The Hansa Pit (german: Grube Hansa) was a mine on the territory of

Harlingerode Harlingerode () is a village in Germany and district of Bad Harzburg in the district of Goslar in Lower Saxony. As of 2020, Harlingerode had a population of 2,916. Geography Harlingerode lies between 190 and , increasing in height in southern d ...

in the county of

Wolfenbüttel Wolfenbüttel (; nds, Wulfenbüddel) is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, the administrative capital of Wolfenbüttel District. It is best known as the location of the internationally renowned Herzog August Library and for having the largest c ...

in the

Free State of Brunswick The Free State of Brunswick () was a state of the German Reich in the time of the Weimar Republic. It was formed after the abolition of the Duchy of Brunswick in the course of the German Revolution of 1918–19. Its capital was Braunschweig (Bru ...

and later in

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

. It was founded on the Langenberg south of Harlingerode; however, the only remainders are located on the north side.

Geology

The Langenberg, internationally known for the discovery of '' Europasaurus'' and part of the

Northern Harz Boundary Fault The Northern Harz Boundary Fault (german: Harznordrandstörung or ''Harznordrandverwerfung'') is a geological fault where the Harz Block, which consists of rocks formed during the Palaeozoic Era and folded in the course of Hercynian mountain bui ...

north of the

Harz The Harz () is a highland area in northern Germany. It has the highest elevations for that region, and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. The name ''Harz'' derives from the Middle High German ...

, consists of Korallenoolith with layers of chalky

iron ore Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the fo ...

, containing up to 25% iron. On the northern part of the Hansa pit,

limonite Limonite () is an iron ore consisting of a mixture of hydrated iron(III) oxide-hydroxides in varying composition. The generic formula is frequently written as FeO(OH)·H2O, although this is not entirely accurate as the ratio of oxide to hydroxid ...

was more predominant and fossils of Orectolobiformes indet. were found.Hansa iron mine
at

Fossilworks Fossilworks is a portal which provides query, download, and analysis tools to facilitate access to the Paleobiology Database The Paleobiology Database is an online resource for information on the distribution and classification of fossil animals ...

.org

History

19th century

On behalf of consul Herrmann Henrich Meier, local geologist and director for mining administration Wilhelm Castendyck discovered the iron deposits beneath the Langenberg in the mid-19th century.Information page
i
woick-wandern.de
last checked on September 10, 2020 (German).
Translation: ''Hansa Pit: The Hansa Pit is directly related to the Friederike Pit in

Bündheim Bündheim (; nds, label= Oker dialect, Binten ) is a village that forms a part (''Stadtteil'') of Bad Harzburg in the district of Goslar in Lower Saxony, Germany. As of 2020, Bündheim had a population of 5,204. Geography Bündheim is position ...

. On behalf of smelting facility director Wilhelm Castendyck and consul H. H. Meier from Bremen, their operation was started in the mid-19th century. The exact date of the Hansa Pit's start is unknown. First recordings reach back to the year of 1862. The pit was closed and re-opened multiple times, as in 1935. Operation ended on August 23, 1960.''

Hermann deposit

The earliest deposit, the Hermann deposit, was first mentioned in 1860 and established soon after that. It was located north of the Langenberg, where the remaining area around the opening hole is conserved nowadays. In order to reach the significant

pyrolusite Pyrolusite is a mineral consisting essentially of manganese dioxide ( Mn O2) and is important as an ore of manganese.. It is a black, amorphous appearing mineral, often with a granular, fibrous, or columnar structure, sometimes forming reniform ...

conglomerate beneath the Langenberg, a tunnel with a length of 187 metres was drilled. However, due to the strong mountain pressure and brittle rock, the tunnel needed further support and it was decided to extend the tunnel west- and eastwards instead. Due to unprofitability, the Hermann deposit was abandoned in 1867.

Hansa deposit

The relevant Hansa deposit was first documented in 1862. It was discovered as a characteristic Korallenoolith deposit in the Röseckenbach valley west of Göttingerode and southwest of the Langenberg. From here on, the seam was mined eastwards as far as to the outskirts of Schlewecke around 1.5 kilometres east. A new area with the official name Hansa Pit was founded on June 3, 1865, west of where Göttingerode was founded later. Due to the very poor condition of roads at the location, the mine was temporarily closed in November 1865 until conditions improved.Alfred Breustedt: ''Eisenerzgrube Hansa'' (Hansa iron ore pit). In: 950 Jahre Harlingerode, 2003, p. 84

20th century

The aftermath of the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

caused the mine to be temporarily shut down on March 15, 1932. However, due to the German

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that crea ...

's plans to gain more autarky with their ressources, the mine was put back into operation on November 1, 1935. In order to provide sufficient living space for the necessary workers, the

Göttingerode Göttingerode (), in Oker dialect: Jettchenrue () is a village in Germany and district of Bad Harzburg in the district of Goslar in Lower Saxony. As of 2020, Göttingerode had a population of 902. It gained international relevance owing to the d ...

settlement was erected south of the Langenberg and next to the Hansa pit. In 1938-39, a connection to the

Oker–Bad Harzburg railway The Oker–Bad Harzburg railway is a branch line between Oker and Bad Harzburg on the northern edge of the Harz mountains in Germany. It was opened on May 1, 1912. Route The 6.9 kilometre long route is single-tracked between Oker and Bad ...

was established by erecting a chain conveyor to the Harlingerode station. The Hansa pit was closed on August 23, 1960, due to lack of profitability.

Links

* Regionalverband Harz
Hansa Mine
(English), 2022

References

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