Oberhausen

For other places with the same name, see Oberhausen (disambiguation).
Oberhausen

CentrO-Park in Oberhausen

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Oberhausen
Coordinates: 51°29′48″N 06°52′14″E / 51.49667°N 6.87056°E / 51.49667; 6.87056Coordinates: 51°29′48″N 06°52′14″E / 51.49667°N 6.87056°E / 51.49667; 6.87056
Country Germany
State North Rhine-Westphalia
Admin. region Düsseldorf
District Urban districts of Germany
Government
 • Lord Mayor Klaus Wehling (SPD)
Area
 • Total 77.04 km2 (29.75 sq mi)
Population (2014-12-31)[1]
 • Total 209,292
 • Density 2,700/km2 (7,000/sq mi)
Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes 46001-46149
Dialling codes 0208
Vehicle registration OB
Website City of Oberhausen (de)

Oberhausen (German pronunciation: [ˈoːbɐhaʊzən]) is a city on the river Emscher in the Ruhr Area, Germany, located between Duisburg (c. 12 km) and Essen (c. 13 km). The city hosts the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen and its Gasometer Oberhausen is an anchor point of the European Route of Industrial Heritage. The city's Sea Life Centre was home to Paul the Octopus.

History

Oberhausen was named for its 1847 railway station which had taken its name from the Castle Oberhausen (German: Schloss Oberhausen). The new borough was formed in 1862 following inflow of people for the local coal mines and steel mills. Awarded town rights in 1874, Oberhausen absorbed several neighbouring boroughs including Alstaden, parts of Styrum and Dümpten in 1910. Oberhausen became a city in 1901, and they incorporated the towns of Sterkrade and Osterfeld in 1929. The Ruhrchemie AG synthetic oil plant ("Oberhausen-Holten" or "Sterkrade/Holten")[2] was a bombing target of the Oil Campaign of World War II, and the US Forces had reached the plant by 4 April 1945.

In 1973 Thyssen employed 14,000 people in Oberhausen in the steel industry, but ten years later the number had fallen to 6000.[3]

In 1954 the city began hosting the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen, and the 1982 Deutscher Filmpreis was awarded to a group that wrote the Oberhausen Manifesto.

Demographics and Industry

The age breakdown of the population (2013) is:

<18 years 15.6%
18–64 years 63.3%
>64 years 21.1%

[4]

There are 12.5% non-Germans living in Oberhausen (2014).[5]

The unemployment rate is 10.0% (dec 2015).[6]

Oberhausen performs chemical processing, mechanical engineering, and education. The "Neue Mitte Oberhausen" (English: New Central Oberhausen) at the former site of the Thyssen mill has light industry.

Cityscape

Schloss Oberhausen - inner courtyard with little castle

Oberhausen has 4 city centres, and Alt-Oberhausen, Sterkrade and Osterfeld are common town centres. The new city centre with its mall draws many people from more distant places as it also boasts a larger number of exceptional shops. Much of the city is composed of low- to medium-density residential areas, most of which date from the 1950s-1970s.

Main sights

Gallery

Transport

Road

Oberhausen is well connected to the German motorway network.

Rail

Oberhausen Hauptbahnhof is the main railway station in the city. Long-distance trains stop at the station (some even to Amsterdam and Basel) as well as regional and local services. There are stations at Holten, Sterkrade and Osterfeld Süd, catering for regional and local travel.

Airports

Nearby commercial airports are at Düsseldorf International Airport (28 km), Dortmund Airport (50 km) and Weeze Airport (60 km).

Waterways

The Rhein-Herne Canal bisects the city, and the Ruhr is in the city's south-west (river navigation uses a shortcut canal to the south).

Public Transport

The city-owned company "STOAG" provides extensive coverage of bus and tram services. It is part of the Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr transport association covering the whole Rhine-Ruhr area.

Sport

With around 250 sports clubs, Oberhausen has an active community. Local football club Rot-Weiß Oberhausen currently play in the fourth tier of the league (Regionalliga West).

In 1961, Oberhausen hosted the European Team Chess Championship, which was won by the Soviet Union.

Oberhausen was where esports team SK Gaming was founded as a Quake (video game) clan.[7]

International relations

Twin towns – Sister cities

Oberhausen is twinned with:[8]

References

  1. ↑ "Amtliche Bevölkerungszahlen". Landesbetrieb Information und Technik NRW (in German). 23 September 2015.
  2. ↑ Powell, A.R. (9–10 January 1945). "Detailed Summary of meeting of Oil Mission Held in New Interior Building" (PDF). Enemy Oil Intelligence Committee. p. 17 (p61 of pdf). Retrieved 25 March 2009.
  3. ↑ John Tagliabue (27 November 1983). "The Twilight of the Industrial Ruhr". New York Times. Retrieved 16 November 2015.
  4. ↑ "Demografiebericht AG Ruhr" (PDF). Arbeitsgemeinschaft der kommunalen Statistikstellen der Metropole Ruhr.
  5. ↑ "Statistisches Jahrbuch 2015 der Stadt Oberhausen" (PDF). Stadt Oberhausen.
  6. ↑ "Oberhausen - statistik.arbeitsagentur.de". statistik.arbeitsagentur.de. Retrieved 2016-01-29.
  7. ↑ SK Gaming. de:ZDF.reporter.
  8. ↑ "Ratsangelegenheiten: Städtepartnerschaften der Stadt Oberhausen" (in German). Büro für Interkultur, Stadt Oberhausen. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
  9. ↑ "Town Twinning". Middlesbrough Council. Retrieved 4 March 2013.
  10. ↑ Міста-побратими м. Запоріжжя [Twin Cities Zaporozhye]. City of Zaporizhia (in Ukrainian). Шановні відвідувачі і користувачі сайту. Archived from the original on 3 August 2012. Retrieved 7 August 2013.

External links

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