Seedamm
Encyclopedia
Seedamm is the partially artificial dam
and bridge
at the most narrow area of Lake Zurich
, between Hurden (SZ) and Rapperswil (SG)
.
moraine
, forming a peninsula
located at the village Hurden (SZ) and a small island at Rapperswil
, dividing Lake Zürich
and its upper part (the so-called Obersee). The dam is located between the three Swiss
cantons of Schwyz
, St. Gallen
and Zürich
. To the east of the artificial dam, there is the Holzbrücke Rapperswil-Hurden (wooden bridge for pedestrians)
, built in 2001 as a reconstruction of the first bridge between eastern and western lakesides around 1650 B.C.
The two bridges in the northeast and in the southwest measure 1 kilometre (0.621372736649807 mi) in all and are wide enough for a road and a railway line. The railway is used by the S5
line of the S-Bahn Zürich and by the Südostbahn
Voralpen Express
. Near Hurden there is a stop on the railway line S40
. The southern Sternenbrücke bridge towards Hurden was built in 1942 and will be renewed between March 15 and November 2010 to allow 40 ton trucks to cross the Seedamm.
built 6 m wide wooden bridge under Empire Marcus Aurelius (161-180). At Kempraten
's Lake Zurich bay, the Roman transshipment harbour for goods was located that have been transported on the Roman streets, on the wooden bridge Rapperswil-Hurden and on the waterway Zurich-Walensee. In 981, a ferry to the Ufenau
island is mentioned, probably there was a ferry to the other lakeside, too. By 1358, ferry services between Rapperswil and Hurden are mentioned. Between 1358 and 1360, Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria
, built a wooden bridge across the lake that has been used to 1878 – measuring approximately 1450 metres (4,757.2 ft) in length and 4 metres (13.1 ft) wide; 546 oak piles have been installed. A small wooden bridge from Ufenau island to Hurden is mentioned around 1430, so-called «Kilchweg in die Uffnow».
In 1873, the Swiss federal parliament approved the construction of the today's stone dam and bridge. Construction works have been begun in 1875 and finished in 1878 (in the same year the wooden bridge was broken). The construction costs the sum of 1,462,000 Swiss franc
s, of wihich 1,100,000 have been paid by the city of Rapperswil. In 1878, the Gotthardbahn
established the railway line from Rapperswil railway station
via Seedamm. In 1939 and 1951, the now called Seedamm was reinforced to met the growing demands. Beginning of the 21st century, an average of 24,000 vehicles and about 75 passenger trains daily are crossing the dam.
In 2001, a new wooden footbridge was opened alongside the dam for the first 840 metres (2,755.9 ft) meters of the crossing. It was built in quite the same place as the original bridge linking Rapperswil with the nearby bridge chapel (Heilig Hüsli
) built in 1551. This connection, for centuries has been part of old pilgrimage
routes, the so-called Jakobsweg to the Einsiedeln Abbey
.
The Seedamm area including the remains of the prehistoric wooden bridges respectively stilt house
settlements is listed as Swiss heritage sites of national significance
.
Dam
A dam is a barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. Hydropower and pumped-storage hydroelectricity are...
and bridge
Bridge
A bridge is a structure built to span physical obstacles such as a body of water, valley, or road, for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle...
at the most narrow area of Lake Zurich
Lake Zurich
Lake Zurich is a lake in Switzerland, extending southeast of the city of Zurich. It is also known as Lake Zürich and Lake of Zürich. It lies approximately at co-ordinates ....
, between Hurden (SZ) and Rapperswil (SG)
Rapperswil
Rapperswil-Jona is a municipality in the Wahlkreis of See-Gaster in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland.Besides Rapperswil and Jona, which were separate municipalities until 2006, the municipality includes Bollingen, Busskirch, Curtiberg, Kempraten-Lenggis, Wagen, and Wurmsbach.-Today:On...
.
Geography and location
The Seedam bases on an Ice ageIce age
An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...
moraine
Moraine
A moraine is any glacially formed accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris which can occur in currently glaciated and formerly glaciated regions, such as those areas acted upon by a past glacial maximum. This debris may have been plucked off a valley floor as a glacier advanced or it may have...
, forming a peninsula
Peninsula
A peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered by water on three sides but connected to mainland. In many Germanic and Celtic languages and also in Baltic, Slavic and Hungarian, peninsulas are called "half-islands"....
located at the village Hurden (SZ) and a small island at Rapperswil
Rapperswil
Rapperswil-Jona is a municipality in the Wahlkreis of See-Gaster in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland.Besides Rapperswil and Jona, which were separate municipalities until 2006, the municipality includes Bollingen, Busskirch, Curtiberg, Kempraten-Lenggis, Wagen, and Wurmsbach.-Today:On...
, dividing Lake Zürich
Lake Zurich
Lake Zurich is a lake in Switzerland, extending southeast of the city of Zurich. It is also known as Lake Zürich and Lake of Zürich. It lies approximately at co-ordinates ....
and its upper part (the so-called Obersee). The dam is located between the three Swiss
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
cantons of Schwyz
Canton of Schwyz
Schwyz is a canton in central Switzerland between the Alps in the south, Lake Lucerne in the east and Lake Zurich in the north, centered around and named after the town of Schwyz....
, St. Gallen
Canton of St. Gallen
The Canton of St. Gallen is a canton of Switzerland. St. Gallen is located in the north east of Switzerland. It covers an area of 2,026 km², and has a population of . , the population included 97,461 foreigners, or about 20.9% of the total population. The capital is St. Gallen. Spelling...
and Zürich
Canton of Zürich
The Canton of Zurich has a population of . The canton is located in the northeast of Switzerland and the city of Zurich is its capital. The official language is German, but people speak the local Swiss German dialect called Züritüütsch...
. To the east of the artificial dam, there is the Holzbrücke Rapperswil-Hurden (wooden bridge for pedestrians)
Holzbrücke Rapperswil-Hurden
Holzbrücke Rapperswil-Hurden is a wooden pedestrian bridge between the city of Rapperswil and the village of Hurden crossing the upper Lake Zürich in Switzerland. The prehistoric timber piles discovered to the west of the Seedamm date back to 1523 BC...
, built in 2001 as a reconstruction of the first bridge between eastern and western lakesides around 1650 B.C.
The two bridges in the northeast and in the southwest measure 1 kilometre (0.621372736649807 mi) in all and are wide enough for a road and a railway line. The railway is used by the S5
S5 (ZVV)
The S5 is a regional railway line of the S-Bahn Zürich on the Zürcher Verkehrsverbund , Zürich transportation network, and is one of the network's lines connecting the cantons of Zürich, St...
line of the S-Bahn Zürich and by the Südostbahn
Südostbahn
The Südostbahn – commonly abbreviated to SOB – is a railway company and network in Switzerland.- Structure :...
Voralpen Express
Voralpen Express
The Voralpen-Express is a named train connecting medium sized cities in central and eastern Switzerland in operation since 1991. It is jointly operated by Südostbahn and the Swiss Federal Railways ....
. Near Hurden there is a stop on the railway line S40
S40 (ZVV)
The S40 is a regional railway line of the S-Bahn Zürich on the Zürcher Verkehrsverbund , Zürich transportation network, in the cantons of Schwyz, St...
. The southern Sternenbrücke bridge towards Hurden was built in 1942 and will be renewed between March 15 and November 2010 to allow 40 ton trucks to cross the Seedamm.
History
Around 1650 B.C., a first wooden footbridge led across Lake Zurich followed by several reconstructions at least until late 2nd century AD when the Roman EmpireRoman 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....
built 6 m wide wooden bridge under Empire Marcus Aurelius (161-180). At Kempraten
Kempraten
Kempraten-Lenggis is a village within the municipality of Rapperswil-Jona, Wahlkreis of See-Gaster in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland. It is one of the most important archeological sites in the canton of St...
's Lake Zurich bay, the Roman transshipment harbour for goods was located that have been transported on the Roman streets, on the wooden bridge Rapperswil-Hurden and on the waterway Zurich-Walensee. In 981, a ferry to the Ufenau
Ufenau
Ufenau is an island located, with the neighbouring island of Lützelau, in Lake Zürich in Switzerland between Freienbach and Rapperswil .- Geography :...
island is mentioned, probably there was a ferry to the other lakeside, too. By 1358, ferry services between Rapperswil and Hurden are mentioned. Between 1358 and 1360, Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria
Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria
Rudolf IV der Stifter was a scion of the House of Habsburg and Duke of Austria and Duke of Styria and Carinthia from 1358, as well as Count of Tyrol from 1363 and first Duke of Carniola from 1364 until his death...
, built a wooden bridge across the lake that has been used to 1878 – measuring approximately 1450 metres (4,757.2 ft) in length and 4 metres (13.1 ft) wide; 546 oak piles have been installed. A small wooden bridge from Ufenau island to Hurden is mentioned around 1430, so-called «Kilchweg in die Uffnow».
In 1873, the Swiss federal parliament approved the construction of the today's stone dam and bridge. Construction works have been begun in 1875 and finished in 1878 (in the same year the wooden bridge was broken). The construction costs the sum of 1,462,000 Swiss franc
Swiss franc
The franc is the currency and legal tender of Switzerland and Liechtenstein; it is also legal tender in the Italian exclave Campione d'Italia. Although not formally legal tender in the German exclave Büsingen , it is in wide daily use there...
s, of wihich 1,100,000 have been paid by the city of Rapperswil. In 1878, the Gotthardbahn
Gotthardbahn
Gotthardbahn was the name of a private Swiss railway company which operated the railway line from Immensee to Chiasso . Nowadays this term usually does not refer to that company, but to the railway line itself...
established the railway line from Rapperswil railway station
Rapperswil railway station
Rapperswil is a train station located in Rapperswil, Switzerland.- Nodal point of S-Bahn Zürich, SBB-CFF-FFS and Südostbahn :Rapperswil railway station is an important junction of the S-Bahn Zürich and Südostbahn networks, and thus a bottleneck for public traffic. Rapperswil is a nodal point where...
via Seedamm. In 1939 and 1951, the now called Seedamm was reinforced to met the growing demands. Beginning of the 21st century, an average of 24,000 vehicles and about 75 passenger trains daily are crossing the dam.
In 2001, a new wooden footbridge was opened alongside the dam for the first 840 metres (2,755.9 ft) meters of the crossing. It was built in quite the same place as the original bridge linking Rapperswil with the nearby bridge chapel (Heilig Hüsli
Heilig Hüsli
Heilig Hüsli is a chapel in the city of Rapperswil, canton of St. Gallen, Switzerland.- Geography :The chapel is located next to the so-called Seedamm, as of the today, situated on a small island on upper Lake Zürich on the Holzbrücke Rapperswil-Hurden, a historical wooden bridge reconstructed in...
) built in 1551. This connection, for centuries has been part of old pilgrimage
Pilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey or search of great moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or other location of importance to a person's beliefs and faith...
routes, the so-called Jakobsweg to the Einsiedeln Abbey
Einsiedeln Abbey
Einsiedeln Abbey is a Benedictine monastery in the town of Einsiedeln in the Canton of Schwyz, Switzerland. The abbey is dedicated to Our Lady of the Hermits, the title being derived from the circumstances of its foundation, from which the name Einsiedeln is also said to have originated...
.
The Seedamm area including the remains of the prehistoric wooden bridges respectively stilt house
Stilt house
Stilt houses or pile dwellings or palafitte are houses raised on piles over the surface of the soil or a body of water. Stilt houses are built primarily as a protection against flooding, but also serve to keep out vermin...
settlements is listed as Swiss heritage sites of national significance
Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National and Regional Significance
The Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National and Regional Significance is a register of some 8,300 items of cultural property in Switzerland...
.
Literature
- Geneviève Lüscher: Brücken und Wege der Bronzezeit. Schweizerischer NationalfondsSwiss National Science FoundationThe Swiss National Science Foundation is a science research support organization mandated by the Swiss Federal Government. The SNSF was established in 1952 as a foundation under private law. Its secretariat is based in Bern....
. In: Horizonte, März 2005. - Beat Eberschweiler: Ur- und frühgeschichtliche Verkehrswege über den Zürichsee: Erste Ergebnisse aus den Taucharchäologischen Untersuchungen beim Seedamm. In: Mitteilungen des Historischen Vereins des Kantons Schwyz, No. 96, Schwyz 2004.
- Hans Rathgeb: Brücken über den See. Arbeitsgemeinschaft Fussgänger-Holzsteg Rapperswil-Hurden, Rapperswil 2001. ISBN 3-9522511-1-9