Woltersdorf is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in the

Oder-Spree Oder-Spree is a ''Kreis'' (district) in the eastern part of Brandenburg, Germany. Neighboring are (from north clockwise) the district Märkisch-Oderland, the district-free city Frankfurt (Oder), Poland, the districts Spree-Neiße and Dahme-Spreewal ...

district in

Brandenburg Brandenburg, officially the State of Brandenburg, is a States of Germany, state in northeastern Germany. Brandenburg borders Poland and the states of Berlin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony. It is the List of Ger ...

. It is often referred to as "near

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

" (German: "bei Berlin") or "near Erkner" (German: "bei Erkner") as there are a number of other places bearing the same name in Germany.

Geography

The municipality is located at the three lakes Flakensee, Kalksee and the Bauernsee, between

Schöneiche Schöneiche is a municipality in the Oder-Spree District of Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated directly at the edge to Berlin/ Friedrichshagen and next to Rüdersdorf and Woltersdorf, Brandenburg on the eastern edge of the German capital Berlin ...

, the

forest and Erkner.

Bordering municipalities

Woltersdorf borders (in clockwise direction, starting in north) on

Rüdersdorf Rüdersdorf is a Municipalities of Germany, municipality in the district Märkisch-Oderland, in Brandenburg, Germany, near Berlin. It is served by the Schöneiche bei Berlin tramway which runs from Rüdersdorf through Schöneiche to Berlin-Friedr ...

, Erkner,

and

History

Around 1240 14 farmer families settled on a bank. Today the

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

, the

city hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...

and the "old

school A school is the educational institution (and, in the case of in-person learning, the Educational architecture, building) designed to provide learning environments for the teaching of students, usually under the direction of teachers. Most co ...

" (German ''"alte Schule"'') are located here, representing the Woltersdorf "downtown". The first residents were

farmers A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer mi ...

and mariners. In 1319 Woltersdorf was first documented as ''Waltersdorf slawika''. Waltersdorf means "the village from Walter". In 1375 Woltersdorf was first noted in the "Landbuch". Together with

Rahnsdorf Rahnsdorf () is a locality (''Ortsteil'') of Berlin, Germany, located in the southeast of the Berlin borough (''Bezirk'') of Treptow-Köpenick. Until 2001 it was part of the former borough of Köpenick. History Rahnsdorf was first mentioned in 1 ...

, it paid taxes for the castle of

Köpenick Köpenick () is a historic town and locality (''Ortsteil'') in Berlin, situated at the confluence of the rivers Dahme and Spree in the south-east of the German capital. It was formerly known as Copanic and then Cöpenick, only officially ado ...

. In 1487 Berlin acquired Woltersdorf. Then in 1550 a

lock Lock(s) or Locked may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainme ...

was built between the Flakensee and the Kalksee, the same year the first

of Woltersdorf was built. Between 1618 till 1648 Woltesdorf was desolated (

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...

) and temporarily uninhabited. About 1886 a touristic

observation tower An observation tower is a tower used to view events from a long distance and to create a full 360 degree range of vision to conduct long distance observations. Observation towers are usually at least tall and are made from stone, iron, and woo ...

is built on top of the Kranichsberge. It granted a great perspective from a height of 105 meters, and on clear days you were able to see the Berliner Fernsehturm. Inside the tower today is an exhibition "When Woltersdorf still was

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

" (German ''"Als Woltersdorf noch Hollywood war"''). It recalls the 1920s, where

Joe May Joe May (born Joseph Otto Mandl; 7 November 1880 – 29 April 1954) was an Austrian film director and film producer and one of the pioneers of Cinema of Germany, German cinema. Biography After studying in Berlin and a variety of odd jobs, he b ...

shot famous movies ('' Das indische Grabmal'' (1920), '' Herrin der Welt'' (1919) and '' Der Tiger von Eschnapur''). Today you are able to find remains of the movie scenery on site. At the end of the 19th century the rail from Berlin to the east was finished. In the bordering commune of Woltersdorf, Erkner, a train station was built. Many Berlin people had their summer residence in Woltersdorf. Since 1913 a tramway has run between the lock and the

S-Bahn The S-Bahn ( , ), , is a hybrid urban rail, urban–suburban rail system serving a metropolitan region predominantly in German language, German-speaking countries. Some of the larger S-Bahn systems provide service similar to rapid transit syst ...

station of

Demography

At the time of the

German reunification German reunification () was the process of re-establishing Germany as a single sovereign state, which began on 9 November 1989 and culminated on 3 October 1990 with the dissolution of the East Germany, German Democratic Republic and the int ...

, 4,790 people lived in Woltersdorf. Since then, the population of Woltersdorf has risen from 6,800 (2001) to nearly 8,000 (2010). Today, Woltersdorf is the youngest commune in the Oder-Spree district. More than 12% of the population is younger than 15 years of age. File:Bevölkerungsentwicklung Woltersdorf.pdf, Development of population since 1875 within the current Boundaries (Blue Line: Population; Dotted Line: Comparison to Population development in Brandenburg state; Grey Background: Time of

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

; Red Background: Time of communist

East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

) File:Bevölkerungsprognosen Woltersdorf.pdf, Recent Population Development and Projections (Population Development before Census 2011 (blue line); Recent Population Development according to the

Census in Germany A national census in Germany (, ) was held every five years from 1875 to 1910. After the World Wars, only a few full population censuses have been held, the last in 1987. The most recent census, though not a national census, was the 2011 Europea ...

in 2011 (blue bordered line); Official projections for 2005-2030 (yellow line); for 2017-2030 (scarlet line); for 2020-2030 (green line)

Politics

The City Council has 18 members, one however has not accepted his seat which remains vacant. * CDU: 4 * SPD: 3 * Linkspartei: 4 * Grüne: 1 * FDP: 1 * WBF (Woltersdorf Citizens' Forum): 3 * NPD: 1 (Election 2008) *Elections 2014 * Unser Woltersdorf (UW): 5 (+5) * Woltersdorfer Bürgerforum (WBF): 4 (+1) * The Left: 3 (-1) * CDU: 2 (-2) * SPD: 1 (-2) * FDP: 1 * Greens: 1 * Single candidate Siegfried Bronsert: 1 Results of election 25 May 2014
/ref>

Famous Persons

* Politician (SPD) and biologist Regine Hildebrandt (1941–2001) * Painter and Illustrator

Fidus Hugo Reinhold Karl Johann Höppener (8 October 1868 – 23 February 1948), known under the pseudonym Fidus, was a German illustrator, painter, and publisher. Part of the Symbolism (arts), symbolist movement, his later work took influence from the ...

(1868–1948) * Footballer Bodo Rudwaleit (born 1957) * Entertainer Dagmar Frederic (born 1945) * Founder of the Wilhelmsbad Woltersdorf, Dr.med. Alfred Pritzel * Musician

Chris Corner Christopher Anthony Corner (born 23 January 1974) is an English record producer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, singer and video artist. He was a founding member of the band Sneaker Pimps alongside Liam Howe, and is now active with his sol ...

(founding member and former lead singer of

Sneaker Pimps Sneaker Pimps are an English electronic music band, formed in Hartlepool in 1994. They are best known for their debut album, '' Becoming X'' (1996), and its singles " 6 Underground" and " Spin Spin Sugar". The band takes its name from an articl ...

, currently involved in the

IAMX IAMX is the solo musical project of Chris Corner founded in 2002 in London, London, England after the hiatus of his former band Sneaker Pimps. It is an independent music project with a secondary focus on the experimentation of visual art. Chri ...

project) (born 1974) * Architect Friedrich Heinrich Stöckhardt (1842–1920)

References

External links

*
tram in Woltersdorf
{{Authority control Localities in Oder-Spree