Location
Westerheim is a municipality in the district of
Alb-Donau
Alb-Donau-Kreis is a (district) in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is bounded by (from the south and clockwise) the districts of Biberach, Reutlingen, Göppingen and Heidenheim, the two Bavarian districts Günzburg and Neu-Ulm, and the city o ...
in
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...
in
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
.
It is located at a height of 800 meters on the Swabian Jura, about 30 Kilometers north-west of
Ulm
Ulm () is the sixth-largest city of the southwestern German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with around 129,000 inhabitants, it is Germany's 60th-largest city.
Ulm is located on the eastern edges of the Swabian Jura mountain range, on the up ...
.
History
Its origins stretch back to the Middle Ages. The Dukes of Helfenstein introduced the Reformation between 1555 and 1567, but Westerheim reverted to Catholicism. Today its inhabitants are mainly Roman Catholic, though the surrounding villages are Evangelical.
In 1911-12 Westerheim received electricity.
It was badly damaged in April 1945, when German Army units made a stand there. Before leaving they detonated their explosives which were stored in local barns .
2011: Celebration for 1150 years of Westerheim.
Economy
Westerheim is a Luftkurort (“fresh-air health resort”). It is a ski resort in the Winter. There is a large camping area nearby.
Sight-seeing
* The church of St. Stephen, constructed in 1777/1778, has a
barock high altar.
* The "Schertelshöhle" cave is a 212-meter long cave with stalactites. It is illuminated and can be visited daily from May to October.
* The "Steinerne Haus" (house of stone) is a 55-meter long cave with an 8-meter high entrance, located close to the Schertelshöhle. In winter hundreds of large icicles are formed here, which melt in the spring. Part of the cave is closed off in winter, to house hibernating animals.
Sons and daughters of the city
*
Franz Schädle (1906-1945), German SS leader and last commander of the
Führerbegleitkommando
References
Stuttgart State ArchivesWassergesetze
(in German)
Rohrreinigung Westerheim
(in German)
Erneuerungen
(in German)
External links
Internet site for Westerheim
Internet site for the Schertelshöhle cave
{{DEFAULTSORT:Westerheim, Baden-Wurttemberg
Towns in Baden-Württemberg
Alb-Donau-Kreis