Groß-Gerau

Coordinates: 49°55′09″N 08°29′06″E / 49.91917°N 8.48500°E / 49.91917; 8.48500
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Groß-Gerau
Town
Old Town Hall
Old Town Hall
Coat of arms of Groß-Gerau
Coat of arms
Location of Groß-Gerau within Groß-Gerau district
Ginsheim-GustavsburgBischofsheimRüsselsheim am MainRaunheimKelsterbachTreburNauheimMörfelden-WalldorfRiedstadtGroß-GerauBüttelbornStockstadt am RheinBiebesheim am RheinGernsheimWiesbadenMain-Taunus-KreisFrankfurtRhineland-PalatinateBergstraße (district)Offenbach (district)DarmstadtDarmstadt-Dieburg
Groß-Gerau is located in Germany
Groß-Gerau
Groß-Gerau
Groß-Gerau is located in Hesse
Groß-Gerau
Groß-Gerau
Coordinates: 49°55′09″N 08°29′06″E / 49.91917°N 8.48500°E / 49.91917; 8.48500
CountryGermany
StateHesse
Admin. regionDarmstadt
DistrictGroß-Gerau
Government
 • Mayor (2018–24) Erhard Walther[1] (CDU)
Area
 • Total54.47 km2 (21.03 sq mi)
Elevation
88 m (289 ft)
Population
 (2022-12-31)[2]
 • Total26,418
 • Density490/km2 (1,300/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes
64501–64521
Dialling codes06152
Vehicle registrationGG
Websitewww.gross-gerau.de

Groß-Gerau (German:

Frankfurt Rhein-Main Region in Hesse, Germany, and serving as a hub for the surrounding area. In 1994, the town hosted the 34th Hessentag
state festival.

Geography

Location

Groß-Gerau lies in the north of the Hessisches Ried, the northeastern section of the

Rhine rift
.

Neighbouring communities

Groß-Gerau borders in the north on the community of

Griesheim (Darmstadt-Dieburg), in the south on the community of Riedstadt and in the west on the community of Trebur
.

Constituent communities

Groß-Gerau consists of the centres of Berkach, Dornberg, Dornheim, Auf Esch, Groß-Gerau and Wallerstädten.

History

Already by

vicus
) remained and became a market village. The fact that this vicus and the later mentioned Wasserburg Dornberg (moat-ringed castle) corresponded very closely in location would be no accident.

The Gerauer Mark (Gerau March, the woods between Wallerstädten and Messel) had its first documentary mention in one of Mainz Archbishop

Jews
out of the town.

In the 19th century,

canneries (Helvetia), cheesemakers (Groß-Gerau is where "Mainz" cheese is made) and the sugar industry. From 1869 to 1871, Groß-Gerau was the epicentre of a series of mostly weak earthquakes. A plan to connect two local railway stations and the surrounding communities together with a tramway
in the late 19th century fell through, and there are still no trams in the town even now.

Recently, the town's, and more particularly the district's economic situation has worsened. Relatively high debt loads and strict controls of public institutions (especially at the district level) by the government presidium in Darmstadt have led to this.

The name Groß-Gerau means "Great Gerau", and the town shares its name with the village of Klein-Gerau – "Small Gerau" – a constituent community of Büttelborn.

Population development

(Each time as at 31 December)

  • 1998 - 23,000
  • 1999 - 23,147
  • 2000 - 23,349
  • 2001 - 23,342
  • 2002 - 23,565
  • 2003 - 23,600
  • 2004 - 23,519
  • 2017 - 25,496

Politics

Old Town Hall

Town council

Groß-Gerau's council is made up of 33 councillors, with seats apportioned thus, in accordance with municipal elections held on 6 March 2016: (in parentheses changes from municipal elections held in March 2011):

Note: KOMBI is a citizens' coalition.

Executive and mayor

The executive of the district town of Groß-Gerau consists of the directly elected mayor, the honorary first town councillor, a full-time town councillor and a further five honorary town councillors.

The current mayor Erhard Walther of the CDU was elected on 4 February 2018.

Coat of arms

Groß-Gerau's civic coat of arms might heraldically be described thus: The shield: Party per fess, above, a lion rampant striped per fess three times argent three times gules, armed, langued and crowned Or (or langued gules, depending on source), below, in Or a cross pattée gules and between the arms above dexter an onion with shoots vert, sinister a cabbage vert, below dexter a cabbage vert, sinister an onion with shoots vert, both onions per bend sinister. The crest: a crenellated wall with three crenellated towers Or.

Groß-Gerau's oldest known town seal dates from the 16th century. There are none surviving from the time when town rights were first granted in 1398. The seal in question shows a cabbage and an onion, perhaps symbolizing horticulture's importance in the area. The cross first appeared about 1600 in combination with the vegetables, and this new symbol was used in town seals and on buildings. It is unknown why the cross came to be in the town's seal. It is also seen on a municipal limit marker from 1596, but without the produce. The arms were granted in 1901, and also include the lion of Hesse in the chief.

The arms shown in this article and on the town's official website include the crest consisting of a crenellated castle wall with three crenellated towers. This crest does not appear in some earlier versions.[4]

Economy and infrastructure

Transport

Groß-Gerau is very advantageously placed for transportation. It is on Federal Highways (Bundesstraßen) B42/L3482 and B44. Groß-Gerau-Dornberg station is on the

Frankfurt am Main
28 km).

Established businesses

  • FAGRO Preß- und Stanzwerk GmbH (closed down)
  • Procter & Gamble, Werk Groß-Gerau (formerly Wick; personal hygiene and pharmaceuticals)
  • Südzucker AG
    , Werk Groß-Gerau (closed down)
  • Frigoropa GmbH (EK19), daughter company of Nordfrost AG (deepfreezes)
  • Erlenbacher Backwaren GmbH], daughter company of Nestlé AG
  • Engel & Völkers, Claus Jousten Immobilien e.K. Franchise of Engel & Völkers Residential GmbH

Media

The only daily newspaper is the Groß-Gerauer Echo, belonging to the Darmstädter Echo newspaper family.

Schools

  • Luise-Büchner-Schule
  • Schwenkschule (former: Johannes-Angelus-Schule)
  • Grundschule Dornheim
  • Schillerschule
  • Nordschule
  • Berufliche Schulen Groß-Gerau
  • Grundschule Wallerstädten
  • Martin-Buber-Schule
  • Prälat-Diehl-Schule
  • Goetheschule
  • Astrid-Lindgren-Schule
  • Liberta Schule
  • Carl von Ossietzky Schule

Twin towns – sister cities

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

Groß-Gerau is twinned with:[5]

Notable people

Gallery

  • Town Church (Evangelical)
    Town Church (Evangelical)
  • Half-timbered house at the Town Church
    Half-timbered house at the Town Church
  • Sculpture at the marketplace (house of the VHS)
    Sculpture at the marketplace (house of the VHS)
  • Historic houses
    Historic houses
  • Historic houses
    Historic houses
  • Historic houses
    Historic houses
  • Historic houses
    Historic houses
  • Historic houses
    Historic houses

References

  1. Hessisches Statistisches Landesamt
    . 5 September 2022.
  2. Hessisches Statistisches Landesamt
    . June 2023.
  3. ISBN 3-411-04066-1
    .
  4. ^ "Deutsche Wappen (Gemeindewappen Kreiswappen) - GROSS-GERAU". Archived from the original on 2001-07-23.
  5. ^ "Ringpartnerschaft". gross-gerau.de (in German). Groß-Gerau. Retrieved 2021-03-10.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Groß-Gerau&oldid=1136882038"