Weißwasser received its town charter on 28 August 1935. During World War II, the Nazis established and operated the FAL Weisswassersubcamp of the Gross-Rosen concentration camp, whose prisoners were mainly Jewish women.[3] In the Second World War, 40% of the town was destroyed. With the dissolution of Prussia resulting from the war, the town became part of Saxony from 1945–52. It was then part of communist East Germany from 1952–90 and administered within Bezirk Cottbus. Many enterprises had to close during the communist regime. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, only a few enterprises were left. It was included within a restored Saxony after German reunification.
Weißwasser now struggles with the after-effects of German reunification, as the fall of the Berlin Wall has had a devastating effect on the local economy. Many people have since lost their jobs and the town's population continues to suffers from a high percentage of unemployment. Consequently, many have left the area in the hope of finding a new job elsewhere in a reunited Germany.[citation needed]
In September 2005, Weißwasser hosted the "Tag der Sachsen." The event was a success with more than 300,000 visitors, which left some believing that the town could reinvent itself as a tourist attraction.[citation needed]
There are bilingual street signs in German and Upper Sorbian in the town.
Coat of armsedit
The coat of arms was allotted on 31 January 1927. The two green glasses symbolise the glass industry of the town, which was one of the largest in former East Germany. The tools are a reference to coal mining, which is carried out close to the city. Blue and yellow are the traditional colours of Upper Lusatia and the white waves in the bottom part of the coat of arms symbolise the name of the city.
Population developmentedit
Development of the population figure since 31 December 1960
Historical population
Year
Pop.
±% p.a.
1825
390
—
1933
13,494
+3.34%
1939
14,388
+1.07%
1946
12,940
−1.50%
1950
13,844
+1.70%
1960
14,028
+0.13%
1981
32,799
+4.13%
1984
34,994
+2.18%
Year
Pop.
±% p.a.
1988
38,288
+2.27%
1995
31,745
−2.64%
1997
30,300
−2.30%
1998
28,605
−5.59%
1999
27,315
−4.51%
2000
26,107
−4.42%
2001
24,815
−4.95%
2002
23,862
−3.84%
Year
Pop.
±% p.a.
2003
22,966
−3.75%
2004
22,758
−0.91%
2005
21,912
−3.72%
2006
20,823
−4.97%
2007
20,298
−2.52%
2008
19,927
−1.83%
2009
19,615
−1.57%
2010
19,416
−1.01%
Source from 1998 on: Statistics office Saxony
Politicsedit
A new city council was elected on the 13 June 2004. Out of 18,653 eligible voters, 29.36% participated in the vote. The results were as following:
The local ice hockey club Dynamo Weißwasser, known presently as Lausitzer Füchse and also known as "The Foxes", was the most successful club in the ice hockey Premier League of former East Germany, winning 25 championships.
^"Subcamps of KL Gross- Rosen". Gross-Rosen Museum in Rogoźnica. Retrieved 14 June 2020.
External linksedit
Official website
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Weißwasser.
April 18, 2024
weißwasser, town, bohemia, bělá, bezdězem, upper, sorbian, běła, woda, pronounced, ˈbʲɪwa, ˈwɔda, town, upper, lusatia, eastern, saxony, germany, běła, wodatownlibrarycoat, armslocation, within, görlitz, districtshow, germanyshow, saxonycoordinates, 633country. For the town in Bohemia see Bela pod Bezdezem Weisswasser Upper Sorbian Bela Woda pronounced ˈbʲɪwa ˈwɔda is a town in Upper Lusatia in eastern Saxony Germany Weisswasser Bela WodaTownLibraryCoat of armsLocation of Weisswasser within Gorlitz districtWeisswasserShow map of GermanyWeisswasserShow map of SaxonyCoordinates 51 30 N 14 38 E 51 500 N 14 633 E 51 500 14 633CountryGermanyStateSaxonyDistrictGorlitzMunicipal assoc WeisswasserGovernment Mayor 2017 24 Torsten Potzsch 1 Area Total63 60 km2 24 56 sq mi Elevation140 m 460 ft Population 2021 12 31 2 Total15 255 Density240 km2 620 sq mi Time zoneUTC 01 00 CET Summer DST UTC 02 00 CEST Postal codes02943Dialling codes03576Vehicle registrationGR LOB NOL NY WSW ZIWebsitewww weisswasser deWeisswasser is the third largest town in the Gorlitz district after Gorlitz and Zittau The town s landmark is its water tower The town is part of the recognized Sorbian settlement area in Saxony Upper Sorbian has an official status next to German all villages bear names in both languages Contents 1 History 1 1 Coat of arms 1 2 Population development 2 Politics 2 1 Twin cities 3 Sights 4 Sport 5 Notable people 6 References 7 External linksHistory editWeisswasser was mentioned for the first time on 8 June 1552 when it was part of the Lands of the Bohemian Crown in the Holy Roman Empire The town s name means white water In 1635 it passed to the Electorate of Saxony and following the Napoleonic Wars in 1815 it fell to the Kingdom of Prussia and was included within the Province of Silesia In the 19th and 20th centuries Weisswasser was the European centre of glass production It became part of the Prussian Province of Lower Silesia in 1919 nbsp Memorial to the victims of the local concentration campWeisswasser received its town charter on 28 August 1935 During World War II the Nazis established and operated the FAL Weisswasser subcamp of the Gross Rosen concentration camp whose prisoners were mainly Jewish women 3 In the Second World War 40 of the town was destroyed With the dissolution of Prussia resulting from the war the town became part of Saxony from 1945 52 It was then part of communist East Germany from 1952 90 and administered within Bezirk Cottbus Many enterprises had to close during the communist regime After the fall of the Berlin Wall only a few enterprises were left It was included within a restored Saxony after German reunification Weisswasser now struggles with the after effects of German reunification as the fall of the Berlin Wall has had a devastating effect on the local economy Many people have since lost their jobs and the town s population continues to suffers from a high percentage of unemployment Consequently many have left the area in the hope of finding a new job elsewhere in a reunited Germany citation needed In September 2005 Weisswasser hosted the Tag der Sachsen The event was a success with more than 300 000 visitors which left some believing that the town could reinvent itself as a tourist attraction citation needed nbsp Bilingual German Upper Sorbian town limit signThere are bilingual street signs in German and Upper Sorbian in the town Coat of arms edit The coat of arms was allotted on 31 January 1927 The two green glasses symbolise the glass industry of the town which was one of the largest in former East Germany The tools are a reference to coal mining which is carried out close to the city Blue and yellow are the traditional colours of Upper Lusatia and the white waves in the bottom part of the coat of arms symbolise the name of the city Population development edit Development of the population figure since 31 December 1960 Historical populationYearPop p a 1825390 193313 494 3 34 193914 388 1 07 194612 940 1 50 195013 844 1 70 196014 028 0 13 198132 799 4 13 198434 994 2 18 YearPop p a 198838 288 2 27 199531 745 2 64 199730 300 2 30 199828 605 5 59 199927 315 4 51 200026 107 4 42 200124 815 4 95 200223 862 3 84 YearPop p a 200322 966 3 75 200422 758 0 91 200521 912 3 72 200620 823 4 97 200720 298 2 52 200819 927 1 83 200919 615 1 57 201019 416 1 01 Source from 1998 on Statistics office SaxonyPolitics edit nbsp Town HallA new city council was elected on the 13 June 2004 Out of 18 653 eligible voters 29 36 participated in the vote The results were as following 27 68 PDS 27 01 CDU 18 54 Wir fur Hier e V 12 70 SPD 6 96 Klartext 3 84 FDP 3 26 NPDTwin cities edit Bruhl North Rhine Westphalia Zary Poland Sights edit nbsp Glass museumWater Tower Ice Hockey Stadium Fuchsbau fox s den Glass museum Zoo Puckler Park in Bad Muskau Rhododendron Park in Kromlau Forest Railway Muskau Braunsteich Lake Erratic Rock Park in Nochten Opencast pit in NochtenSport editThe local ice hockey club Dynamo Weisswasser known presently as Lausitzer Fuchse and also known as The Foxes was the most successful club in the ice hockey Premier League of former East Germany winning 25 championships Notable people editTino Chrupalla born 1975 politician and co chairman of the Alternative for Germany Roland Hemmo born 1946 voice actor and actor Klaus Hirche born 1939 hockey goalkeeper and coach national team GDR 1968 Olympian Christa Luding Rothenburger born 1959 speed skater and cyclist Angela Ranft born 1969 cyclist Gunter Schubert 1938 2008 actor and voice actorReferences edit Burgermeisterwahlen 2017 Freistaat Sachsen accessed 12 July 2021 Bevolkerung des Freistaates Sachsen nach Gemeinden am 31 Dezember 2021 XLS in German Statistisches Landesamt des Freistaates Sachsen 2022 Subcamps of KL Gross Rosen Gross Rosen Museum in Rogoznica Retrieved 14 June 2020 External links editOfficial website nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Weisswasser Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Weisswasser amp oldid 1183189490, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,