Oederan

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Oederan
Coat of arms Location
Coat of arms of Oederan
Oederan (Germany)
Oederan
Administration
Country Flag of Germany Germany
State Saxony
Admin. region Chemnitz
District Freiberg
Municipal assoc. Oederan
Town subdivisions 7
Mayor Steffen Schneider (FW)
Basic statistics
Area 55.85 km² (21.6 sq mi)
Elevation 400 m  (1312 ft)
Population 7,015  (09/06/2008)
 - Density 126 /km² (325 /sq mi)
Other information
Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Licence plate FG
Postal code 09569
Area code 037292
Website www.oederan.de
Location of the town of Oederan within Freiberg district
Map

Coordinates: 50°51′42″N 13°10′2″E / 50.86167, 13.16722

Oederan is a town in the district of Freiberg, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany.

Contents

[edit] Geography

Oederan is situated 14 km southwest of Freiberg, 17 km east of Chemnitz and about 50km east of Dresden.

The town includes the villages of Börnichen, Breitenau, Gahlenz, Görbersdorf, Kirchbach, Lößnitztal and Schönerstadt.

[edit] History

Oederan was first mentioned as town in 1286. The settlement of the area dates back to a Sorbian tribe in the 9th and 10th century. Rhenish Franconian farmers, craftsmen and traders settled down in the 12th century. Since the Middle Ages the most important industries had been cloth manufactoring and linen weaving. In the 19th century the railway construction had a great influence to the growth of the town. Some medium-sized factories were built around the train station of Oederan.[1]

During World War II, a subcamp of Flossenburg concentration camp was located here.[2]

[edit] Places of interest

Oederan is known for its tourist attraction “Klein-Erzgebirge”, the oldest miniature park in Germany. About 185 minatures of famous buildings from the area of the Erzgebirge (Ore Mountains) in a reduced scale of 1:25[3] are shown here.

The most important old building is the gothic hall church. The history of the church goes back to the 13th century[1]. An organ built by famous Gottfried Silbermann is located inside.

The second most prominent building of the town is the town hall. First built around 1400 AD, it burned down several times (1632, 1709 and 1753), and was re-erected in its present shape in 1785.

[edit] People

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Towns and municipalities in Freiberg (district)
Coat of arms

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b oederan.de: History of Oederan. June 8th, 2008
  2. ^ Christine O'Keefe: Concentration Camps.
  3. ^ klein-erzgebirge.de: Der älteste Miniaturpark der Welt lädt ein!. June 8th, 2008