Wietmarschen

Infobox Ort in Deutschland
Wappen = Wappen Wietmarschen.pngWappengröße = 115
lat_deg = 52 |lat_min = 31 |lat_sec = 59
lon_deg = 07 |lon_min = 07 |lon_sec = 59
Lageplan =
Bundesland = Niedersachsen
Landkreis = Grafschaft Bentheim
Höhe = 21
Fläche = 119.83
Einwohner = 11143
Stand = 2006-12-31
PLZ = 49835
Vorwahl = 05908, 05925, 05946
Kfz = NOH
Gemeindeschlüssel = 03 4 56 025
Gliederung = 6 Ortsteile
Straße = Hauptstraße 31
Website = [http://www.wietmarschen.de www.wietmarschen.de]
Bürgermeister = Alfons Eling
Partei = CDU

Wietmarschen is a unitary community ("Einheitsgemeinde") in the district of Grafschaft Bentheim in Lower Saxony, Germany. It's split in to the towns of Wietmarschen, Füchtenfeld, Schwartenpohl, Lohnerbruch, Nordlohne and Lohne with Lohne being the biggest and having the town hall while Wietmarschen , which is the second biggest , having the name.

Geography

Wietmarschen lies roughly 13 km west of Lingen, and 10 km northeast of Nordhorn. The community’s highest elevation is the Rupingberg in Lohne at 50 m above sea level, upon which stands a viewing tower, which is part of the municipal plan.

Constituent communities

The community is divided into six "Ortsteile" named Wietmarschen, Füchtenfeld, Schwartenpohl, Lohnerbruch, Nordlohne and Lohne.

Religion

The community of Wietmarschen diverges sharply from the rest of the district with regard to religion in that it has a largely Catholic character. In February 2006, the community’s religious affiliations broke down thus:
* 74.3% Roman Catholic
* 12.6% Evangelical Lutheran
* 3.9% Evangelical Reformed
* 9.2% other faiths, or no faith

Politics

Municipal council

Wietmarschen’s council is made up of 26 councillors.
*CDU 21 seats
*SPD 3 seats
*FDP 2 seats(as of municipal election on 10 September 2006)

The town hall is in Lohne.

Mayor

The full-time mayor Alfons Eling was elected on 10 September 2006 with 83.48% of the vote.

Coat of arms

The community’s arms show a red field with a stylized lily in the upper half of the middle flanked by a golden bulrush on each side sprouting up from the bottom and tilting away from the lily, and each with a golden leaf.

Partnership

Mortagne-au-Perche, France became a partner community of Wietmarschen on 2 July 1989.

Culture and sightseeing

Museums

*Heimathaus Lohne (local museum)
*Heimathaus Wietmarschen, the so-called "Packhaus" (local museum)
*Treckermuseum Wietmarschen (tractor museum)

Buildings

*"Stiftskirche Wietmarschen" (nunnery church), restored historic nunnery area behind the church
*"Stiftsbusch" (nunnery copse) with chapels
*Sankt-Antonius-Kirche Lohne (church)
*Mühlenturm Wietmarschen (mill tower)
*Urbrecker (statue of a bog iron miner)
*Glockenturm Südlohne (belltower)
*Schafstall Moormann (sheep pen)

Sport venues

*5 gymnasia
*10 sport fields
*4 beach volleyball fields
*2 tennis courts
*1 big riding centre
*2 model aircraft fields
*1 miniature car track
*1 gliderport

Regular events

Yearly
*big shooting festival
*"Urbreckerfest"
*kermis
*pilgrimage

Economy and infrastructure

Public transport

* Bus line 161: Lingen — Nordlohne — Lohne — Lohnerbruch — Wietmarschen — Füchtenfeld
* Bus line 165: Lingen — Nordlohne — Lohne — Rükel — Südlohne — Klausheide — Nordhorn

* Nearest railway stations:
** Lingen (Ems) for Meppen, Leer, Emden, Rheine, Münster
** Intercity: Düsseldorf, Karlsruhe
** Bad Bentheim for Rheine, Osnabrück, Bielefeld, Hengelo (Netherlands),
** Intercity: Hanover, Berlin, Amsterdam (Schiphol)

Established businesses

* W.A.S, Ambulances and Security Vehicles
* Ewabo, cleaning agent and disinfectant manufacturer
* Wirtschaft Innovation Nordwest, business advisers and advertising agents
* Bauunternehmen Overberg, construction

Education

Marien-Schule Wietmarschen (elementary school and "Hauptschule")

Famous persons

* Erich Maria Remarque, writer, worked as a teacher in Lohne in 1919
* Mattias Rosemann, deacon

External links

* [http://www.wietmarschen.de/ Community’s website]