Alterkülz

Alterkülz

Coat of arms
Alterkülz

Coordinates: 50°01′56″N 7°27′57″E / 50.03222°N 7.46583°E / 50.03222; 7.46583Coordinates: 50°01′56″N 7°27′57″E / 50.03222°N 7.46583°E / 50.03222; 7.46583
Country Germany
State Rhineland-Palatinate
District Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis
Municipal assoc. Kastellaun
Area
 • Total 7.58 km2 (2.93 sq mi)
Population (2015-12-31)[1]
 • Total 433
 • Density 57/km2 (150/sq mi)
Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes 56288
Dialling codes 06762
Vehicle registration SIM
Website www.alterkuelz.de

Alterkülz is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis (district) in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is also a tourism community (Fremdenverkehrsgemeinde).

Geography

Location

The municipality lies in the Külzbach valley, stretching strikingly along Landesstraße (State Road) 108, which is known locally as Hauptstraße (“Main Street”) where it actually passes through the village. Its length along this road has led to Alterkülz being called the “Longest Village in the Hunsrück”. Also belonging to the municipality is the outlying centre of Osterkülzmühle in the Osterkülz valley, southeast of the main centre.

Alterkülz’s neighbours, by compass direction, are as follows:

 Hasselbach Spesenroth Laubach
Klosterkumbd
   Alterkülz  
Hundheim Michelbach Neuerkirch

History

The parish hall stands in the village centre.

Alterkülz belonged until 1417 to the “Further” County of Sponheim, and locally to the Amt of Kastellaun. After this line of the Sponheims died out, the village went with Kastellaun to the “Hinder” part of the County.

Over the centuries, Alterkülz grew together from several villages: Unterdorf (“Lower Village”), Mitteldorf (“Middle Village”), Überbach and Wehr. As late as 1865, the now Ortsteil of Wehr was mentioned as a hamlet in its own right.

On the way out of the village to the south, near the Külzbach, the local river, are found remnants of a mediaeval iron smelter and what is left of the mine whence the ore came, the Grube Eid. Also found there is a slope on which once stood a Roman estate, a villa rustica.

From 1901 to 1983, the village was a stop on the old Simmern–Kastellaun–Boppard Hunsrückbahn (railway). At the beginning of the 21st century, the former railway right-of-way was converted into an asphalt-paved cycle and hiking path, the Schinderhannes-Radweg, named after a famous German outlaw.

In 2005, the municipality reached fifth place in the area in the state contest Unser Dorf hat Zukunft (“Our village has a future”).

Politics

Municipal council

The council is made up of 8 council members, who were elected at the municipal election held on 7 June 2009, and the honorary mayor as chairman.

Mayor

Alterkülz’s mayor is Klaus Häfner.[2]

Coat of arms

The German blazon reads: Im geteilten Schild oben in Schwarz ein aufspringender goldener Ziegenbock, beseitet von zwei goldenen Ähren, unten von Rot und Silber geschachtet, belegt mit schräggekreuzten schwarzen Schlägel und Hammer.

The municipality’s arms might in English heraldic language be described thus: Per fess sable a billygoat springing between two ears of wheat couped in base Or and chequy of twenty-four gules and argent a hammer and a sledge per saltire of the first.

The red and silver checkerboard pattern in the lower half of the escutcheon refers to the village’s former allegiance to the “Hinder” County of Sponheim and the Amt of Kastellaun. As early as 1283, Alterkülz was being mentioned in a few Sponheim documents (cule, kultze). The charge here, the hammer and sledge, recall the iron ore mining that was undertaken at the Grube Eid (mine) from 1780 (as it is established in historical records) until the First World War. The ears of wheat stand for agriculture, once every villager’s occupation. Many lordships were enfeoffed here, the Sponheims, the Koppensteins, the Hunolsteins and the Bourscheids. The springing billygoat represents the outlying centre of Wehr, where the Wehrer Bick live, Bick being a local form of the German Böcke (“bucks”, “male animals”, and thus in this case, “billygoats”). The billygoat also graces the new town hall’s roof.

The arms have been borne since 23 February 1981.[3]

Culture and sightseeing

Buildings

The following are listed buildings or sites in Rhineland-Palatinate’s Directory of Cultural Monuments:

Clubs

Name Founded No. of members Chairperson Activity As at
Bauernverein
(“Farmers’ Club”) 		19th century 30 Horst Bender Information, courses, fire insurance, representing interests in buying and selling land 1983
Evangelische Frauenhilfe
(“Evangelical Women’s Aid”) 		1932 60 Elisabeth Berg, Elli Schneider (Alterkülz) Bible classes, singing at burials 1983
Frauengymnastikgruppe
(“Women’s Gymnastic Group”) 		1975 23 Ingrid Meurer Women’s sport 1983
Feuerwehrverein Alterkülz
(“Alterkülz Firefighting Club”) 		1934 21 Axel Werner Firefighting practice, information evenings on fire prevention 2007
Gemischter Chor Alterkülz (Meisterchor)
(“Alterkülz Mixed Choir – Master Choir”) 		1830 36 Horst Peuter Concerts, collaboration at village and social events, participation in singing festivals 2007
Jugendraum Alterkülz
(“Alterkülz Youth Centre”) 		1999 * * Social gathering 2007
Landfrauenvereinigung
(“Country Women’s Association”) 		1960 ~36 Regina Messerle Courses, informational trips, social events 2007
Musikverein Alterkülz e. V.
(“Alterkülz Music Club”) 		1924 60 active Heinz-Walter Nowak Concerts, collaboration at village events, participation in music festivals, training and developing youth’s musical skills 2008
Spielvereinigung Oberkülztal
(“Oberkülztal Games Club”) 		1928 82 active Jürgen Meurer football, table tennis 2008

Economy and infrastructure

Established businesses

Among others, there are a large steel building firm, a carpentry company specializing in building conservatories, a masonry business, an inn and several agricultural businesses. On a hill east of the village stands a wind farm with seven wind turbines made by Vestas.

Famous people

References

  1. ↑ "Gemeinden in Deutschland mit Bevölkerung am 31. Dezember 2015" (PDF). Statistisches Bundesamt (in German). 2016.
  2. ↑ Alterkülz’s mayor
  3. ↑ Description and explanation of Alterkülz’s arms
  4. ↑ Directory of Cultural Monuments in Rhein-Hunsrück district

External links

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