User:Macchiavelli1999/Alstaden

Alstaden an der Ruhr, shortly Alstaden ([ˈalʃtaːdn̩], in the local dialect sometimes [ˈalʃtaːn]; Low German Alsten) is a town in the western Ruhr Area which is today a part of the independent city Oberhausen in North Rhine-Westphalia. Alstaden has a population of 17,920 at the 2016 census and an area of 3.85 km². Thus, it is the most populous borough of Oberhausen.

Geography

Alstaden is the southernmost borough of Oberhausen, located in the southwest of Alt-Oberhausen district, at the riverside of the Ruhr. The river branch flowing at Alstaden is called the „Old Ruhr“ (Alte Ruhr) or the „Little River“ (Kleines Strömchen).

It borders Southern Lirich in the north, Oberhausen City in the northwest, Styrum in the east, Speldorf in the south and Upper Meiderich in the west.

History

Early development

According to the local citizens' association (Bürgerring Alstaden), Alstaden was founded by Frankish farmers in the 6th century. The topography and location of the settlement influenced the development of the settlement: directly next to the river, there were the Ruhr meadows, a fertile flooded area, suited to livestock farming, bordered by the lower terrace consisting of farmland. The earliest settlement came about at the edge of the lower terrace and the meadows, the area around today's Kewer Street (Kewerstraße).

The first mention of Alstaden dates back to 1393, when a farm is sold to Sterkrade convent. Alstaden was part of the Lordship of Broich which in turn belonged to the Duchy of Berg. It was the northernmost part of the Duchy, and with Styrum and Dümpten the only village to the right of the Ruhr. In 1550, the Lord of Broich introduced the Reformation in his territory, the inhabitants had to accept the protestant belief.

At a later time, a second core of settlement was formed in the north, at the edge of the northern heathland, the Lipperheide. Even in the 17th and 18th century, maps clearly distinguish between the village Alstaden and the village „Heiderhöfen“ ('farms in the heath'), along today's streets Heiderhöfen, Flockenfeld and Lickenberg. The name Heiderhöfen was still in use as late as 1907, when it designated the western part of the municipality Alstaden.

In the first phase of the village's development, Alstaden was solely characterized by agriculture. This changed in the late 18th century due to the growing importance of Ruhr shipping. Increasingly, boatmen, boatbuilders, barge owners and ship carpenters settled in the town, so in the early beginning of the industrial revolution, there was a mixed structure of agriculture, craftsmanship and transportation. This flowering of Ruhr shipping is still remembered today by the street name Schifferstraße ('Boatman Street').

Industrial revolution and further industrial history

In 1851, the first coal was found in Alstaden. In 1855, Belgian investors around Albert de Gruyter established the „Mülheim Mining Limited Partnership Albert de Gruyter & Co“ and started the sinking work. The shaft „Swalmius“ went into operation in 1859 and was renamed „Alstaden“. Since 1865, around 500 workers were in employment at the coal mine. During the industrial revolution in Alstaden, the population increased extremely. In 1812, 280 people lived in Alstaden. In 1847, there were 733 inhabitants, 1867 2,675 inhabitants. In 1875, when the second shaft of Alstaden pit started its delivery, 4,034 people were registered. Not only Alstaden pit, but also coal mines in the neighbouring towns were important employers for inhabitants of the village, especially Concordia pit, Oberhausen pit and Roland pit, in Oberhausen. Next to mining, brick-factories constituted the second important branch of industry, due to the loamy soil in the village. A majority of factories in Oberhausen were built from claybricks from Alstaden.

In 1872, miners discovered an underground salt spring in the first shaft of Alstaden pit. When a second salt spring was found in 1883 within the second shaft, the mine's management had the water analyzed, which revealed its high iodine concentration. In 1889, a brine bath was opened and Alstaden became a saltwater spa. In 1909, the brine bath moved to Mülheim and was renamed Raffelberg brine bath ('Solbad Raffelberg').

In 1904, the Hibernia corporation absorbed Alstaden pit and closed the first shaft. Until 1910, around 1,000 miners worked in the second shaft. A third shaft was opened in 1933 which undertook the complete delivery in 1936.

The coal crises during the 1950's and the 60's did not harm the Alstaden pit because it was specialized as a domestic coal mine. As recently as 1973, the coal mine was closed. Since then, Alstaden underwent the same structural change as the complete Ruhr area.

Administrative history

Since the early middle age, Alstaden was part of the lordship of Broich, therefore part of the Duchy of Berg. When Napoleon's troops occupied the Rhineland, the old administrative structures were dissolved. From 1808 to 1813, Alstaden belonged to the Arrondissement Essen within in the Département of the Rhine.

After the Congress of Vienna, it belonged to Essen district, since 1823 Duisburg district, within the Prussian Rhine Province. The Rhenish Municipal code made Alstaden a municipality, belonging of Mülheim mayoralty. In 1857, Mülheim municipality became a mayoralty in its own right with the other municipalities forming Mülheim Country municipality.

When Oberhausen mayoralty was formed in 1862, the three municipalities Alstaden, Styrum and Dümpten had to convey a stripe of heathland away. In 1874, Duisburg district was renamed Mülheim district. Since 1878 the three afore-mentioned municipalities formed the mayoralty of Styrum. The King of Prussia enacted the combination of Mülheim City with its surrounding towns in 1903 which is why Alstaden, Heißen and Dümpten remained the only towns in Mülheim district. Hence, Alstaden became a mayoralty in 1904 and Ludolf Kewer was appointed mayor of Alstaden. He held the office until 1910, when Alstaden was incorporated into Oberhausen, along with the northern parts of Styrum and Dümpten. Since then, it is a borough of the city of Oberhausen.

Religion

The Evangelical Church in the Rhineland maintains a church in Alstaden. Since 2007, it forms the Emmaus Parish Oberhausen together with Paulus church in Lirich and Luther church in Buschhausen. The Evangelical Church of Alstaden was built from 1903 to 1905. During the National Socialist Period, it served as a heartland of the Confessing Church.

The catholic Diocese of Essen has two churches in Alstaden: Saint Anthony (St. Antonius) in Alstaden Centre and Saint Peter (St. Peter) in northern Alstaden. Together, they form the district of Saint Anthony Alstaden, belonging to the parish of Sacred Heart in Oberhausen (Herz Jesu). Saint Anthony was built from 1896 to 1897, Saint Peter was built from 1906 to 1918. The two parishes merged in Saint Anthony district of Sacred Heart parish in 2007. From 1969 to 2008, Saint Anthony parish maintained the succursal church „Saint Hildegard at the Ruhr Park“ (St. Hildegard am Ruhrpark). Due to massive restructuring in the diocese, it had to be closed, sold and demolished. Auspiciously many baptisms, First Communions and weddings take place in Saint Anthony church.

The Alstaden Municipal Cemetery (Städtischer Friedhof Alstaden) was established in 1905 by donations of Alstaden's citizens. It is one of the five municipal cemeteries in Oberhausen and among those, the smallest by far. Its closure could be prevented by protests in 1985, 1987 and 2005. A peculiarity about Alstaden's cemetery is the cemetery ordinance that – down to the present day – allows only citizens who have lived in Alstaden to be buried in its ground.

Culture and landmarks

Green spaces and recreation

There are several public green spaces in Alstaden serving as recreational areas in Alstaden. The „Ruhr Park“ (Ruhrpark) in southern Alstaden was laid out as an English Garden and borders the Ruhr dike in the south. It is home to various monuments, including a world war memorial near Kewer Street and a memorial for Friedrich Jahn after whom the Jahn meadow (Jahnwiese) in the park's middle is named.

The „Biotope“ (Biotop) is a green space in southwestern Alstaden that was created on the former attle heap Am Ruhrufer ('At the Ruhr bank') which had burned from 1982 to 1993. After the heap was stripped, the area was lower than the ground-water level, so a few lakes and ponds formed in the new crater. Round the Biotope, there are the Ruhr meadows and the dike.

The „Brine Bath Heap“ (Solbadhalde) is another former attle heap of the Alstaden coal mine, its official name is „Alstaden Heap“. A forest has grown on the heap, making it another recreational area.

Sport

Alstaden is home to several sport clubs. „Schwarz-Weiß Alstaden“ ('Black White Alstaden') is the most important football club, „Hibernia Alstaden“ is another one. „Fortuna Alstaden“ was dissolved in 2015. Until 2012, Rot-Weiß Oberhausen was seated at Landwehr stadium in Alstaden, then it moved to its primary stadium, Niederrhein stadium in Oberhausen centre.

„TuS Alstaden“ (tennis, handball, badminton, gymnastics) is one of Oberhausen's biggest sport clubs, other clubs include „Billardfreunde Alstaden“ (billard), „TC Babcock“ (tennis), „TSV Alstaden“ (table tennis), „Schwalbe Alstaden“ (pigeon breeding), „PV Wasserbummler“ (canoeing) and „Alstadener KC“ which is one of the most successful German canoeing clubs.

The club houses and training grounds of SW Alstaden and TuS Alstaden are next to each other at the sports centre „Kuhle“, another sports centre can be found at the Solbadstraße.

Citizen's Association

The local citizen's association „Bürgerring Oberhausen-Alstaden“ was formed in 1950 as a garden culture association that campaigned for a recultivation of the Ruhr Park. Since 1953, it serves as a citizen's association. After its founder and first president, Matthias Hendricks, a street in the town centre was named.

The citizen's association planted cherry trees along many roads in the borough which are nowadays typical for Alstaden. It has an established reputation among Alstaden and Oberhausen and is known for its tenacity. Its former president, Marianne Vier, was awarded the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany for her commitment to the borough. The current association's president is Peter Klunk.

Traditional events

The carnival club „Wagaschei“ organizes an annual carnival procession through Alstaden on Rosenmontag which is called „Pöstertreck“ (Low German, 'racket procession'). It is led by a confetti canon, the „Dicke Berta“ ('Fat Berta'). The second carnival club, the „Alstaden Bears“ (Alstadener Bären) organizes the annual „Bärenfest“ ('Bear party'), a borough party.

Music

Several choirs are resident in Alstaden among which are the gospel choirs „S(w)ing and Praise“ (Saint Peter church) and „Enjoy together“ (Saint Anthony church), the male choral societies „Caecilia Alstaden“ and „1853 Alstaden“ and the church choirs „Alstaden Evangelical Chantry“, „Saint Anthony and Peter“, „Saint Anthony Chambre Choir“ and „Family Choir Sacred Heart“.

Infrastructure

Present-day Alstaden is shaped by dispersed residential development with local craft and trade, as well as many green areas. The borough has changed from an industrial town to a suburb that is seen as attractive and modern. The diverse building structures are typic for Alstaden: next to the single-floor miners' houses that are characteristic for the Ruhr there are Gründerzeit buildings, younger multi-family houses, and especially single-family homes. These row or detached houses are often arranged in backstreets called „settlements“ (Siedlungen) and shape the townscape above all. In 2012, more than half of the houses in western Alstaden were single-family houses.

Another feature of Alstaden is the high identification of the inhabitants with their borough and their „complaint activity“. Alstaden's citizens commemorate the time of their independence and frequently call the borough „Kingdom of Alstaden“ (Königreich Alstaden). Alstaden is often said to have a rural character, despite its large size.

There are a few super markets in the borough. The shopping centre „Bero“, Oberhausen's and Mülheim's city centre are within easy reach. Alstaden's main road axis is the Bebel Street („Bebelstraße“) but there is no heart of the town in a classical sense.

Education

Alstaden is home to three elementary schools and one secondary school. The „Hauptschule Alstaden“ is located at Bebel Street but it will close in summer 2018 due to sinking school enrolment. It is the last Hauptschule in Oberhausen, the others have already been closed.

The elementary schools are the Landwehr school at the border to Styrum, the Bismarck school, and the catholic Ruhr school (GK Ruhrschule), both in western Alstaden. The Ruhr school shall move into the building of Alstaden Hauptschule in 2019, when the Hauptschule will have closed.

There are also several nursery schools and kindergardens, including the municipal nursery schools Alstaden West and Rechenacker, the evangelical Karibu Sana, the catholic Saint Anthony and Saint Peter and the private Zaubersterne ('Magic Stars').

Traffic

Alstaden has got no immediate link to an Autobahn, but can be achieved using the junction 15 „Mülheim/Oberhausen-Alstaden“ of the Autobahn 40 and using the junction 13 „Oberhausen-Lirich“ of the Autobahn 3.

The rail lines Duisburg–Dortmund and Oberhausen–Duisburg-Ruhrort run through Alstaden. The latter one has got a station at the western edge of Alstaden, called „Duisburg-Obermeiderich“. Another station is planned in the centre of Alstaden at the rail line Duisburg–Dortmund for a few decades, but has never been realised. The neighbouring stations Oberhausen and Mülheim-Styrum can be attained by bus routes.

The bus traffic in Alstaden is managed by the Oberhausen municipal traffic company STOAG. There are bus routes starting at the borough's hub „Fröbelplatz“ and at the stop „Ruhrpark“ running to Oberhausen city, Sterkrade, Osterfeld, Mülheim-Styrum, Mülheim city and Essen-Borbeck. Two other routes connect western Alstaden with Duisburg and Duisburg-Meiderich.

Notable Natives

• Theodor Undereyk, 1635–1693, pastor, spirituall writer and pioneer of pietism (raised in Alstaden)
• Heinz Büker, *1941, spring canoeist at Alstadener KC
• Maximilian Meyer, *1995, professional footballer