Pattonville

Pattonville with Golf Club Neckar eV partially visible to the right of the picture.

Pattonville is a German neighborhood with the unusual distinction of being a former US Military installation, as few US installations returned to German control have been maintained in their former form.

History

Pattonville was a large housing area built and maintained by the United States Army north of Stuttgart, Germany during the Cold War as part of the Stuttgart Military Community. [1] The community was named for World War II General George S. Patton. Located north of the city and east of Ludwigsburg, from 1955-1992 Pattonville was home to Stuttgart American High School, which accommodated 1,200 students at its peak. Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and Musician Katrina Leskanich of Katrina and the Waves are among the better known alumni of the school.[2] The Patch High School at Patch Barracks became now the only DODEA (DoDDS) High School in Stuttgart, until it was closed at the end of the 2014-15 school year, and the Stuttgart High School (Germany) opened beginning with the 2015-16 school year to be the sole DODEA school in the Stuttgart Military Community.

Stuttgart Golf Club

Also a part of Pattonville was the Stuttgart Golf Club, a 7,000 yard 18 hole golf course and club on 300 acres operated by and for the US military and their families. [3] Designed by Bernhard von Limburger, it was opened in 1956. In 1969 Germans were allowed to golf on the course for the first time. [4] Over time the club allowed a limited number of German members and the club was transitioned to shared German control with the large withdrawal of US Army personnel from Stuttgart and Ludwigsburg following the Gulf War. The Golf Club is now known as Golf Club Neckar eV. [5] The American Stuttgart Golf Club is operated by the United States Army Garrison Stuttgart Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Office. [6] The Golf Course and Club are the only remaining link to the former US installation.

Closure and Redevelopment

Following the withdrawal of most Army units in the area after the Gulf War, the installation was returned to the German government. By 1994 Pattonville, largely a housing complex, was opened as apartments for the local German population. The former Stuttgart American School complex is now in use as the Erich-Bracher-Schule.[7] The former military airfield supports the rescue helicopter "Christoph 51", which was relocated there due to air traffic congestion at the Stuttgart airport.[8]

Jurisdiction of the area had been shared by the cities of Remseck and Kornwestheim, eastern and southern neighbors of Ludwigsburg, respectively. The irregular boundary between the two cities was realigned along John-F.-Kennedy-Allee, Pattonville's central spine, so that the western half belongs to Kornwestheim, the eastern half to Remseck. Pattonville's current population of approximately 6,000 (2013) is split between the two cities. The streets, named after various U.S. states, are a reminder of the postwar American military presence.

Coordinates: 48°52′24″N 9°13′27″E / 48.87333°N 9.22417°E / 48.87333; 9.22417

References

  1. ↑ US Army in Germany website "Stuttgart military community: A look back to 1967." Accessed Feb. 20, 2010
  2. ↑ http://www.stuttgartludwigsburghs.org/Last_Days.cfm
  3. ↑ http://ww2.stripes.com/resources/golf/stuttgart-golf-course
  4. ↑ http://www.gc-neckartal.de/club/geschichte
  5. ↑ http://www.gc-neckartal.de/club/geschichte
  6. ↑ http://www.stuttgartmwr.com/golf-course/
  7. ↑ http://www.erich-bracher-schule.de/
  8. ↑ "Ludwigsburg AAF (Pattonville) (US Army Airfield)" Military Airfield Directory. Accessed Feb. 20, 2010
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