Wörrstadt
Encyclopedia
Wörrstadt is a town in the Alzey-Worms
district in Rhineland-Palatinate
, Germany
.
. It is the seat of the like-named Verbandsgemeinde
.
Wörrstadt is surrounded by typical Rhenish-Hessian countryside: In places that are favourable to the purpose, there is intensive winegrowing, and in less exposed locations, cropraising. The Rhenish-Hessian countryside is widely cleared, with natural vegetation hard to find or not present at all. This makes Wörrstadt a bit of a peculiarity in Rhenish Hesse, as it has one of the region’s smallest wooded areas in the Neuborn. In these woods are found many natural spring
s whose water feeds the Verbandsgemeinde’s swimming pool. Flowing through Wörrstadt is the river Mühlbach.
Wörrstadt lies at an elevation that affords charming and, for Rhenish Hesse, remarkable views into the distance. From Wörrstadt, one can see the Donnersberg
, the Wißberg and the Großer Feldberg
in the Taunus
. In good weather, Frankfurt am Main’s skyline
can even be seen from a few spots within town limits.
The outlying centre of Rommersheim, formerly Eichloch, lies in a hollow and is strikingly nestled into the man-made countryside. From the Rommersheim area one can enjoy fine views of the Wißberg and the country towards Bad Kreuznach
.
in Wörrstadt amounts to 567 mm, which is low, falling into the lowest fourth of the precipitation chart for all Germany. Only at 14% of the German Weather Service’s weather stations are even lower figures recorded. The driest month is January. The most rainfall comes in June. In that month, precipitation is twice what it is in January. Precipitation varies moderately. At 49% of the weather stations, lower seasonal swings are recorded.
, Ensheim
, Gabsheim
, Gau-Bickelheim
, Gau-Weinheim
, Saulheim
, Schornsheim
, Spiesheim
, Sulzheim
, Udenheim
, Vendersheim
and Wallertheim
.
Laurentiuskirche (Saint Lawrence’s Church) was built as a fortress church. There had been a church earlier, in the 8th century. This second church burnt down after being struck by lightning
about 1600, but was built again. The old church was taller than the one that now stands. Nevertheless, the current church is the town’s tallest building. It can be seen while driving by the town on Bundesstraße
420. The Catholic church was built in the 18th century and stands next to the Evangelical church. The church in Rommersheim was built between 1733 and 1751. The old crucifix
suggests a very old church.
On 28 April 2009 it was announced that Wörrstadt would be granted town rights. These were bestowed on the former municipality
on 4 September 2009 by Rhineland-Palatinate
Minister-President
Kurt Beck
.
The municipal election held on 7 June 2009 yielded the following results:
might be described thus: Sable a gridiron palewise Or, the crossbars fesswise and the handle to chief, supported by two lions reguardant argent armed and langued gules, one each in dexter and sinister.
The town’s oldest known seal goes back to 1575. It, and all subsequent seals, show the local church’s patron saint, Lawrence of Rome, holding his attribute, the gridiron. In 1956, a coat of arms very much like the current one was proposed, the main difference being that the lions were not “reguardant” (that is, looking back behind them). It is unknown why this slight change in attitude
was made in the current arms. However, although Saint Lawrence himself does not appear in today’s armorial bearing, his attribute, the gridiron, does.
Nevertheless, in Kaffee HAG
albums published in the 1930s, Wörrstadt’s arms are shown, as on the old seals, with Saint Lawrence holding his gridiron.
The arms have been borne since 1960.
There are also several listed timber-frame
buildings in Rommersheim.
. In late 2003, Wörrstadt had 711 commercial operations. Shopping facilities are, for a town of Wörrstadt’s size, unusually well developed. A special solar facility has been developed where a photovoltaic power station
covering 17.3 ha can be found.
In the first half of 2008, the new headquarters for the alternative energy generator juwi (whose name is customarily written with a lowercase initial) came into being in the industrial area near the Autobahn. Until then, the company’s seat had been in Bolanden
and Mainz
, having moved to Wörrstadt in mid July 2008. With roughly 550 employees, juwi has become one of the area’s biggest employers. The business’s pillars are wind energy, solar energy and bioenergy.
Vineyard areas in town are divided into the two appelations of Kachelberg and Rheingrafenberg. Wörrstadt’s soil composition is typical of Rhenish Hesse with its limestone
, loess
and loam
.
n 420 and 271, two important regional transport arteries. The town also has at its disposal an interchange
on the A 63
over which midsize and major centres such as Alzey
, Worms
, Mainz
, Kaiserslautern
and Frankfurt can be reached very easily.
The road distance to Germany’s most important transport hub, Frankfurt Airport
, is about 45 km. A few kilometres from town is the Alzey Cross (Alzeyer Kreuz), the place where Autobahnen A 61
(Koblenz
–Ludwigshafen) and A 63
(Kaiserslautern
–Mainz
) cross. Also, the Kaiserstraße runs through Wörrstadt. The “Kaiser” in this case is, of course, not Wilhelm II, but rather Napoleon
(Kaiser simply means “emperor” in German
, and the word is applied as a title to any emperor). The road was named “Emperor’s Road” because, as it was originally laid out, it ran straight from Napoleon’s capital, Paris
, to the Department of Mont-Tonnerre
(or Donnersberg in German), part of his empire on the Rhine’s left bank. In places it has different names, and indeed, the stretch in Wörrstadt is known as Pariser Straße, for its western terminus.
Over the Alzey–Mainz railway line, run on “Rhineland-Palatinate timing”, Wörrstadt station can be reached from Mainz in roughly half an hour. Frankfurt Airport
can be reached by way of Mainz in roughly an hour, while downtown Frankfurt is about 75 minutes away. On weekends and holidays, journeys on the Elsass-Express (“Alsace Express”) to Wissembourg
are possible.
The Category 5
through station has been reduced to one track, formerly having had two. It stands at the edge of town at 49°51′N 8°7′E. The station building was built about 1950 and meanwhile also serves as a rented dwelling. Reservable bicycle stand
s are available.
s, and also one primary school and one Hauptschule
(as of 2009, a “Realschule plus”), a Realschule
and an Integrierte Gesamtschule (an “integrated comprehensive school
”, containing all three kinds of secondary school
available in Germany: Hauptschule, Realschule and Gymnasium
)
Alzey-Worms
Alzey-Worms is a district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is bounded by the district Groß-Gerau , the city of Worms and the districts of Bad Dürkheim, Donnersbergkreis, Bad Kreuznach and Mainz-Bingen.- History :...
district in Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....
, 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
The town lies in Rhenish Hesse on the northwest edge of the Upper Rhine PlainUpper Rhine Plain
The Upper Rhine Plain, Rhine Rift Valley or Upper Rhine Graben is a major rift, straddling the border between France and Germany. It forms part of the European Cenozoic Rift System, which extends across central Europe...
. It is the seat of the like-named Verbandsgemeinde
Wörrstadt (Verbandsgemeinde)
Wörrstadt is a Verbandsgemeinde in the district Alzey-Worms, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The seat of the Verbandsgemeinde is in Wörrstadt....
.
Wörrstadt is surrounded by typical Rhenish-Hessian countryside: In places that are favourable to the purpose, there is intensive winegrowing, and in less exposed locations, cropraising. The Rhenish-Hessian countryside is widely cleared, with natural vegetation hard to find or not present at all. This makes Wörrstadt a bit of a peculiarity in Rhenish Hesse, as it has one of the region’s smallest wooded areas in the Neuborn. In these woods are found many natural spring
Spring (hydrosphere)
A spring—also known as a rising or resurgence—is a component of the hydrosphere. Specifically, it is any natural situation where water flows to the surface of the earth from underground...
s whose water feeds the Verbandsgemeinde’s swimming pool. Flowing through Wörrstadt is the river Mühlbach.
Wörrstadt lies at an elevation that affords charming and, for Rhenish Hesse, remarkable views into the distance. From Wörrstadt, one can see the Donnersberg
Donnersberg
For the Czech mountain, see MilešovkaThe Donnersberg is the highest peak of the Palatinate region of Germany. The mountain lies between the towns of Rockenhausen en Kirchheimbolanden, in the Donnersbergkreis district, which is named after the mountain. The highway A63 runs along the southern edge...
, the Wißberg and the Großer Feldberg
Großer Feldberg
The Großer Feldberg is the highest mountain in the Taunus mountains. It is situated in the Hochtaunuskreis district in Hessen, Germany....
in the Taunus
Taunus
The Taunus is a low mountain range in Hesse, Germany that composes part of the Rhenish Slate Mountains. It is bounded by the river valleys of Rhine, Main and Lahn. On the opposite side of the Rhine, the mountains are continued by the Hunsrück...
. In good weather, Frankfurt am Main’s skyline
Skyline
A skyline is the overall or partial view of a city's tall buildings and structures consisting of many skyscrapers in front of the sky in the background. It can also be described as the artificial horizon that a city's overall structure creates. Skylines serve as a kind of fingerprint of a city, as...
can even be seen from a few spots within town limits.
The outlying centre of Rommersheim, formerly Eichloch, lies in a hollow and is strikingly nestled into the man-made countryside. From the Rommersheim area one can enjoy fine views of the Wißberg and the country towards Bad Kreuznach
Bad Kreuznach
Bad Kreuznach is the capital of the district of Bad Kreuznach, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is located on the Nahe river, a tributary of the Rhine...
.
Climate
Yearly precipitationPrecipitation (meteorology)
In meteorology, precipitation In meteorology, precipitation In meteorology, precipitation (also known as one of the classes of hydrometeors, which are atmospheric water phenomena is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravity. The main forms of precipitation...
in Wörrstadt amounts to 567 mm, which is low, falling into the lowest fourth of the precipitation chart for all Germany. Only at 14% of the German Weather Service’s weather stations are even lower figures recorded. The driest month is January. The most rainfall comes in June. In that month, precipitation is twice what it is in January. Precipitation varies moderately. At 49% of the weather stations, lower seasonal swings are recorded.
Neighbouring municipalities
Wörrstadt's neighbours are ArmsheimArmsheim
Armsheim is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany...
, Ensheim
Ensheim
Ensheim is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany...
, Gabsheim
Gabsheim
Gabsheim is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Wörrstadt, whose seat is in the like-named municipality.- Location :The municipality...
, Gau-Bickelheim
Gau-Bickelheim
Gau-Bickelheim is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
, Gau-Weinheim
Gau-Weinheim
Gau-Weinheim is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
, Saulheim
Saulheim
Saulheim is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
, Schornsheim
Schornsheim
Schornsheim is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
, Spiesheim
Spiesheim
Spiesheim is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
, Sulzheim
Sulzheim, Rhineland-Palatinate
Sulzheim is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.-Location:...
, Udenheim
Udenheim
Udenheim is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
, Vendersheim
Vendersheim
Vendersheim is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
and Wallertheim
Wallertheim
Wallertheim is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
.
Constituent communities
Wörrstadt has one outlying centre, a Stadtteil named Rommersheim. It lies a short way southwest of the main town. Nearby rises the Rommersheimer Bach, a brook about 1.6 km long.History
In 772, Wörrstadt had its first documentary mention, while Rommersheim, whose name was until 15 January 1931 Eichloch, had its first documentary mention in 824. On 7 November 1970, Rommersheim was amalgamated with Wörrstadt. About 1100, the (later) EvangelicalEvangelical 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...
Laurentiuskirche (Saint Lawrence’s Church) was built as a fortress church. There had been a church earlier, in the 8th century. This second church burnt down after being struck by lightning
Lightning
Lightning is an atmospheric electrostatic discharge accompanied by thunder, which typically occurs during thunderstorms, and sometimes during volcanic eruptions or dust storms...
about 1600, but was built again. The old church was taller than the one that now stands. Nevertheless, the current church is the town’s tallest building. It can be seen while driving by the town on Bundesstraße
Bundesstraße
Bundesstraße , abbreviated B, is the denotation for German and Austrian national highways.-Germany:...
420. The Catholic church was built in the 18th century and stands next to the Evangelical church. The church in Rommersheim was built between 1733 and 1751. The old crucifix
Crucifix
A crucifix is an independent image of Jesus on the cross with a representation of Jesus' body, referred to in English as the corpus , as distinct from a cross with no body....
suggests a very old church.
On 28 April 2009 it was announced that Wörrstadt would be granted town rights. These were bestowed on the former municipality
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...
on 4 September 2009 by Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....
Minister-President
Minister-President
A minister-president is the head of government in a number of European countries or subnational governments, in which a parliamentary or semi-presidential system of government prevails, who presides over the council of ministers...
Kurt Beck
Kurt Beck
Kurt Beck is a German politician , serving as the Minister-President of Rhineland-Palatinate since 1994 and as President of the Bundesrat in 2000/01. On May 14, 2006, he succeeded Matthias Platzeck as Chairman of the German Social Democratic Party...
.
Town council
The council is made up of 24 council members, who were elected at the municipal election held on 7 June 2009, and the honorary mayor as chairman.The municipal election held on 7 June 2009 yielded the following results:
| SPD Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany... |
CDU | GRÜNE Alliance '90/The Greens Alliance '90/The Greens is a green political party in Germany, formed from the merger of the German Green Party and Alliance 90 in 1993. Its leaders are Claudia Roth and Cem Özdemir... |
BfW | FWG Free Voters Free Voters is a German concept in which an association of persons participates in an election without having the status of a registered political party. Usually it is a locally organized group of voters in the form of a registered association . In most cases, Free Voters are active only at the... |
Total | |
| 2009 | 11 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 24 seats |
Mayors
- Günter Helmus - SPD (1983–2004)
- Ingo Kleinfelder - SPD (2004–present) (since 2009 Stadtbürgermeister – “town mayor”)
Coat of arms
The town’s armsCoat 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: Sable a gridiron palewise Or, the crossbars fesswise and the handle to chief, supported by two lions reguardant argent armed and langued gules, one each in dexter and sinister.
The town’s oldest known seal goes back to 1575. It, and all subsequent seals, show the local church’s patron saint, Lawrence of Rome, holding his attribute, the gridiron. In 1956, a coat of arms very much like the current one was proposed, the main difference being that the lions were not “reguardant” (that is, looking back behind them). It is unknown why this slight change in attitude
Attitude (heraldry)
In heraldry, an attitude is the position in which an animal, fictional beast, mythical creature, human or human-like being is emblazoned as a charge, supporter or crest. Many attitudes apply only to predatory beasts and are exemplified by the beast most frequently found in heraldry — the lion. ...
was made in the current arms. However, although Saint Lawrence himself does not appear in today’s armorial bearing, his attribute, the gridiron, does.
Nevertheless, in Kaffee HAG
Café HAG
Café HAG is a worldwide brand of decaffeinated coffee owned by U.S. multinational Kraft Foods.The brand originated in Bremen in Germany in 1906 and took its name from the company title Kaffee Handels-Aktien-Gesellschaft, or Kaffee HAG for short....
albums published in the 1930s, Wörrstadt’s arms are shown, as on the old seals, with Saint Lawrence holding his gridiron.
The arms have been borne since 1960.
Music
- Jazz-Club Rheinhessen e. V., founded in 1986; stages five or six concerts each year, in part with international jazz greats.
- Neuborn Open Air Festival (Metal/Rock Open Air)
- several singing clubs
- Gesangverein Liederkranz e. V. Wörrstadt
- Gesangverein Sängerbund e. V. Wörrstadt
- Gesangverein WÖ-Rommersheim
Buildings
- Former Thurn und TaxisThurn und TaxisThe Princely House of Thurn and Taxis is a German family that was a key player in the postal services in Europe in the 16th century and is well known as owners of breweries and builders of many castles.- History :...
Post building - Laurentiuskirche (Saint Lawrence’s Church) with Stumm organOrgan (music)The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
from 1759 - Neunröhrenbrunnen (“Nine-Pipe Fountain”), built in 1608, renovated in 1930. This is where the Mühlbach – a brook – rises.
- Ulmengraben (“Elm Dyke”), Remnants of the former fortifications
- Rommersheim town hall, built about 1600. Rommersheim is today a constituent community of Wörrstadt
- Tagelöhnerhaus (“Day Labourers’ House”), an historic house of the societal underclass of its time
- Schiller Monument near the graveyard
- Schmiedbrunnen (a fountain) in the middle of town
- Five wind turbineWind turbineA wind turbine is a device that converts kinetic energy from the wind into mechanical energy. If the mechanical energy is used to produce electricity, the device may be called a wind generator or wind charger. If the mechanical energy is used to drive machinery, such as for grinding grain or...
s of type E-82 each with a hub height of 138 m. The rotor blades reach a height of 181 m.
There are also several listed 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...
buildings in Rommersheim.
Sport
- Fußballclub Wörrstadt 06 e. V. (football)
- Turn- und Sportverein Wörrstadt e. V. 1847TuS WörrstadtTuS Wörrstadt is a German women's football multi-sports club based in Wörrstadt, Rhineland-Palatinate. The club was founded in 1847 and is most famous for its women's football department which won the first national championship in 1974. Recently the team has been promoted to the 2nd Bundesliga....
(German women’s football champions, 1974) - Radfahrerverein Wörrstadt 1899 e. V. (three-time German Cycling FederationGerman Cycling FederationThe German Cycling Federation or BDR is the national governing body of cycle racing in Germany.The BDR is a member of the UCI and the UEC.-History:...
Gold Cup winners; many times German and European champions in artistic cyclingArtistic cyclingArtistic cycling is a form of competitive indoor cycling in which athletes perform tricks for points on specialized, fixed-gear bikes in a format similar to ballet or gymnastics...
) - Tischtennis-Club Wörrstadt (table tennisTable tennisTable tennis, also known as ping-pong, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight, hollow ball back and forth using table tennis rackets. The game takes place on a hard table divided by a net...
) - Judo Club Wörrstadt e. V.
- Wörrstädter Schachverein (chessChessChess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
)
Facilities
- Great sport hall (at the integrated comprehensive school)
- Training hall (at the integrated comprehensive school)
- Cycling sport hall
- Shooting facility “Im Neuborn”
- Football pitch “Im Neuborn”
- Tennis courts “Am Schwimmbad” (“at the swimming pool”)
- Community centre on Jahnstraße
- Outdoor swimming pool
- Youth rollerskating facility at Neubornsportplatz
Leisure
- The Neubornbad outdoor swimming pool lies in a quiet location, nestled in a hollow and surrounded by meadows and vineyards between the main town and the outlying centre of Rommersheim. Feeding the pool is water from the Neuborn spring. Solar heating equipment warms the cold springwater.
- In the area around Wörrstadt, many cycling paths have been laid out, and these are linked to an extensive network.
Established businesses
Wörrstadt’s economic mainstay is winegrowing. However, there is other economic activity. Three commercial areas have been laid out, two of which are right on the Autobahn A 63Bundesautobahn 63
is an autobahn in southwestern Germany. It connects the Mainz area to Kaiserslautern and the A 6 and is therefore an important connection between the Rhine/Main and the Saar areas...
. In late 2003, Wörrstadt had 711 commercial operations. Shopping facilities are, for a town of Wörrstadt’s size, unusually well developed. A special solar facility has been developed where a photovoltaic power station
Photovoltaic power station
The following page lists photovoltaic power stations that are larger than 25 MW in current net capacity. Solar photovoltaic cells convert sunlight into electricity and many solar photovoltaic power stations have been built, mainly in Europe...
covering 17.3 ha can be found.
In the first half of 2008, the new headquarters for the alternative energy generator juwi (whose name is customarily written with a lowercase initial) came into being in the industrial area near the Autobahn. Until then, the company’s seat had been in Bolanden
Bolanden
Bolanden is a municipality in the Donnersbergkreis district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany....
and Mainz
Mainz
Mainz under the Holy Roman Empire, and previously was a Roman fort city which commanded the west bank of the Rhine and formed part of the northernmost frontier of the Roman Empire...
, having moved to Wörrstadt in mid July 2008. With roughly 550 employees, juwi has become one of the area’s biggest employers. The business’s pillars are wind energy, solar energy and bioenergy.
Winegrowing
Winegrowing has a long tradition in the town, and in the wineries, it is passed down from generation to generation. All the town’s wineries have been family businesses for generations.- Böhm
- Dorst
- Guttandin
- Mussel
- Reith
- Weinmann
Vineyard areas in town are divided into the two appelations of Kachelberg and Rheingrafenberg. Wörrstadt’s soil composition is typical of Rhenish Hesse with its limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
, loess
Loess
Loess is an aeolian sediment formed by the accumulation of wind-blown silt, typically in the 20–50 micrometre size range, twenty percent or less clay and the balance equal parts sand and silt that are loosely cemented by calcium carbonate...
and 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...
.
Transport
Wörrstadt lies at the crossroads of BundesstraßeBundesstraße
Bundesstraße , abbreviated B, is the denotation for German and Austrian national highways.-Germany:...
n 420 and 271, two important regional transport arteries. The town also has at its disposal an interchange
Interchange (road)
In the field of road transport, an interchange is a road junction that typically uses grade separation, and one or more ramps, to permit traffic on at least one highway to pass through the junction without directly crossing any other traffic stream. It differs from a standard intersection, at which...
on the A 63
Bundesautobahn 63
is an autobahn in southwestern Germany. It connects the Mainz area to Kaiserslautern and the A 6 and is therefore an important connection between the Rhine/Main and the Saar areas...
over which midsize and major centres such as Alzey
Alzey
Alzey is a Verband-free town – one belonging to no Verbandsgemeinde – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the fourth-largest town in Rhenish Hesse, after Mainz, Worms, and Bingen....
, Worms
Worms, Germany
Worms is a city in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, on the Rhine River. At the end of 2004, it had 85,829 inhabitants.Established by the Celts, who called it Borbetomagus, Worms today remains embattled with the cities Trier and Cologne over the title of "Oldest City in Germany." Worms is the only...
, Mainz
Mainz
Mainz under the Holy Roman Empire, and previously was a Roman fort city which commanded the west bank of the Rhine and formed part of the northernmost frontier of the Roman Empire...
, Kaiserslautern
Kaiserslautern
Kaiserslautern is a city in southwest Germany, located in the Bundesland of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate forest . The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfurt am Main, and from Luxembourg.Kaiserslautern is home to 99,469 people...
and Frankfurt can be reached very easily.
The road distance to Germany’s most important transport hub, Frankfurt Airport
Frankfurt 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...
, is about 45 km. A few kilometres from town is the Alzey Cross (Alzeyer Kreuz), the place where Autobahnen A 61
Bundesautobahn 61
is an autobahn in Germany that connects the border to the Netherlands near Venlo in the northwest to the interchange with A 6 near Hockenheim. In 1965, this required a re-design of the Hockenheimring....
(Koblenz
Koblenz
Koblenz is a German city situated on both banks of the Rhine at its confluence with the Moselle, where the Deutsches Eck and its monument are situated.As Koblenz was one of the military posts established by Drusus about 8 BC, the...
–Ludwigshafen) and A 63
Bundesautobahn 63
is an autobahn in southwestern Germany. It connects the Mainz area to Kaiserslautern and the A 6 and is therefore an important connection between the Rhine/Main and the Saar areas...
(Kaiserslautern
Kaiserslautern
Kaiserslautern is a city in southwest Germany, located in the Bundesland of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate forest . The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfurt am Main, and from Luxembourg.Kaiserslautern is home to 99,469 people...
–Mainz
Mainz
Mainz under the Holy Roman Empire, and previously was a Roman fort city which commanded the west bank of the Rhine and formed part of the northernmost frontier of the Roman Empire...
) cross. Also, the Kaiserstraße runs through Wörrstadt. The “Kaiser” in this case is, of course, not Wilhelm II, but rather Napoleon
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
(Kaiser simply means “emperor” in German
German 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 the word is applied as a title to any emperor). The road was named “Emperor’s Road” because, as it was originally laid out, it ran straight from Napoleon’s capital, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, to the Department of Mont-Tonnerre
Mont-Tonnerre
Mont-Tonnerre is the name of a département of the First French Empire in present Germany. It is named after the highest point in the Rhenish Palatinate, the Donnersberg. It was the southernmost of four départements formed in 1798, when the west bank of the Rhine was annexed by France...
(or Donnersberg in German), part of his empire on the Rhine’s left bank. In places it has different names, and indeed, the stretch in Wörrstadt is known as Pariser Straße, for its western terminus.
Over the Alzey–Mainz railway line, run on “Rhineland-Palatinate timing”, Wörrstadt station can be reached from Mainz in roughly half an hour. Frankfurt Airport
Frankfurt 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...
can be reached by way of Mainz in roughly an hour, while downtown Frankfurt is about 75 minutes away. On weekends and holidays, journeys on the Elsass-Express (“Alsace Express”) to Wissembourg
Wissembourg
Wissembourg is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Alsace in northeastern France.It is situated on the little River Lauter close to the border between France and Germany approximately north of Strasbourg and west of Karlsruhe. Wissembourg is a sub-prefecture of the department...
are possible.
The Category 5
German railway station categories
About 5,400 railway stations in Germany that are owned and operated by the Deutsche Bahn subsidiary DB Station&Service are assigned into seven categories, denoting the service level available at the station....
through station has been reduced to one track, formerly having had two. It stands at the edge of town at 49°51′N 8°7′E. The station building was built about 1950 and meanwhile also serves as a rented dwelling. Reservable bicycle stand
Bicycle stand
A bicycle stand,also called a bike rack, is a device to which bicycles may be securely attached. It may be free standing or securely attached to the ground or some stationary object such as a building. Indoor bike racks are commonly used for private bicycle parking, while outdoor bike racks are...
s are available.
Public institutions
- Verbandsgemeinde administrationWörrstadt (Verbandsgemeinde)Wörrstadt is a Verbandsgemeinde in the district Alzey-Worms, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The seat of the Verbandsgemeinde is in Wörrstadt....
- Technisches HilfswerkTechnisches HilfswerkThe Bundesanstalt Technisches Hilfswerk is a civil protection organisation controlled by the German federal government...
– local chapter - Wörrstadt Volunteer Fire Brigade
- Wörrstadt Catholic Public Library
Education
In Wörrstadt there are several kindergartenKindergarten
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...
s, and also one primary school and one 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...
(as of 2009, a “Realschule plus”), a Realschule
Realschule
The Realschule is a type of secondary school in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein. It has also existed in Croatia , Denmark , Sweden , Hungary and in the Russian Empire .-History:The Realschule was an outgrowth of the rationalism and empiricism of the seventeenth and...
and an Integrierte Gesamtschule (an “integrated comprehensive school
Comprehensive school
A comprehensive school is a state school that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude. This is in contrast to the selective school system, where admission is restricted on the basis of a selection criteria. The term is commonly used in relation to the United...
”, containing all three kinds of secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
available in Germany: Hauptschule, Realschule and Gymnasium
Gymnasium (school)
A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...
)
Sons and daughters of the town
- Adam ElsheimerAdam ElsheimerAdam Elsheimer was a German artist working in Rome who died at only thirty-two, but was very influential in the early 17th century. His relatively few paintings were small scale, nearly all painted on copper plates, of the type often known as cabinet paintings. They include a variety of light...
(18 March 1578 – 11 December 1610), a 17th century painter, came from Wörrstadt. After him Adam-Elsheimer-Straße is named. His parents migrated to Frankfurt, leaving disputed whether Elsheimer was born in Wörrstadt or Frankfurt. - Karl Behlen (1811–1874), former liberal member of the Second Chamber of The Estates of the Grand Duchy of HesseGrand Duchy of HesseThe Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine , or, between 1806 and 1816, Grand Duchy of Hesse —as it was also known after 1816—was a member state of the German Confederation from 1806, when the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt was elevated to a Grand Duchy, until 1918, when all the German...
- Karl Göttelmann (1858–1928), national economist and politician
- Hanns Wilhelm Eppelsheimer (1890–1972), librarian and literary scientist
- Mathias Schüz (1956– ), docentDocentDocent is a title at some European universities to denote a specific academic appointment within a set structure of academic ranks below professor . Docent is also used at some universities generically for a person who has the right to teach...
Famous people associated with the town
- In Wörrstadt lived the geologist and impact eventImpact eventAn impact event is the collision of a large meteorite, asteroid, comet, or other celestial object with the Earth or another planet. Throughout recorded history, hundreds of minor impact events have been reported, with some occurrences causing deaths, injuries, property damage or other significant...
researcher Dr. Günther Graup (d. 2006), who made a name for himself by, among other things, researching the Nördlinger RiesNördlinger RiesThe Nördlinger Ries is a large circular depression in western Bavaria, Germany, located north of the Danube in the district of Donau-Ries. The city of Nördlingen is located about southwest of the centre of the depression....
. Through his groundbreaking work, the Ries Event came to be better understood. He was also involved in the Apollo program and analyzed several moonrock specimens (Apollo 14Apollo 14Apollo 14 was the eighth manned mission in the American Apollo program, and the third to land on the Moon. It was the last of the "H missions", targeted landings with two-day stays on the Moon with two lunar EVAs, or moonwalks....
and Apollo 16Apollo 16Young and Duke served as the backup crew for Apollo 13; Mattingly was slated to be the Apollo 13 command module pilot until being pulled from the mission due to his exposure to rubella through Duke.-Backup crew:...
).
External links
- Verbandsgemeinde of Wörrstadt
- Internetpräsenz der Stadt Wörrstadt Town’s official webpage
- regionalgeschichte.net Internet portal for regional and local history, Institut für Geschichtliche Landeskunde an der Universität Mainz e.V.