Niedernberg
Encyclopedia
Niedernberg is a municipality
in the Miltenberg district
in the Regierungsbezirk
of Lower Franconia
(Unterfranken) in Bavaria
, Germany
.
to the north, which itself lies some 50 km southeast of Frankfurt am Main
. Niedernberg is the Miltenberg district’s northernmost municipality and is found right on the Main’s left bank. In both the east and the west, it is hilly.
. The soil
composition is what one would expect from this: throughout the even areas it is overwhelmingly sands and loamy layers. In the west are also found layers of loam
at the surface, although these quickly yield to bunter
.
Particularly as of the mid 20th century, there was an extensive gravel
quarry
ing operation.
s in which, in particular, land near the Main has been involved. Since this especially great danger from rising floods came about from icejams, in 1559, for protection, a cutwater was built at the southeast end of the fortifications, which, however, did not work as had been hoped.
The highest ever flood reached Niedernberg in February 1784 during spring runoff as the Main flowed almost 10 m higher than normal through the valley. The flood tore away whole ships, huts and stables, sometimes along with the animals in them.
469.
(Distances are based on those between municipal centres.)
In the Ortskern, or municipal core, many old, and sometimes lovingly restored timber-frame
houses are to be found. Moreover, this part of the municipality also contains the Catholic church, Saint Cyriacus’s, the Town Hall, two banks, a 15th-century fortification renovated in 2004, the Hauptschule
and the Saint Cyriacus kindergarten
.
The nördliche Neubaugebiet (“Northern New Building Area”) offers many Niedernberg dwellers a place for living and playing. North of the New Building Area are found the graveyard, the railway station and the sewage treatment
plant.
In the so-called Gebiet Tafel are found the Tafel commercial area, the Tafeläcker New Building Area, which at this time is being built in four sections, and the watertower. Furthermore, the primary school is also here, as are the second kindergarten (Sonnenschein) and the Niedernberg Musical Corps’s clubhouse, the so-called “Musicum”.
The Seengebiet (“Lake Area”) stretches south of the Hans-Herrmann-Halle, a multipurpose hall named after a former mayor. Here are the Seehotel, the HonischBeach – a bathing beach officially opened in 2005 – and a building area for holiday dwellings. Furthermore, there are three lakes adding to the area’s makeup: the Silbersee (“Silver Lake”), the former surfing lake and the angling
lake.
and Odenwald
wooded ranges.
rule about the time of the onset of the Christian Era: In the first century, the Roman Empire
reached all the way to the Main. To secure their Imperial border, Roman troops built castra
at strategic spots.
Niedernberg’s beginnings go back to one such castrum, built between 83 and 150, at the so-called “Wet Limes
”, which stood as the Empire’s eastern border. The castrum, which measured 144 by 135 m, was built facing the east, towards the Main. Although the castrum was later overbuilt, the way the core of the community is laid out still goes back to the street layout in the castrum; Hauptstraße (“Main Street”) and Kirchgasse (“Church Lane”) correspond with streets in the Roman camp. Niedernberg was the post of a 300-strong cohort
, Cohors I Ligurum et Hispanorum, which drew its recruits from northern Italy and Spain.
Interesting finds such as the “Marcellus Stone” or a burying ground discovered in 1963 have yielded information about the lives of the Romans stationed in Niedernberg. In 1964, during building work on Hauptstraße, a bronze fountain mask was unearthed, today the only original such thing north of the Alps
. This mask is today the showpiece of the Stiftsmuseum in Aschaffenburg, and at Roman exhibitions is found on loan among the very rarest exhibits.
In 1095, Niedernberg had its first documentary mention. It was then that “Diemar von Niderenburc” bequeathed half a Hube
of land from his holdings at Pfungstadt
to the Lorsch Abbey
on the Bergstraße
for the upkeep of its daughter monastery, Steinbach, in the Odenwald.
As early as 1340 the Niedernberg Chapel
, out of which it is generally believed grew today’s parish church, Saint Cyriacus’s, was conceived with small bequests. Both the tower and the “old quire” from 1461 are still preserved today. Extensive conversion and expansion measures were undertaken in 1897 and 1931 under Father Seubert. On the churchtower’s south side is found Michael Groß’s tomb slab, placed there in 1822. Groß was a jurist on the County bench. According to legend, he supposedly kept Niedernberg from destruction by the Swedes in the Thirty Years' War
with his courage.
Northwest of what is today the village area – at the so-called Tannenwäldchen (roughly “Fir Grove”) – was, in the Late Middle Ages
, the hanging place of the tithing area of Bachgau, to which Niedernberg belonged. The tithe court itself sat in Großostheim
, whence the delinquents took their last walk along the gallows path to the hanging place.
On into the 19th century, Niedernberg was ringed by a defensive wall, parts of which, along Turmgasse and Hintermauer – whose name means “Behind Wall” – are still standing today. It could not, however, shield the inhabitants from passing troops. In the wake of the Thirty Years' War alone, the population figure was reduced almost to a tenth of what it had been.
Many citizens left their homeland in the 19th century because of limited living space, various bad harvests and social upheavals and emigrated to the United States
. Only towards the end of the century, when industrialized men’s outerwear manufacture took hold in Aschaffenburg and the surrounding area was there a certain upswing in the level of wealth. To prepare for times of need, agriculture
was also kept. This situation lasted until the 1970s.
From an ecclesiastical point of view, Niedernberg belonged from the early 8th century until Secularization
in 1803 to the Archbishopric of Mainz
. Thereafter, until 1820, Niedernberg was part of the Bishopric of Regensburg with its Archbishop Karl Theodor von Dalberg
. Only in 1821 did Niedernberg become part of the Bishopric of Würzburg.
For many centuries, Niedernberg lay far from any main trade road and led a rather sheltered life. The only link between the Spessart and the Odenwald was the Main ferry, which was withdrawn in 1994. In the meantime, however, Niedernberg has undergone sweeping structural development and of the original pastoral idyll almost nothing is left. With the direct link to the Autobahn to the Frankfurt Rhine Main Region, the completion of a great industrial-commercial area and the Main Bridge, finished in 2001, the environment became conducive to attracting various employers to the municipality. Leaders among these are currently the electronics and computer field, and also concrete
processing.
Niedernberg took a blow in 2002 from M+S Elektronik AG’s bankruptcy
; this company was listed on the stock exchange and for a long time was said to be a showcase company. Out of 1,800 laid-off workers, 600 at the Niedernberg location alone lost their jobs. The firm’s downfall due to a business loan suddenly being withdrawn despite positive financial reports and high demand drew much attention from the news media with various reports. This led to one episode of the WDR
series producing “the story” under the name Bankgeheimnisse (“Bank Secrets”), which is still being broadcast often on German television today.
Currently, the Tafeläcker building area is being developed in Niedernberg in four sections. There are to be sites for 200 dwellings. The first section has been completed; the demand has been unexpectedly high.
church is Saint Stephen’s (St. Stephanus) in Großostheim.
In the 12 March 2006 mayoral election, Jürgen Reinhard was confirmed in office as the only candidate on the ballot with 97.53 of all valid votes, and with a voter turnout of 46.54%.
, Nord, France
From a sporting encounter in the town of Santes in the North of France in 1969 grew a friendly relationship, which on 3 May 1975 led to the signing of partnership documents between Santes and Niedernberg. In this way, both municipalities would like to make a contribution to international understanding.
Subsequently, relations have been continually expanded and solidified through exchange visits. Since 1979 there have been student exchanges between the two places, which lie 580 km apart.
The municipality’s arms
might be described thus: Gules a gateway crenelled of five Or, in the gateway arch a wheel spoked of six argent.
The Municipality of Niedernberg was granted approval on 3 August 1959 by the Bavarian Ministry of the Interior to bear arms. The design was executed by Dr. Merzbacher from Munich.
The charge
s in the arms refer to former rulers. The municipality’s beginning as a Roman outpost with a castrum is expressed through the crenellated gateway. Electoral Mainz’s
ascendancy over the area, known to have been in force by 1292, is recalled by the Wheel of Mainz
.
Overnight lodgings are offered by the Seehotel as well as by the Metzgerei Reinhard (a butchershop) with guestrooms and an adjoining café.
According to the German Chamber of Industry and Trade (Deutsche Industrie- und Handelskammer, or IHK) location report, realizing plans to activate a part of the Niedernberg Lake Plateau (Niedernberger Seenplatte) for leisure and recreational ends would trigger far-reaching, positive impetus for tourism in Niedernberg.
Furthermore, at this time, a golf course
is being built west of the B 469 between Großostheim and Niedernberg, a great part of which will lie within Niedernberg municipal limits, with the other part lying within Großostheim.
songs. In 2005, however, owing to further staffing problems, the two choirs merged into what is now known as the Via Nova Einigkeit singing club.
The Niedernberg volunteer fire brigade’s musical corps, which has existed since 1957, today counts more than 70 active members, among whom are a great many youths. This owes itself not least of all to the hunt for new blood in the municipality in the “Musicum” opened in 1999. Moreover, the musical corps has since 1985 maintained friendship contacts with the music club in Goßmannsdorf
.
, likewise dating from 1461, is adorned with a stone spire. The so-called “Old Quire” is in the same style and of Gothic
origin with Rhenish characteristics.
In the Hans-Herrmann-Halle, finished in 1985 many sport clubs hold their training and competitions. Concerts, major gatherings and private celebrations take place here mainly on weekends. In 2005, the multipurpose hall was thoroughly renovated, as structural shortcomings, in part dire, in the architecture once considered ultramodern led to, among other things, water leaking in and roof construction that was no longer safe.
Said to be Niedernberg’s landmark is the watertower built in only eleven working days in 1958 by Hochtief
AG, and locally known as Langer Adam after the then mayor Adam Klement; the first word in the nickname means “long”.
Until the 1820s, all that Niedernberg had at its disposal for water was seven windlass
wells
. These were only converted to pumped wells in 1834. Until the municipality decided to have the wells deepened in 1859, dry summers often led to water shortages. However, when the work to channel the Main began in 1928, the groundwater
rose so far up that the wellwater began to go foul. The intention to ensure a mutual water supply with the neighbouring municipalities was never realized owing to the outbreak of the Second World War. When in 1954 the first cases of typhus
came to light and the health office, after doing tests, had to shut twelve of the thirteen drinking-water wells down, and also at the same time, privately built supply facilities were affected, something needed to be done quickly. The same year, building contracts were arranged. Until 1958, pipes were being laid and houses connected. The watertower’s height of 44 m was necessary given that local conditions, as in the neighbouring municipalities, precluded using high-level tanks to get the needed water pressure. The Niedernberg watertower has a diameter throughout its height of 10 m. The two watertanks, made of watertight reinforced concrete
, hold 250 000 L and provide a water pressure of 3.5 at
in the waterpipe network. The watertower’s paint job in brown, yellow and grey came during the refurbishment in 1982. Since then, its appearance has changed only with the installation of a variety of cellular
antennae.
Since 2001, a roadbridge has spanned the Main in Niedernberg’s municipal area. The bridge has a span between supports of 150 m and is distinguished by its slanted, crossing hangers, a seldom used construction form in Germany.
In the field of sports, besides the tradition-rich angling
and cycle ball
clubs, the Reiselust carrier pigeon
club, the gymnastic club, the DJK (Deutsche Jugendkraft, or “German Youth Power” – a Catholic sporting association), the strength sport club Germania, the sailing and surfing club and the football club SpVgg Niedernberg, there are also a handicapped sports group, a tennis club, a skittle
club and a table football
club.
There are also local chapters of the Bavarian Red Cross, the Federation of German Catholic Youth (Bund der deutschen katholischen Jugend, or BDKJ), the DPSG
, the volunteer fire brigade, which had its beginnings as far back as 1855, and the KJG (a Catholic youth group).
The historical society, through its various activities, holds a special importance in Niedernberg. The Carnival club NCV Niedernberg e.V. is known far across the region.
s with international and typical local fare. Widespread particular recognition has been earned by the restaurant Blecherne Katz right near the Town Hall, the nearby wine parlour Zum Wagner and the Seehotel in its quiet location, and with its overnight accommodations.
The oldest inns still in business today are the Zur Gemütlichkeit, which was first granted a licence in 1875, and the Mainaussicht (formerly Mainlust), where in 1867, waggoners and shippers were already being served drinks and in 1896 an inn was officially being run.
ing in Niedernberg left in its wake consequences in the form of the Niedernberg Lake Plateau (Niedernberger Seenplatte). Ths is made up of several bigger and smaller lakes and can be found in Niedernberg’s south. For a long time the Lake Plateau turned out to be a real problem for Niedernberg, as in the summer thousands of people from all over the district came to use the biggest lake as an unofficial bathing pond. This led to catastrophic traffic-flow problems on Kreisstraße
(district road) MIL 38, for visitors would simply park their cars right at the edge of the road. Unapproved parties at the lake led to heavy pollution of much of the lakeside.
In 2004 a decision was approved to build a public bathing beach. The beach was finished in time for the 2005 bathing season, and improvement to the location is clearly visible. In the future, the municipality wishes to open the Lake Plateau even more to tourism, as it is believed that there is great growth potential here. A first step in this direction is represented by the hotel on the lake, which is nonetheless mostly patronized by business travellers. On 18 October 2006, an expansion to the Seehotel was approved during a session of Niedernberg municipal council.
469 and the Autobahn A 3 favours the resident industrial and handicraft businesses.
. All together, Niedernberg road network has a length of 32 km.
(Aschaffenburg Hauptbahnhof
), 15 km away. Crossing Niedernberg are bus routes 60 (Obernburg, Großwallstadt
, Nilkheim and Aschaffenburg
) and 56 (Sulzbach
, Großostheim
). During the work week these public transport association buses run hourly, and on weekends every two hours.
and Aschaffenburg Airport. Moreover, in the neighbouring municipality of Obernau is found the Altenbach gliderport.
Moreover, in the last few years, around the Flügel-Zentrum, a great number of businesses have set up shop, among them supermarkets such as NORMA and Rewe
, a s.Oliver shop and remainder sales department, a bookshop and all together three of the five bakeries now in business in Niedernberg.
The Volksschule
(built in 1960) is attended by 45 local pupils and another 41 from Großwallstadt within the framework of a collective school. Furthermore, 66 pupils from Niedernberg go to the Hauptschule
in Großwallstadt.
Besides a school lunch, there is, with the parents’ association’s help, regular, optional homework supervision in Niedernberg.
, and pronounced quite similarly), but rather comes from a former way of pronouncing the auxiliary verb
haben (“have”). This word alone was enough to tell people from the surrounding communities apart by their dialect (Niedernberg: hohn, Großwallstadt: hewwe, Großostheim: haoun).
Earlier generations in Niedernberg customarily said, instead of the standard German habe ich (“have I”), the local form hohn isch, leading those in neighbouring places to give them the nickname “Honisch”. Over the years, this designation has become a “brandname”, particularly at Carnival
time.
(97 persons, 1.87% of the population). Compared with the district average of 9.9%, relatively few non-German nationals live in Niedernberg. The figure is likewise higher for the Regierungsbezirk
of Lower Franconia
at 7.0%.
Municipalities of Germany
Municipalities are the lowest level of territorial division in Germany. This may be the fourth level of territorial division in Germany, apart from those states which include Regierungsbezirke , where municipalities then become the fifth level.-Overview:With more than 3,400,000 inhabitants, the...
in the Miltenberg district
Miltenberg (district)
Miltenberg is an administrative district in Bavaria, Germany. It is bounded by the city of Aschaffenburg, the districts of Aschaffenburg and Main-Spessart, and the states of Baden-Württemberg and Hesse .-History:During the Middle Ages there was continuous...
in the Regierungsbezirk
Regierungsbezirk
In Germany, a Government District, in German: Regierungsbezirk – is a subdivision of certain federal states .They are above the Kreise, Landkreise, and kreisfreie Städte...
of Lower Franconia
Lower Franconia
Lower Franconia is one of the three administrative regions of Franconia in Bavaria , Germany ....
(Unterfranken) in Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
Location
Niedernberg is just under 10 km from AschaffenburgAschaffenburg
Aschaffenburg is a city in northwest Bavaria, Germany. The town of Aschaffenburg is not considered part of the district of Aschaffenburg, but is the administrative seat.Aschaffenburg is known as the Tor zum Spessart or "gate to the Spessart"...
to the north, which itself lies some 50 km southeast of Frankfurt am Main
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
. Niedernberg is the Miltenberg district’s northernmost municipality and is found right on the Main’s left bank. In both the east and the west, it is hilly.
Geology
Distinguishing the natural areas is the gradual downward slope of the eastern part of the municipal area from the west to the east. Niedernberg belongs to the Lower Main Plain (Untermainebene) and to the peripheral mountain zone of the OdenwaldOdenwald
The Odenwald is a low mountain range in Hesse, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg in Germany.- Location :The Odenwald lies between the Upper Rhine Rift Valley with the Bergstraße and the Hessisches Ried in the west, the Main and the Bauland in the east, the Hanau-Seligenstadt Basin – a subbasin of...
. The soil
Soil
Soil is a natural body consisting of layers of mineral constituents of variable thicknesses, which differ from the parent materials in their morphological, physical, chemical, and mineralogical characteristics...
composition is what one would expect from this: throughout the even areas it is overwhelmingly sands and loamy layers. In the west are also found layers of loam
Loam
Loam is soil composed of sand, silt, and clay in relatively even concentration . Loam soils generally contain more nutrients and humus than sandy soils, have better infiltration and drainage than silty soils, and are easier to till than clay soils...
at the surface, although these quickly yield to bunter
Bunter (geology)
Bunter beds are sandstone deposits containing rounded pebbles, such as can notably be found in Warwickshire, Cheshire, Staffordshire, Nottinghamshire, Yorkshire, Devon and Dorset in England...
.
Particularly as of the mid 20th century, there was an extensive gravel
Gravel
Gravel is composed of unconsolidated rock fragments that have a general particle size range and include size classes from granule- to boulder-sized fragments. Gravel can be sub-categorized into granule and cobble...
quarry
Quarry
A quarry is a type of open-pit mine from which rock or minerals are extracted. Quarries are generally used for extracting building materials, such as dimension stone, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, and gravel. They are often collocated with concrete and asphalt plants due to the requirement...
ing operation.
Natural events
Owing to its geographical location, Niedernberg has since yore had to deal repeatedly with wintertime floodFlood
A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges land. The EU Floods directive defines a flood as a temporary covering by water of land not normally covered by water...
s in which, in particular, land near the Main has been involved. Since this especially great danger from rising floods came about from icejams, in 1559, for protection, a cutwater was built at the southeast end of the fortifications, which, however, did not work as had been hoped.
The highest ever flood reached Niedernberg in February 1784 during spring runoff as the Main flowed almost 10 m higher than normal through the valley. The flood tore away whole ships, huts and stables, sometimes along with the animals in them.
Municipal area’s extent
The municipal area stretches off mainly to the west, as in the north it is bounded by the water protection area (Wasserschutzgebiet), in the east by the Main and in the south by the lake plateau. Even its westward stretch, though, it is limited by BundesstraßeBundesstraße
Bundesstraße , abbreviated B, is the denotation for German and Austrian national highways.-Germany:...
469.
Neighbouring municipalities
| Aschaffenburg Aschaffenburg Aschaffenburg is a city in northwest Bavaria, Germany. The town of Aschaffenburg is not considered part of the district of Aschaffenburg, but is the administrative seat.Aschaffenburg is known as the Tor zum Spessart or "gate to the Spessart"... (10 km) |
||||
| Großostheim Großostheim Großostheim is a market community in the Aschaffenburg district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany... (4.1 km, linked by the B 469) |
 |
Sulzbach Sulzbach am Main Sulzbach am Main is a market municipality in the Miltenberg district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany.- Location :... (1.6 km, on the other side of the Main) |
||
| Großwallstadt Großwallstadt Großwallstadt is a community in the Miltenberg district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany.- Location :... (3.9 km, likewise right on the Main) |
||||
| Miltenberg Miltenberg Miltenberg is the seat of the like-named district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany.- Location :... (20 km) |
Constituent communities
The municipality is subdivided into four parts.In the Ortskern, or municipal core, many old, and sometimes lovingly restored timber-frame
Timber framing
Timber framing , or half-timbering, also called in North America "post-and-beam" construction, is the method of creating structures using heavy squared off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs . It is commonplace in large barns...
houses are to be found. Moreover, this part of the municipality also contains the Catholic church, Saint Cyriacus’s, the Town Hall, two banks, a 15th-century fortification renovated in 2004, the Hauptschule
Hauptschule
A Hauptschule is a secondary school in Germany and Austria, starting after 4 years of elementary schooling, which offers Lower Secondary Education according to the International Standard Classification of Education...
and the Saint Cyriacus kindergarten
Kindergarten
A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...
.
The nördliche Neubaugebiet (“Northern New Building Area”) offers many Niedernberg dwellers a place for living and playing. North of the New Building Area are found the graveyard, the railway station and the sewage treatment
Sewage treatment
Sewage treatment, or domestic wastewater treatment, is the process of removing contaminants from wastewater and household sewage, both runoff and domestic. It includes physical, chemical, and biological processes to remove physical, chemical and biological contaminants...
plant.
In the so-called Gebiet Tafel are found the Tafel commercial area, the Tafeläcker New Building Area, which at this time is being built in four sections, and the watertower. Furthermore, the primary school is also here, as are the second kindergarten (Sonnenschein) and the Niedernberg Musical Corps’s clubhouse, the so-called “Musicum”.
The Seengebiet (“Lake Area”) stretches south of the Hans-Herrmann-Halle, a multipurpose hall named after a former mayor. Here are the Seehotel, the HonischBeach – a bathing beach officially opened in 2005 – and a building area for holiday dwellings. Furthermore, there are three lakes adding to the area’s makeup: the Silbersee (“Silver Lake”), the former surfing lake and the angling
Angling
Angling is a method of fishing by means of an "angle" . The hook is usually attached to a fishing line and the line is often attached to a fishing rod. Fishing rods are usually fitted with a fishing reel that functions as a mechanism for storing, retrieving and paying out the line. The hook itself...
lake.
Climate
With a yearly mean temperature of more than 9 °C, Niedernberg belongs to one of Germany’s warmest regions. It is favoured by the sheltering afforded by the SpessartSpessart
The Spessart is a low mountain range in northwestern Bavaria and southern Hesse, Germany. It is bordered on three sides by the Main River. The two most important towns located at the foot of the Spessart are Aschaffenburg and Würzburg....
and Odenwald
Odenwald
The Odenwald is a low mountain range in Hesse, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg in Germany.- Location :The Odenwald lies between the Upper Rhine Rift Valley with the Bergstraße and the Hessisches Ried in the west, the Main and the Bauland in the east, the Hanau-Seligenstadt Basin – a subbasin of...
wooded ranges.
History
The oldest finds that indicate human habitation in Niedernberg’s municipal area come from the New Stone Age. Far-reaching changes in the landscape came along with RomanAncient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
rule about the time of the onset of the Christian Era: In the first century, the Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
reached all the way to the Main. To secure their Imperial border, Roman troops built castra
Castra
The Latin word castra, with its singular castrum, was used by the ancient Romans to mean buildings or plots of land reserved to or constructed for use as a military defensive position. The word appears in both Oscan and Umbrian as well as in Latin. It may have descended from Indo-European to Italic...
at strategic spots.
Niedernberg’s beginnings go back to one such castrum, built between 83 and 150, at the so-called “Wet Limes
Limes Germanicus
The Limes Germanicus was a line of frontier fortifications that bounded the ancient Roman provinces of Germania Inferior, Germania Superior and Raetia, dividing the Roman Empire and the unsubdued Germanic tribes from the years 83 to about 260 AD...
”, which stood as the Empire’s eastern border. The castrum, which measured 144 by 135 m, was built facing the east, towards the Main. Although the castrum was later overbuilt, the way the core of the community is laid out still goes back to the street layout in the castrum; Hauptstraße (“Main Street”) and Kirchgasse (“Church Lane”) correspond with streets in the Roman camp. Niedernberg was the post of a 300-strong cohort
Cohort (military unit)
A cohort was the basic tactical unit of a Roman legion following the reforms of Gaius Marius in 107 BC.-Legionary cohort:...
, Cohors I Ligurum et Hispanorum, which drew its recruits from northern Italy and Spain.
Interesting finds such as the “Marcellus Stone” or a burying ground discovered in 1963 have yielded information about the lives of the Romans stationed in Niedernberg. In 1964, during building work on Hauptstraße, a bronze fountain mask was unearthed, today the only original such thing north of the Alps
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
. This mask is today the showpiece of the Stiftsmuseum in Aschaffenburg, and at Roman exhibitions is found on loan among the very rarest exhibits.
In 1095, Niedernberg had its first documentary mention. It was then that “Diemar von Niderenburc” bequeathed half a Hube
Hide (unit)
The hide was originally an amount of land sufficient to support a household, but later in Anglo-Saxon England became a unit used in assessing land for liability to "geld", or land tax. The geld would be collected at a stated rate per hide...
of land from his holdings at Pfungstadt
Pfungstadt
Pfungstadt is a German town of 25,117 inhabitants, in the district of Darmstadt-Dieburg in the state of Hesse.The town was first mentioned in 785 as property of the Monastery of Lorsch and got its town rights in 1886 due to its railway station...
to the Lorsch Abbey
Lorsch Abbey
The Abbey of Lorsch is a former Imperial Abbey in Lorsch, Germany, about 10 km east of Worms, one of the most renowned monasteries of the Carolingian Empire. Even in its ruined state, its remains are among the most important pre-Romanesque–Carolingian style buildings in Germany...
on the Bergstraße
Bergstraße
Bergstraße is the name of a mountainous theme route, and the area around it, stretching across the western edge of the Odenwald in southern Hesse and northern Baden-Württemberg, Germany....
for the upkeep of its daughter monastery, Steinbach, in the Odenwald.
As early as 1340 the Niedernberg Chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
, out of which it is generally believed grew today’s parish church, Saint Cyriacus’s, was conceived with small bequests. Both the tower and the “old quire” from 1461 are still preserved today. Extensive conversion and expansion measures were undertaken in 1897 and 1931 under Father Seubert. On the churchtower’s south side is found Michael Groß’s tomb slab, placed there in 1822. Groß was a jurist on the County bench. According to legend, he supposedly kept Niedernberg from destruction by the Swedes in the Thirty Years' War
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most countries in Europe. It was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history....
with his courage.
Northwest of what is today the village area – at the so-called Tannenwäldchen (roughly “Fir Grove”) – was, in the Late Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
, the hanging place of the tithing area of Bachgau, to which Niedernberg belonged. The tithe court itself sat in Großostheim
Großostheim
Großostheim is a market community in the Aschaffenburg district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany...
, whence the delinquents took their last walk along the gallows path to the hanging place.
On into the 19th century, Niedernberg was ringed by a defensive wall, parts of which, along Turmgasse and Hintermauer – whose name means “Behind Wall” – are still standing today. It could not, however, shield the inhabitants from passing troops. In the wake of the Thirty Years' War alone, the population figure was reduced almost to a tenth of what it had been.
Many citizens left their homeland in the 19th century because of limited living space, various bad harvests and social upheavals and emigrated to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Only towards the end of the century, when industrialized men’s outerwear manufacture took hold in Aschaffenburg and the surrounding area was there a certain upswing in the level of wealth. To prepare for times of need, agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
was also kept. This situation lasted until the 1970s.
From an ecclesiastical point of view, Niedernberg belonged from the early 8th century until Secularization
Secularization
Secularization is the transformation of a society from close identification with religious values and institutions toward non-religious values and secular institutions...
in 1803 to the Archbishopric of Mainz
Archbishopric of Mainz
The Archbishopric of Mainz or Electorate of Mainz was an influential ecclesiastic and secular prince-bishopric in the Holy Roman Empire between 780–82 and 1802. In the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy, the Archbishop of Mainz was the primas Germaniae, the substitute of the Pope north of the Alps...
. Thereafter, until 1820, Niedernberg was part of the Bishopric of Regensburg with its Archbishop Karl Theodor von Dalberg
Karl Theodor Anton Maria von Dalberg
Karl Theodor Anton Maria von Dalberg was Archbishop-Elector of Mainz, Arch-Chancellor of the Holy Roman Empire, Prince of Regensburg, primate of the Confederation of the Rhine and Grand-Duke of Frankfurt.-Biography:...
. Only in 1821 did Niedernberg become part of the Bishopric of Würzburg.
For many centuries, Niedernberg lay far from any main trade road and led a rather sheltered life. The only link between the Spessart and the Odenwald was the Main ferry, which was withdrawn in 1994. In the meantime, however, Niedernberg has undergone sweeping structural development and of the original pastoral idyll almost nothing is left. With the direct link to the Autobahn to the Frankfurt Rhine Main Region, the completion of a great industrial-commercial area and the Main Bridge, finished in 2001, the environment became conducive to attracting various employers to the municipality. Leaders among these are currently the electronics and computer field, and also concrete
Concrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...
processing.
Niedernberg took a blow in 2002 from M+S Elektronik AG’s bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
; this company was listed on the stock exchange and for a long time was said to be a showcase company. Out of 1,800 laid-off workers, 600 at the Niedernberg location alone lost their jobs. The firm’s downfall due to a business loan suddenly being withdrawn despite positive financial reports and high demand drew much attention from the news media with various reports. This led to one episode of the WDR
Westdeutscher Rundfunk
Westdeutscher Rundfunk is a German public-broadcasting institution based in the Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia with its main office in Cologne. WDR is a constituent member of the consortium of German public-broadcasting institutions, ARD...
series producing “the story” under the name Bankgeheimnisse (“Bank Secrets”), which is still being broadcast often on German television today.
Currently, the Tafeläcker building area is being developed in Niedernberg in four sections. There are to be sites for 200 dwellings. The first section has been completed; the demand has been unexpectedly high.
Religion
Some 70% of Niedernberg dwellers are Catholic and belong to St. Cyriacus’s parish. The Christuskirche (“Christ Church”) of the Evangelical Free Church community that has been in Niedernberg since 1999 is attended especially on weekends and higher church holidays by the faithful from the region and beyond. The nearest Evangelical LutheranEvangelical Church in Germany
The Evangelical Church in Germany is a federation of 22 Lutheran, Unified and Reformed Protestant regional church bodies in Germany. The EKD is not a church in a theological understanding because of the denominational differences. However, the member churches share full pulpit and altar...
church is Saint Stephen’s (St. Stephanus) in Großostheim.
Municipal council
Since the 2008 election, which saw a voter turnout of 56.97%, the 16-member municipal council has been made up of the following political parties, with seats apportioned as shown:- CSUChristian Social Union of BavariaThe Christian Social Union in Bavaria is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It operates only in the state of Bavaria, while its sister party, the Christian Democratic Union , operates in the other 15 states of Germany...
: 7 seats
- Udo Bieber, Luise Faruga, Volker Goebel, Johannes Nilles (factional spokesman), Eugen Seitz, Manfred Sickenberger, Karin Weiler
- Freie Wähler: 4 seats
- Alexander Hans, Rudi Hartlaub, Jürgen Klement (factional spokesman), Dr. med. Edgar Seitz
- SPDSocial Democratic Party of GermanyThe Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
: 3 seats
- SPD
- Kurt Höhn-Schüßler, Josef Scheuring (factional spokesman), Alexander Wenzel
- IMUN (Initiative Mensch [“Human”] und Umwelt [“Environment”] Niedernberg): 2 seats
- Siegmar Buhler (factional spokesman), Albert Englert
Mayors
The Chief Mayor (Erster Bürgermeister) has been since 2000 Jürgen Reinhard (CSU). His first representative is Jürgen Klement from the Freie Wähler. The Third Mayor is Volker Goebel (CSU).In the 12 March 2006 mayoral election, Jürgen Reinhard was confirmed in office as the only candidate on the ballot with 97.53 of all valid votes, and with a voter turnout of 46.54%.
Town partnerships
SantesSantes
-References:*...
, Nord, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
From a sporting encounter in the town of Santes in the North of France in 1969 grew a friendly relationship, which on 3 May 1975 led to the signing of partnership documents between Santes and Niedernberg. In this way, both municipalities would like to make a contribution to international understanding.
Subsequently, relations have been continually expanded and solidified through exchange visits. Since 1979 there have been student exchanges between the two places, which lie 580 km apart.
Coat of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
might be described thus: Gules a gateway crenelled of five Or, in the gateway arch a wheel spoked of six argent.
The Municipality of Niedernberg was granted approval on 3 August 1959 by the Bavarian Ministry of the Interior to bear arms. The design was executed by Dr. Merzbacher from Munich.
The charge
Charge (heraldry)
In heraldry, a charge is any emblem or device occupying the field of an escutcheon . This may be a geometric design or a symbolic representation of a person, animal, plant, object or other device...
s in the arms refer to former rulers. The municipality’s beginning as a Roman outpost with a castrum is expressed through the crenellated gateway. Electoral Mainz’s
Archbishopric of Mainz
The Archbishopric of Mainz or Electorate of Mainz was an influential ecclesiastic and secular prince-bishopric in the Holy Roman Empire between 780–82 and 1802. In the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy, the Archbishop of Mainz was the primas Germaniae, the substitute of the Pope north of the Alps...
ascendancy over the area, known to have been in force by 1292, is recalled by the Wheel of Mainz
Wheel of Mainz
thumb|150px|version until 1992thumb|150px|version from 1992 - 2008thumb|150px|version from 2008The Wheel of Mainz or Mainzer Rad, in German, was the coat of arms of the Archbishopric of Mainz and thus also of the Electorate of Mainz , in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It consists of a silver wheel...
.
Theatre
Since 1988, the theatrical group Die Blechkatzen (literally, “The Sheet Metal Cats”) perform each autumn a newly rehearsed play. Audiences’ exceedingly positive reactions have led today to the group’s performing several weekends in a row before a sold-out house each time, and even to engagements outside Niedernberg.Museums
Niedernberg has no museum. Nevertheless, the historical society has for several years been planning to establish a museum about Niedernberg’s and the surrounding area’s history in the sandstone school.Tourism
Despite the many offerings in nature, recreation, sports and leisure activities, Niedernberg is not a classic tourist community. In the summer half of the year in 2003 there were 7,115 overnight stays (sixth place in the district), which more than anything else could be attributed to business travellers. The average length of stay accordingly came out to a comparatively short 1.4 days.Overnight lodgings are offered by the Seehotel as well as by the Metzgerei Reinhard (a butchershop) with guestrooms and an adjoining café.
According to the German Chamber of Industry and Trade (Deutsche Industrie- und Handelskammer, or IHK) location report, realizing plans to activate a part of the Niedernberg Lake Plateau (Niedernberger Seenplatte) for leisure and recreational ends would trigger far-reaching, positive impetus for tourism in Niedernberg.
Furthermore, at this time, a golf course
Golf course
A golf course comprises a series of holes, each consisting of a teeing ground, fairway, rough and other hazards, and a green with a flagstick and cup, all designed for the game of golf. A standard round of golf consists of playing 18 holes, thus most golf courses have this number of holes...
is being built west of the B 469 between Großostheim and Niedernberg, a great part of which will lie within Niedernberg municipal limits, with the other part lying within Großostheim.
Music
Quite well known is the singing club Einigkeit (“Unity”), which has already won all kinds of awards and regularly enjoys good results at singing contests. For lack of new blood, there was an attempt at branching out with a new, younger choir, “Via Nova”, with a repertoire of generally modern, often English-languageEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
songs. In 2005, however, owing to further staffing problems, the two choirs merged into what is now known as the Via Nova Einigkeit singing club.
The Niedernberg volunteer fire brigade’s musical corps, which has existed since 1957, today counts more than 70 active members, among whom are a great many youths. This owes itself not least of all to the hunt for new blood in the municipality in the “Musicum” opened in 1999. Moreover, the musical corps has since 1985 maintained friendship contacts with the music club in Goßmannsdorf
Ochsenfurt
Ochsenfurt is a town in the district of Würzburg, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated on the left bank of the River Main, here crossed by a stone bridge, 13 miles south from Würzburg by the railway to Munich, and at the junction of a line to Röttingen. Pop. 11,600...
.
Buildings
Saint Cyriacus’s Church (St.-Cyriakus-Kirche), whose oldest maintained parts date from 1461, is still the Catholic house of worship today. The belltower with its sandstone MadonnaMadonna (art)
Images of the Madonna and the Madonna and Child or Virgin and Child are pictorial or sculptured representations of Mary, Mother of Jesus, either alone, or more frequently, with the infant Jesus. These images are central icons of Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodox Christianity where Mary remains...
, likewise dating from 1461, is adorned with a stone spire. The so-called “Old Quire” is in the same style and of Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
origin with Rhenish characteristics.
In the Hans-Herrmann-Halle, finished in 1985 many sport clubs hold their training and competitions. Concerts, major gatherings and private celebrations take place here mainly on weekends. In 2005, the multipurpose hall was thoroughly renovated, as structural shortcomings, in part dire, in the architecture once considered ultramodern led to, among other things, water leaking in and roof construction that was no longer safe.
Said to be Niedernberg’s landmark is the watertower built in only eleven working days in 1958 by Hochtief
Hochtief
Hochtief Aktiengesellschaft is Germany's largest construction company. It is based in Essen but operates globally, ranking as the top general builder in the United States through its Turner Corporation subsidiary, and in Australia through the Leighton Group. In 2010 it employed more than 70,000...
AG, and locally known as Langer Adam after the then mayor Adam Klement; the first word in the nickname means “long”.
Until the 1820s, all that Niedernberg had at its disposal for water was seven windlass
Windlass
The windlass is an apparatus for moving heavy weights. Typically, a windlass consists of a horizontal cylinder , which is rotated by the turn of a crank or belt...
wells
Water well
A water well is an excavation or structure created in the ground by digging, driving, boring or drilling to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The well water is drawn by an electric submersible pump, a trash pump, a vertical turbine pump, a handpump or a mechanical pump...
. These were only converted to pumped wells in 1834. Until the municipality decided to have the wells deepened in 1859, dry summers often led to water shortages. However, when the work to channel the Main began in 1928, the groundwater
Groundwater
Groundwater is water located beneath the ground surface in soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. A unit of rock or an unconsolidated deposit is called an aquifer when it can yield a usable quantity of water. The depth at which soil pore spaces or fractures and voids in rock...
rose so far up that the wellwater began to go foul. The intention to ensure a mutual water supply with the neighbouring municipalities was never realized owing to the outbreak of the Second World War. When in 1954 the first cases of typhus
Typhus
Epidemic typhus is a form of typhus so named because the disease often causes epidemics following wars and natural disasters...
came to light and the health office, after doing tests, had to shut twelve of the thirteen drinking-water wells down, and also at the same time, privately built supply facilities were affected, something needed to be done quickly. The same year, building contracts were arranged. Until 1958, pipes were being laid and houses connected. The watertower’s height of 44 m was necessary given that local conditions, as in the neighbouring municipalities, precluded using high-level tanks to get the needed water pressure. The Niedernberg watertower has a diameter throughout its height of 10 m. The two watertanks, made of watertight reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete is concrete in which reinforcement bars , reinforcement grids, plates or fibers have been incorporated to strengthen the concrete in tension. It was invented by French gardener Joseph Monier in 1849 and patented in 1867. The term Ferro Concrete refers only to concrete that is...
, hold 250 000 L and provide a water pressure of 3.5 at
Technical atmosphere
A technical atmosphere is a non-SI unit of pressure equal to one kilogram-force per square centimeter.The symbol "at" clashes with that of the katal , the SI unit of catalytic activity; a kilotechnical atmosphere would have the symbol "kat", indistinguishable from the symbol for the katal...
in the waterpipe network. The watertower’s paint job in brown, yellow and grey came during the refurbishment in 1982. Since then, its appearance has changed only with the installation of a variety of cellular
Mobile phone
A mobile phone is a device which can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area. It does so by connecting to a cellular network provided by a mobile network operator...
antennae.
Since 2001, a roadbridge has spanned the Main in Niedernberg’s municipal area. The bridge has a span between supports of 150 m and is distinguished by its slanted, crossing hangers, a seldom used construction form in Germany.
Clubs and associations
Given its population, Niedernberg has a great number of clubs and associations.In the field of sports, besides the tradition-rich angling
Angling
Angling is a method of fishing by means of an "angle" . The hook is usually attached to a fishing line and the line is often attached to a fishing rod. Fishing rods are usually fitted with a fishing reel that functions as a mechanism for storing, retrieving and paying out the line. The hook itself...
and cycle ball
Cycle ball
Cycle ball, also known as "radball" , is a sport similar to football played on bicycles. The two people on each team ride a fixed gear bicycle with no brakes or freewheel. The ball is controlled by the bike and the head, except when defending the goal.The sport was introduced in 1893 by a...
clubs, the Reiselust carrier pigeon
Carrier pigeon
A carrier pigeon is a homing pigeon that is used to carry messages. Using pigeons to carry messages is generally called "pigeon post". Most homing or racing type varieties are used to carry messages. There is no specific breed actually called "carrier pigeon"...
club, the gymnastic club, the DJK (Deutsche Jugendkraft, or “German Youth Power” – a Catholic sporting association), the strength sport club Germania, the sailing and surfing club and the football club SpVgg Niedernberg, there are also a handicapped sports group, a tennis club, a skittle
Skittles (sport)
Skittles is an old European lawn game, a variety of bowling, from which ten-pin bowling, duckpin bowling, and candlepin bowling in the United States, and five-pin bowling in Canada are descended. In the United Kingdom, the game remains a popular pub game in England and Wales, though it tends to be...
club and a table football
Table football
Table football, also known as gitoni or foosball, is a table-top game and sport that is loosely based on association football.-Names:...
club.
There are also local chapters of the Bavarian Red Cross, the Federation of German Catholic Youth (Bund der deutschen katholischen Jugend, or BDKJ), the DPSG
Deutsche Pfadfinderschaft Sankt Georg
The Deutsche Pfadfinderschaft Sankt Georg is the largest of Germany's many Scouting organizations. The Catholic association has about 95,000 members of both genders...
, the volunteer fire brigade, which had its beginnings as far back as 1855, and the KJG (a Catholic youth group).
The historical society, through its various activities, holds a special importance in Niedernberg. The Carnival club NCV Niedernberg e.V. is known far across the region.
Regular events
- Starkbierfest (“bockBockBock is a strong lager of German origin. Several substyles exist, including maibock or helles bock, a paler, more hopped version generally made for consumption at spring festivals; doppelbock, a stronger and maltier version; and eisbock, a much stronger version made by partially freezing the beer...
festival”) in March - Local football championship and Fest unter den Linden in June
- Village festival with “Lower Franconia’s longest beer mile” in September on the occasion of the kermis
- Several wine festivals
Gastronomy
In Niedernberg are a great many innINN
InterNetNews is a Usenet news server package, originally released by Rich Salz in 1991, and presented at the Summer 1992 USENIX conference in San Antonio, Texas...
s with international and typical local fare. Widespread particular recognition has been earned by the restaurant Blecherne Katz right near the Town Hall, the nearby wine parlour Zum Wagner and the Seehotel in its quiet location, and with its overnight accommodations.
The oldest inns still in business today are the Zur Gemütlichkeit, which was first granted a licence in 1875, and the Mainaussicht (formerly Mainlust), where in 1867, waggoners and shippers were already being served drinks and in 1896 an inn was officially being run.
Lake area
Gravel quarryQuarry
A quarry is a type of open-pit mine from which rock or minerals are extracted. Quarries are generally used for extracting building materials, such as dimension stone, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, and gravel. They are often collocated with concrete and asphalt plants due to the requirement...
ing in Niedernberg left in its wake consequences in the form of the Niedernberg Lake Plateau (Niedernberger Seenplatte). Ths is made up of several bigger and smaller lakes and can be found in Niedernberg’s south. For a long time the Lake Plateau turned out to be a real problem for Niedernberg, as in the summer thousands of people from all over the district came to use the biggest lake as an unofficial bathing pond. This led to catastrophic traffic-flow problems on Kreisstraße
Kreisstraße
A Kreisstraße is a class of road in Germany. It carries traffic between the towns and villages within a Kreis or district or between two neighbouring districts. In terms of importance, the Kreisstraße ranks below a Landesstraße , but above a Gemeindestraße or "local road"...
(district road) MIL 38, for visitors would simply park their cars right at the edge of the road. Unapproved parties at the lake led to heavy pollution of much of the lakeside.
In 2004 a decision was approved to build a public bathing beach. The beach was finished in time for the 2005 bathing season, and improvement to the location is clearly visible. In the future, the municipality wishes to open the Lake Plateau even more to tourism, as it is believed that there is great growth potential here. A first step in this direction is represented by the hotel on the lake, which is nonetheless mostly patronized by business travellers. On 18 October 2006, an expansion to the Seehotel was approved during a session of Niedernberg municipal council.
Other
- Extensive recreation area in the nearby forest with barbecue pit
- Marked hiking paths
- “HonischBeach” recreation area with bathing and diving school on the former so-called Surfsee (“Surfing Lake”)
- Cycle path network throughout the municipal area
- BMX track, playing fields and skating facility
Economy and infrastructure
The Bavarian Lower Main (Bayerischer Untermain) belongs to the outermost reaches of the Frankfurt Rhine Main Region, an urban agglomeration surrounding that city, and structurally leans strongly in this direction. The direct link to BundesstraßeBundesstraße
Bundesstraße , abbreviated B, is the denotation for German and Austrian national highways.-Germany:...
469 and the Autobahn A 3 favours the resident industrial and handicraft businesses.
Road
Niedernberg can be easily reached by car, as it is linked through the B 469 to the Autobahnen A 3 and A 45Bundesautobahn 45
is an autobahn in Germany, connecting Dortmund in the west with Aschaffenburg in the southwest. It is colloquially known by its byname Sauerlandlinie, which derives from the Sauerland, the landscape which said autobahn is running through between the cities of Hagen and Siegen. Many people think of...
. All together, Niedernberg road network has a length of 32 km.
Local public transport
A major railway station is to be found in AschaffenburgAschaffenburg
Aschaffenburg is a city in northwest Bavaria, Germany. The town of Aschaffenburg is not considered part of the district of Aschaffenburg, but is the administrative seat.Aschaffenburg is known as the Tor zum Spessart or "gate to the Spessart"...
(Aschaffenburg Hauptbahnhof
Aschaffenburg Hauptbahnhof
is the central railway station of Aschaffenburg in Germany.The station was built in 1854 by the Ludwigs-West-Bahn. It remained largely unchanged until destroyed in a 1944 air raid, after which it was rebuilt in the style typical for the 1950s...
), 15 km away. Crossing Niedernberg are bus routes 60 (Obernburg, Großwallstadt
Großwallstadt
Großwallstadt is a community in the Miltenberg district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany.- Location :...
, Nilkheim and Aschaffenburg
Aschaffenburg
Aschaffenburg is a city in northwest Bavaria, Germany. The town of Aschaffenburg is not considered part of the district of Aschaffenburg, but is the administrative seat.Aschaffenburg is known as the Tor zum Spessart or "gate to the Spessart"...
) and 56 (Sulzbach
Sulzbach am Main
Sulzbach am Main is a market municipality in the Miltenberg district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany.- Location :...
, Großostheim
Großostheim
Großostheim is a market community in the Aschaffenburg district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany...
). During the work week these public transport association buses run hourly, and on weekends every two hours.
Harbours
Niedernberg can even be reached by waterway. The nearest major harbour is the marina in Aschaffenburg (for sport boats, private yachts and the like). There is also an industrial harbour there, Hafen Aschaffenburg, Lower Franconia’s biggest harbour.Airports
Not far afield lie Frankfurt AirportFrankfurt Airport
Frankfurt Airport may refer to:Airports of Frankfurt, Germany:*Frankfurt Airport , the largest airport in Germany*Frankfurt Egelsbach Airport, a general aviation airport*Frankfurt-Hahn Airport , a converted U.S...
and Aschaffenburg Airport. Moreover, in the neighbouring municipality of Obernau is found the Altenbach gliderport.
Established businesses
The biggest employer in Niedernberg, with roughly 160 workers, is the firm ABI, in existence since 1974, a market leader in the field of special underground construction equipment. Furthermore, the Gries Deco Company (which owns a department store chain called Das Depot) has its head office here as well as a branch.Moreover, in the last few years, around the Flügel-Zentrum, a great number of businesses have set up shop, among them supermarkets such as NORMA and Rewe
REWE Group
REWE Group is a diversified retail and tourism group based in Germany. Its current turnover is around 50.91 billion euros. It operates in 14 European countries and employs over 325,000 people in its trading and travel divisions.- Trading :...
, a s.Oliver shop and remainder sales department, a bookshop and all together three of the five bakeries now in business in Niedernberg.
Public institutions
- Two kindergartens
- Catholic Public Library
- Hans-Herrmann-Halle (multipurpose hall)
Education
The primary school, completed in 1979 was attended in the 2006-2007 school year by 237 pupils.The Volksschule
Volksschule
A Volksschule was an 18th century system of state-supported primary schools established in the Habsburg Austrian Empire and Prussia . Attendance was supposedly compulsory, but a 1781 census reveals that only one fourth of school-age children attended. At the time, this was one of the few examples...
(built in 1960) is attended by 45 local pupils and another 41 from Großwallstadt within the framework of a collective school. Furthermore, 66 pupils from Niedernberg go to the Hauptschule
Hauptschule
A Hauptschule is a secondary school in Germany and Austria, starting after 4 years of elementary schooling, which offers Lower Secondary Education according to the International Standard Classification of Education...
in Großwallstadt.
Besides a school lunch, there is, with the parents’ association’s help, regular, optional homework supervision in Niedernberg.
Other
Widely known is the nickname “Honisch” for Niedernberg. Contrary to what many believe, this has nothing to do with honey (Honig in GermanGerman language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, and pronounced quite similarly), but rather comes from a former way of pronouncing the auxiliary verb
Auxiliary verb
In linguistics, an auxiliary verb is a verb that gives further semantic or syntactic information about a main or full verb. In English, the extra meaning provided by an auxiliary verb alters the basic meaning of the main verb to make it have one or more of the following functions: passive voice,...
haben (“have”). This word alone was enough to tell people from the surrounding communities apart by their dialect (Niedernberg: hohn, Großwallstadt: hewwe, Großostheim: haoun).
Earlier generations in Niedernberg customarily said, instead of the standard German habe ich (“have I”), the local form hohn isch, leading those in neighbouring places to give them the nickname “Honisch”. Over the years, this designation has become a “brandname”, particularly at Carnival
Carnival
Carnaval is a festive season which occurs immediately before Lent; the main events are usually during February. Carnaval typically involves a public celebration or parade combining some elements of a circus, mask and public street party...
time.
Population development
Niedernberg has the Miltenberg district’s highest population growth.| 31 Dec 2000 | 31 Dec 2001 | 31 Dec 2002 | 31 Dec 2003 | 31 Dec 2004 | 31 Oct 2005 | 31 Oct 2006 | 31 Oct 2007 | |
| Main residence | 4,736 | 4,810 | 4,806 | 4,802 | 4,849 | 4,841 | 4,900 | 4,950 |
| Secondary residence | 163 | 200 | 207 | 234 | 215 | 214 | 201 | 205 |
| Total inhabitants | 4,899 | 5,010 | 5,013 | 5,036 | 5,064 | 5,055 | 5,101 | 5,155 |
Historical population development
| Population figure | |
| 31 Dec. 1900 | 1,070 |
| 31 Dec. 1950 | 1,920 |
| 31 Dec. 1970 | 2,900 |
| 31 Dec. 1990 | 3,960 |
| 31 Oct. 2005 | 4,841 |
Budget
Niedernberg’s collective budget amounted in 2007 to a total of €16,376,000, representing a rise of 11.46% over 2005. Work has been done for years on eliminating debt and according to a plan, no new loans have been assumed.| Total debt | Per capita | State average | |
| 1 Oct 2004 | €3,838,056 | €767 | €674 |
| 1 Jan 2005 | €3,442,677 | €688 | €708 |
| 1 Jan 2006 | €3,159,621 | €632 | €709 |
| 31 Dec 2006 | €3,020,426 | €604 | €709 |
| 31 Dec 2007 | €2,524,358 | €504 | €694 |
Commerce
| Declared businesses according to commercial register as at 31 Oct. 2005 |
|
| Sole proprietorship Sole proprietorship A sole proprietorship, also known as the sole trader or simply a proprietorship, is a type of business entity that is owned and run by one individual and in which there is no legal distinction between the owner and the business. The owner receives all profits and has unlimited responsibility for... s |
325 |
| GmbH | 101 |
| other (AG Aktiengesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft is a German term that refers to a corporation that is limited by shares, i.e. owned by shareholders, and may be traded on a stock market. The term is used in Germany, Austria and Switzerland... , KG Kommanditgesellschaft A Kommanditgesellschaft is the German name for a limited partnership business entity and is used in German, Austrian and some other European legal systems.... , GbR) |
16 |
Foreigners
All together, 253 people of foreign nationality from 39 different nations live in Niedernberg. This makes 4.91% of the population. The most foreign inhabitants come from TurkeyTurkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
(97 persons, 1.87% of the population). Compared with the district average of 9.9%, relatively few non-German nationals live in Niedernberg. The figure is likewise higher for the Regierungsbezirk
Regierungsbezirk
In Germany, a Government District, in German: Regierungsbezirk – is a subdivision of certain federal states .They are above the Kreise, Landkreise, and kreisfreie Städte...
of Lower Franconia
Lower Franconia
Lower Franconia is one of the three administrative regions of Franconia in Bavaria , Germany ....
at 7.0%.
| Number | Percentage | |
| Total | 253 | 4.91% |
| Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe... |
97 | 1.87% |
| Italy Italy Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and... |
23 | 0.44% |
| Austria Austria Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the... |
13 | 0.25% |
| Thailand Thailand Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the... |
11 | 0.21% |
| USA United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
10 | 0.19% |
| France France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... |
10 | 0.19% |
| Poland Poland Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north... |
10 | 0.19% |
| other | 75 | 1.45% |
Further reading
- Albert Wagner: Niedernberger Heimatbuch. Geschichte und Gegenwart einer Gemeinde am bayerischen Untermain. Sacher-Druck Niedernberg, 1994.
- Gemeindeverwaltung Niedernberg: Bürgerbroschüre. Sacher-Druck Niedernberg, 2006.