Maßweiler
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Maßweiler is a municipality in
Südwestpfalz Südwestpfalz is a district (''Kreis'' or more precise ''Landkreis'') in the south of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Neighboring districts are (from west clockwise) Saarpfalz, the district-free city Zweibrücken, the districts Kaiserslautern and Ba ...
district, in
Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...
, western
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. Maßweiler possessed a large cavern that had been used by Nazis in World War II. There were supposedly five levels in the cave, the lowest of which had trouble with occasional flooding. A large staircase for pedestrian traffic was near the highest point of the cavern, which led to an exit. Beside the stairs were rails that assisted in transport of earth from the cavern as it was being enlarged for German forces. The angle of this stair and matching rail system was estimated to be 30 degrees, and the height of the chamber approximately 175 feet. After the end of World War II, the cavern was occupied by the U.S. Army, in the late 1980s by a communications company. Entering the property, it appeared quite small and remote, but upon entering the cavern, the length and size of the facility was impressive. When the U.S. Army began to downsize in the 1990s, Maßweiler, and associated U.S. Army posts from
Husterhoeh Kaserne Husterhoeh Kaserne was a military facility in Pirmasens, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Kaserne is a German loanword that means "barracks." It was a United States military base 1945–1994. Since then it is a German base, most of which has close ...
(
Pirmasens Pirmasens (; pfl, Bärmesens (also ''Bermesens'' or ''Bärmasens'')) is an independent town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, near the border with France. It was famous for the manufacture of shoes. The surrounding rural district was called ''Lan ...
), the larger Kassern in the immediate area, were returned to Germany. Other small Army posts within this group were located at Munchweiler, Fischbach, and
Clausen Clausen is a Danish language, Danish patronymic surname, literally meaning ''child of Claus'', Claus being a German language, German form of the Greek language, Greek Νικόλαος, Nikolaos, (cf. Nicholas), used in Denmark at least since the 16t ...
.


References

Municipalities in Rhineland-Palatinate Südwestpfalz {{Südwestpfalz-geo-stub