Oberhausen

Oberhausen (/ˈoʊbərhaʊzən/,[3][4][5] German: [ˈoːbɐhaʊzn̩] ⓘ) is a city on the river Emscher in the Ruhr Area, Germany, located between Duisburg and Essen (c. 13 km or 8 mi). The city hosts the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen and its Gasometer Oberhausen is an anchor point of the European Route of Industrial Heritage.

For other places with the same name, see Oberhausen (disambiguation).
Oberhausen
City
View over Oberhausen
View over Oberhausen
Flag of Oberhausen
Flag
Coat of arms of Oberhausen
Coat of arms
Location of Oberhausen
Oberhausen is located in Germany
Oberhausen
Oberhausen
Oberhausen is located in North Rhine-Westphalia
Oberhausen
Oberhausen
Coordinates: 51°29′48″N 06°52′14″E
CountryGermany
StateNorth Rhine-Westphalia
Admin. regionDüsseldorf
DistrictUrban district
Government
 • Lord mayor (2020–25) Daniel Schranz[1] (CDU)
Area
 • Total77.04 km2 (29.75 sq mi)
Elevation
78 m (256 ft)
Population
 (2021-12-31)[2]
 • Total208,752
 • Density2,700/km2 (7,000/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes
46001-46149
Dialling codes0208
Vehicle registrationOB
WebsiteCity of Oberhausen (de)

History

Oberhausen was named for its 1847 railway station which had taken its name from the Oberhausen Castle. The new borough was formed in 1862 following inflow of people for the local coal mines and steel mills. Awarded town rights in 1874, Oberhausen absorbed several neighbouring boroughs including Alstaden, parts of Styrum and Dümpten in 1910. Oberhausen became a city in 1901, and they incorporated the towns of Sterkrade and Osterfeld in 1929. The Ruhrchemie AG synthetic oil plant ("Oberhausen-Holten" or "Sterkrade/Holten")[6] was a bombing target of the oil campaign of World War II, and the US forces reached the plant by 4 April 1945.

In 1973, Thyssen AG employed 14,000 people in Oberhausen in the steel industry, but ten years later the number had fallen to 6,000.[7]

In 1954 the city began hosting the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen, and the 1982 Deutscher Filmpreis was awarded to a group that wrote the Oberhausen Manifesto.

Demographics

Population development since 1862:

Historical population
YearPop.±%
18625,590—    
187112,805+129.1%
190042,148+229.2%
191089,900+113.3%
191998,677+9.8%
1925105,121+6.5%
1933192,345+83.0%
1939191,842−0.3%
1950202,808+5.7%
1961256,773+26.6%
1970246,736−3.9%
1987220,286−10.7%
2001221,619+0.6%
2011210,216−5.1%
2017211,422+0.6%
2020209,566−0.9%
source:[8]

The age breakdown of the population (2013) is:[9]

<18 years 15.6%
18–64 years 63.3%
>64 years 21.1%

There were 12.5% non-Germans living in Oberhausen, as of 2014.[10]

The unemployment rate is 10.4% (Jul 2020).[11]

Migrant communities in Oberhausen as of 31 December 2017:

 Turkey8,560
 Syria2,315
 Serbia2,090
 Italy2,005
 Poland1,840
 Bosnia and Herzegovina1,530
 Greece1,346
 Croatia1,209
 North Macedonia865
 Sri Lanka673

Politics

Mayor

The current Mayor of Oberhausen is Daniel Schranz of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), elected in 2015 and re-elected in 2020. The most recent mayoral election was held on 13 September 2020, with a runoff held on 27 September, and the results were as follows:

Candidate Party First round Second round
Votes  % Votes  %
Daniel Schranz Christian Democratic Union 30,150 45.5 28,456 62.1
Thorsten Berg Social Democratic Party 19,699 29.7 17,381 37.9
Norbert Emil Axt Alliance 90/The Greens 7,002 10.6
Wolfgang Kempkes Alternative for Germany 4,521 6.8
Jens Carstensen The Left 3,095 4.7
Urban Mülhausen Open for Citizens 1,378 2.1
Claudia Wädlich The Violets 468 0.7
Valid votes 66,313 98.7 45,837 99.2
Invalid votes 859 1.3 368 0.8
Total 67,172 100.0 46,205 100.0
Electorate/voter turnout 159,510 42.1 159,458 29.0
Source: State Returning Officer

City council
Results of the 2020 city council election.

The Oberhausen city council governs the city alongside the Mayor. The most recent city council election was held on 13 September 2020, and the results were as follows:

Party Votes  % +/- Seats +/-
Christian Democratic Union (CDU) 21,471 32.8 Decrease 0.2 19 Decrease 1
Social Democratic Party (SPD) 20,754 31.7 Decrease 7.2 19 Decrease 4
Alliance 90/The Greens (Grüne) 9,450 14.4 Increase 5.9 8 Increase 3
Alternative for Germany (AfD) 4,995 7.6 New 4 New
The Left (Die Linke) 3,367 5.1 Decrease 2.8 3 Decrease 2
Free Democratic Party (FDP) 1,988 3.0 Increase 0.2 2 ±0
Alliance of Obenhauser Citizens (BOB) 1,913 2.9 Decrease 5.7 2 Decrease 3
Open for Citizens (OfB) 1,153 1.8 New 1 New
The Violets (Die Violetten) 445 0.7 Increase 0.5 0 ±0
Valid votes 65,536 98.1
Invalid votes 1,290 1.9
Total 66,826 100.0 58 Decrease 2
Electorate/voter turnout 159,510 41.9 Decrease 0.9
Source: State Returning Officer

Sport

Oberhausen is home to Regionalliga West football team Rot-Weiß Oberhausen, who play at the Niederrheinstadion situated on the banks of the Rhine–Herne Canal.

The city had a professional ice hockey team between 1997 and 2007, the Revierlöwen Oberhausen.[12] The team initially played at the Arena Oberhausen when playing in the top-flight Deutsche Eishockey Liga but later moved to the Emscher-Lippe-Halle in Gelsenkirchen following financial woes.

The Rudolf Weber-Arena has hosted many international indoor sporting events including MMA event UFC 122 in 2010[13] and the PDC Unibet European Championship of darts in 2020.[14]

The city has established itself as a popular destination for professional wrestling in Germany, with Essen-based promotion Westside Xtreme Wrestling (wXw) regularly running shows in Oberhausen's Turbinenhalle.[15] wXw's 16 Carat Gold Tournament is considered one of the most prestigious independent wrestling tournaments in the world[16] and is held in March every year in Oberhausen - attracting fans from around the world.


Twin towns – sister cities
See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Germany

Oberhausen is twinned with:[17]

Notable people
  • Oberhausen Hauptbahnhof
    Oberhausen Hauptbahnhof
  • Gasometer
    Gasometer
  • Oberhausen Castle as seen from the Gasometer
    Oberhausen Castle as seen from the Gasometer
  • Industrial Museum
    Industrial Museum
  • Courthouse
    Courthouse
  • Baumeister-Mill
    Baumeister-Mill
  • Vondern Castle
    Vondern Castle
  • Kastell Holten
    Kastell Holten
  • Ruhr meadows in Oberhausen-Alstaden
    Ruhr meadows in Oberhausen-Alstaden
  • CentrO shopping mall
    CentrO shopping mall
  • Oberhausen Castle, inner courtyard with the Little castle
    Oberhausen Castle, inner courtyard with the Little castle
  • AQUApark near CentrO in 2012
    AQUApark near CentrO in 2012
  • 'Shellakabookie' on Schwartzstraße
    'Shellakabookie' on Schwartzstraße
  • Turbinenhalle Oberhausen
    Turbinenhalle Oberhausen
  • Waste processing company GMVA in Oberhausen
    Waste processing company GMVA in Oberhausen

References
  1. Wahlergebnisse in NRW Kommunalwahlen 2020, Land Nordrhein-Westfalen, accessed 19 June 2021.
  2. "Bevölkerung der Gemeinden Nordrhein-Westfalens am 31. Dezember 2021" (in German). Landesbetrieb Information und Technik NRW. Retrieved 20 June 2022.
  3. "Oberhausen". The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (5th ed.). HarperCollins. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
  4. "Oberhausen" (US) and "Oberhausen". Lexico UK English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 2020-03-22.
  5. "Oberhausen". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
  6. Powell, A.R. (9–10 January 1945). "Detailed Summary of meeting of Oil Mission Held in New Interior Building" (PDF). Enemy Oil Intelligence Committee. p. 17 (p61 of pdf). Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 August 2008. Retrieved 25 March 2009.
  7. John Tagliabue (27 November 1983). "The Twilight of the Industrial Ruhr". New York Times. Retrieved 16 November 2015.
  8. Link
  9. "Demografiebericht AG Ruhr" (PDF). Arbeitsgemeinschaft der kommunalen Statistikstellen der Metropole Ruhr.
  10. "2.02 Fläche und Bevölkerung nach Statistischen Bezirken 2014" (PDF). Statistisches Jahrbuch 2015 der Stadt Oberhausen (in German). Stadt Oberhausen. January 2015. p. 31. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  11. "Oberhausen – statistik.arbeitsagentur.de". statistik.arbeitsagentur.de. Retrieved 2020-08-11.
  12. "RODI-DB - die deutsche Eishockey-Datenbank".
  13. "UFC 122: Marquardt vs. Okami". ufc.com. September 20, 2010.
  14. Allen, Dave. "2020 European Championship moves to Oberhausen". Professional Darts Corporation. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
  15. Cagematch, Westside Xtreme Wrestling
  16. "WXW 16 Carat Gold 2022 Weekend Preview". March 2022.
  17. "Städtepartnerschaften der Stadt Oberhausen". oberhausen.de (in German). Oberhausen. Retrieved 2021-03-03.
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