen - Hemelingen to the confluence with the North Sea , the section of the Weser is known as the Lower Weser . The Lower Weser is exposed to the tides , the tidal range in Bremen is around four meters. It is navigable for seagoing vessels, therefore the larger Weser ports and Weser shipyards are in the area of the Lower Weser. Most of the shipyards are now closed, the slips or helmets torn down and the shipyard halls have been converted and are used by other companies. With the transition from wood to iron and steel , most of these shipyards closed or were taken over by others. In the wake of the global economic crisis , which turned into a shipyard crisis not only in Germany , other shipyards closed as part of mergers (e.g. Deschimag ). The oil crises of the 1970s also claimed casualties, and the financial crisis that sparked in 2008 led to further shipyard closings.
Bremen shipyards
The early Bremen shipyards settled in the area around the Teerhof as Lastadien around 1600 , with larger ships for coastal shipping , further shipyards were built in the Stephanikirchenweide area and later at the mouth of the Aue and Lesum . The starting Bremer trading overseas called barks and full-rigged ships instead of the predominantly used in the Baltic and North Sea Besan ewer and Galioten .
Shipyards in the course of the Lower Weser
In the Lower Weser region, the transition to iron shipbuilding and from sailing to steam propulsion took place in the period after 1870. Wooden shipbuilding had its last boom here until 1865 and then experienced a crisis that threatened its existence. The handicraft businesses had to be transformed into industrial operations. A few shipyards survived by raising the capital by converting it into a public company . For iron foundries and machine factories close to the river, this development was the opportunity to create a second mainstay through iron shipbuilding ( Seebeck , Frerichs).
The conversion was not possible for most of the wooden shipyards due to the high capital requirements for investments in new parts of the business. The establishment of a foundry , a locksmith's workshop, a copper and boiler forge required not only capital but also space and skilled workers. Not only were some of the machines procured from England, but also skilled workers with the necessary skills to design and build iron ships , boilers and steam engines were recruited in England.
Bardfleth
Farmers' sons who were not entitled to inheritance and adventurous farmhands found worthwhile work on sailing or fishing vessels . Some who had trained as a helmsman or captain took part in small sailing or fishing vessels and later founded small shipping companies with partners . In winter, the ships were often overhauled and repaired in-house and so shipbuilding sites were built along the Weser near many settlements and farming villages and, in partnership with carpenters, small shipyards were also built. On the Lower Weser, Bardenfleth was, due to its ideal location on the Weser, like Elsfleth and Brake, a center of these developments. Today Bardenfleth is incorporated into Berne like many other places .
Blexen and Nordenham
Blexen is a district of the city of Nordenham at the mouth of the Weser and is connected to Bremerhaven by the Weser ferry : Here in 1938 in the Vordeich area of the Weser a large area for an airport was opened up for the German air force , the airport was not built. On part of this area, a floating dock yard for the Gutehoffnungshütte (GHH) was built in 1956, right next to the ferry terminal for the Weser ferry to Bremerhaven.
The name of the city of Nordenham comes from the Hansing family's "Gut Nordenhamm". The port facilities of Nordenham were taken over in 1905 by the Bremen shipowner Adolf Vinnen , expanded and transferred to the " Midgard " Deutsche Seeverkehrs-AG. In 1907, Vinnen also founded the " Visurgis" Heringsfischerei AG based in Nordenham . In 1921 the Oldenburg shipyard was established in Nordenham, which was closed again after a few years.
| Surname | Period | Location | comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shipyard
Oldenburg |
1918-1926 | Nordenham | The shipyard only built one ship, a tanker for the “North Sea” German deep-sea fishery |
| GHH floating dockyard | 1956-1990 | Nordenham | Construction of floating docks that were exported all over the world. The largest docks had a lifting capacity of 33,000 t. |
Brake
In Brake , Hammelwarden and Fünfhausen were about home from 1800 over 25 yards, including the shipyard C. Lühring and from the Frerichswerft taken over operation of G. Thyen.
Becoming one
In Einswarden in 1905, Frerichs began building fish steamers, loggers and overseas freighters. In 1917 the Thyen shipyard and the docking facilities in Brake were taken over. Today Einswarden is a district of the Lower Saxon town of Nordenham at the mouth of the Weser.
| Surname | Period | Location | comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frerichs & Co | 1905-1934 | Becoming one | In total, over 500 ships were built by the Frerichs shipyard. |
Elsfleth
In Elsfleth shipyards settled over 15 who are treated in a separate text. The last of these shipyards, Elsflether Werft , has been in bankruptcy since 2019.
Flethe
Several small shipyards were located in the village of Flethe until 1850 . In 1840 Jacob Frerichs and the English engineers Henry Taylor and William Waller founded a mechanical engineering company under the name Frerichs & Co., which occasionally also dealt with the construction of small iron ships. Small ships were built in Osterholz from 1865, and larger ships in Einswarden from 1905, as there was no direct water connection in Osterholz.
| Surname | Period | Location | comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gloistein shipyard | 1779-1799 | Flethe | Construction of coastal sailors and schooners |
| J. Wenke | 1818-1844 | Flethe | Construction of Weser barges |
| J. Bering | 1860-1870 | Flethe | Construction of some ewer |
Grohn
In Grohn , at the mouth of the Lesum near Vegesack, a few small shipyards settled in 1784 and built wooden ships up to 300 tons. In 1939, because of the cession of Bremerhaven, Bremen received the current districts north of the Lesum in exchange , including Grohn, St. Magnus, Lesum and Burgdamm, which from 1932 belonged to the Osterholz district and previously to the Blumenthal district .
| Surname | Period | Location | comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| LB Schmidt | 1784-1799 | Grohn | Construction of Weser barges |
| Augener & Co | 1859-1864 | Grohn | Built Ewer, Barken and Briggs |
Lemwerder
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There is still a ferry connection between Lemwerder and Vegesack, which was established in the Middle Ages. From around 1500 onwards, seamen and seal hunters from Lemwerder drove in large numbers into the Arctic Ocean to hunt and seal seals. This phase ended around 1860. Now workers were needed in the emerging boat and shipyards in Lemwerder, Bardenfleth and Motzen on the Weser. The Abeking & Rasmussen (A&R) shipyard, which still exists today, began as a boatyard and has successfully developed into a specialist shipyard. In addition to sailing and motor yachts, fishing ships, small, sophisticated ships have always been an important field of work for the navy. Today this shipyard is considered to be the world's most important manufacturer of Swath ships.
| Surname | Period | Location | comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| FL sailor | 1808– | Lemwerder | Construction of a few Ewers and Galiots |
| Abeking & Rasmussen | since 1907 | Lemwerder | over 6000 boats and ships delivered |
Moan
In Motzen shipbuilders family Oltmann worked from 1780 in several generations, starting with Hinrich Oltmann 1780, the few ships built. Claus Oltmann developed larger activities from 1826, which were continued by Diedrich Oltmann the Elder until 1840. Hinrich Oltmann continued to run the shipyard and after his death his widow not only continued the work, she also expanded to St. Magnus. Dietrich Focke, who ran a shipyard with his brother in Bardenfleth, bought a building site in Motzen, on which small wooden ships were built until 1893. Today Motzen is incorporated into Berne like many other places .
| Surname | Period | Location | comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hinrich Oltmann | 1780– | Moan | Galiots |
| Claus Oltmann | 1826-1870 | Moan | The construction program ranged from the Galiot to the full ship, a total of almost 100 ships. |
| Fassmer | since 1850 | Bardfleth | Johann Fassmer started with fishing boats, his sons and grandchildren continued the shipyard. In 1996 the Rechlin shipyard was taken over from the former Shipbuilding Combine |
| D. Focke | 1873-1893 | Moan | Around 15 Ewer, Ewerkähne and Schoonerbriggs were built at Dietrich Focke's shipyard |
Osterholz
The Osterholz monastery was founded in 1182, which resulted in the Osterholz patch , which later rose to become the administrative seat (Osterholz office), from which the Osterholz district was formed in 1885 by merging with the Lilienthal office. J. Frerichs & Co. has been based in Osterholz since 1865, and small iron ships were also designed and built here. Small ships could reach the Weser via the Osterholz port canal , the Hamme and Lesum . In 1929 Osterholz-Scharmbeck was elevated to town.
| Surname | Period | Location | comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frerichs & Co | 1902-1906 | Osterholz-Scharmbeck | Building small ships |
Rönnebeck
Rönnebeck has a checkered history, until 1714 it belonged to Sweden, until 1866 to Hanover and until 1939 to Prussia. In 1939 Rönnebeck came to Bremen through a Nazi regulation. Rönnebeck has been a district of Blumenthal in Bremen-Nord since 1946.
Rönnebeck was an important place for shipbuilding, almost 20 shipyards have settled here over the years, but most of them have disappeared with the transition to iron and steel shipbuilding. A few made the transition, they fell victim to the next crisis. Hinrich Oltmann, the brother of Diedrich Oltmann from Motzen, built a small shipyard in Rönnebeck in 1847, which was continued by his widow after his death in 1873. Diedrich Oltmann, the son of the Motzen shipbuilder Hinrich Oltmann, built ships in Rönnebeck from 1866. A grandson of Hinrich Oltmann was busy building barges on G. Seebeck's square from 1950. In 1983 the shipyard Blumenthal GmbH was founded in Rönnebeck. It was created on the site of the Hans Pape shipyard.
Today there are no more shipyards in Rönnebeck.
| Surname | Period | Location | comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| J. Hashagen | 1782– | Rönnebeck | Kuffs |
| J. Tritzen | 1782-1787 | Rönnebeck | 2 galiots, 2 boats |
| C. Gloistein | 1844-1857 | Rönnebeck | mostly boats, a schooner |
| Hinrich Oltmann | 1847-1919 | Rönnebeck | Construction of around 45 sailing ships |
| Havighorst brothers | 1851-1853 | Rönnebeck | Construction of Weser barges |
| C. Dierks & Co. | 1854-1870 | Rönnebeck | Construction of over 45 sailing ships up to 600 loads and a steamer |
| Christoffers brothers | 1857-1873 | Rönnebeck | 12 sailing ships with around 3000 GRT were built. |
| H. Dierking | 1862-1867 | Rönnebeck | Construction of 2 sailing ships |
| D. Oltmann | 1865-1873 | Rönnebeck | Construction of 8 sailors with 2100 GRT |
| Seebeck & Devers | 1876-1991 | Rönnebeck | Ewer, Ewerkähnen, sloops |
| H. Seebeck | 1894-1934 | Rönnebeck | Rear wheel steamer and grain elevator, taken over by F. Oltmann |
| F. Oltmann | 1950-1954 | Rönnebeck | Repairs and 4 new builds of inland vessels, one coaster |
| Karl Sarstedt OHG | 1971-1988 | Rönnebeck | erected on the site of the Rönnebeck part of the Ruhrort shipyard and machine factory ; Construction of the first MPOSS ship, section construction for the Bremer Vulkan |
| C. Pape | 1951-1971 | Rönnebeck | Coasters, barges and 2 dredgers, sold in 1972 |
| Blumenthal shipyard | 1983 | Rönnebeck | until 1972 C. Pape, 1951–1971 shipyard Rööebeck, since 1983 shipyard Blumenthal |
St. Magnus
Burglesum with the St. Magnus district is a district of Bremen within the Bremen-Nord district. St. Magnus played an important role in shipping in the 18th and 19th centuries, as many repair and new build yards had settled here. The important shipbuilding family Oltmann had also set up a branch here.
| Surname | Period | Location | comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Raschen's shipyard | 1770-1841 | St. Magnus | Construction of over 100 sailors, galiots, brigantines, barques, briggs, three-masted schooners and full ships. The site was taken over by B. Wencke in 1844 |
| Bernhard Wencke | 1844-1850 | St. Magnus | B. Wencke has been building ships in Bremen since 1825, and in 1844 he leased the premises of the Raschen shipyard. In Hamburg he was active as a shipowner and shipbuilder. The B. Wencke & Sons shipyard was taken over by the Reiherstieg shipyard in 1900. |
| GH Rischmüller | 1851-1862 | St. Magnus | Construction of around 20 Ewerkähnen, briggs, barges, schooner barges, three-masted schooners and full ships |
| D. Oltmann's widow | 1860-1870 | St. Magnus | Construction of barque briggs and three-masted schooners |
| Hilmer & Kleinschmidt | 1869-1870 | St. Magnus | Construction of 3 sailing ships |
Warfleth
Warfleth is a small town on the Weser directly across from Blumenthal. Only at the end of the 20th century did 3 shipyards settle here.
| Surname | Period | Location | comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gebr. Schürenstedt | 1975– | Warfleth | When the shipyard in Bardenfleth became too small (up to 3500 GRT), this company was established in Warfleth in 1975. Transferred to the Bern shipyard due to financial difficulties. |
| Bern shipyard | 1978-1980 | Warfleth | Actually a rescue company; When the Gebr. Schürenstedt shipyard got into financial difficulties, it was closed in 1978 for the same reasons and the area was still used by Hegemann (ships up to 10,000 GRT). |
| Roland shipyard | since 1984 | Warfleth | Hegemann , relocated his Roland shipyard operations to Warfleth in 1984. Today the shipyard belongs to Lürssen . |
Shipyards in Bremerhaven
In Bremerhaven and Geestemünde , the expansion of the ports began later than in Bremen; here, in addition to shipping on the Weser, the rapidly growing emigration to North America and the subsequent overseas traffic played an important role. As in Bremen, however, all shipyards in Bremerhaven that were active in the new construction closed for the above reasons. Only the Lloyd Werft , as well as the cooperating shipyards German Dry Docks (a result of the merger of MWB Motorenwerke Bremerhaven and Rickmers-Lloyd ) , which are all part of the Petram Group , and BREDO, which are active in the repair sector, survived at this important and traditional shipyard location.
See also
literature
- NN: 100 years of shipping, shipbuilding, ports. Shipping publishing house "Hansa", Hamburg 1964
- Several authors: 125 years of the Verband für Schiffbau und Meerestechnik e. V. Association for shipbuilding and marine technology (publisher), Hamburg 2009.
- Herbert Karting: From wood to steel (1860–1909); History of the Lühring shipyard in Hammelwarden and the sailing ships built there; Part 1; Publisher HM Hauschild, Bremen
- Herbert Karting: From sail to engine (1910–1940); History of the Lühring shipyard in Hammelwarden and the sailing ships built there; Volume 2; Publisher HM Hauschild, Bremen
- Herbert Karting: German schooner. Volumes 1–5: The development of the ship type and the construction of wooden schooners after 1870 on the German North Sea coast (from the Ems to the Weser); Publisher HM Hauschild, Bremen.
- Herbert Karting: History of the Lühring shipyard in Hammelwarden and the sailing ships built there. Hauschild, Bremen 1993
- Dirk J. Peters: Seagoing shipbuilding in Bremerhaven from the founding of the city to the First World War. Bremerhaven City Archives, Bremerhaven 1987.
- Horst Adamitz: tides of shipping. Verlag H. Saade, Bremen, ISBN 3-922642-09-8 .
- Peter Kuckuck: The Bremen volcano. Steintor Publishing House, Bremen 1987.
- Peter Kuckuck: The AG Weser. Steintor Publishing House, Bremen 1987.
- Georg Bessell, August Westermann: 150 years of shipbuilding in Vegesack. Steintor Publishing House, Bremen 1987.
- Benno Eide Siebs: 125 years of Rickmers. Self-published by Rickmers Rhederei AG; Rickmers Werft and Rickmers Linie GmbH, Hamburg and Bremerhaven 1959
- Siegfried Stegmann: The Lloyd shipyard; 1998 Bremerhaven self-published
- Ulrike Lange-Basman: three-masted schooners and steam launchers. The Hamburg shipyard JHN Wichhorst in the time of transition from wooden shipbuilding to iron and steel shipbuilding., Oceanum Verlag Wiefelstede 2009. Writings of the German Maritime Museum 68. ISBN 978-3-86927-068-5
- Paul Schroedter, Gustav Schroedter (Ed.): 100 years of shipping, shipbuilding, ports. Schiffahrtsverlag Hansa, Hamburg 1964.
- Karl Sarstedt: Memories on the occasion of my 65th birthday on November 27, 1972. o. O., o. J.
- Lars Schmitz-Eggen: The plastic blacksmith from the New Harbor - Gustav Kuhr and the history of the Bremerhaven lunewerft 1945–1976 . BoD, Norderstedt 2012