North Hessen Route of Industrial Heritage

The history of industry and technology plays an important role in North Hessen even though it is less evident today.

Sector giants such as Henschel & Sohn, Salzmann & Comp., Kali + Salz, Volkswagen and SMA were or are based here, but technical details are not everything. Mining has shaped not only the landscape, but also people’s lives. The consequences of the arms industry settling in Kassel can still be seen today in the cityscape and the Edersee lake is used to generate power as well as serving as a popular destination for day-trippers. There is also a range of smaller industrial heritage artefacts of which few people are aware.

Ever since Denis Papin, the French physicist, mathematician and inventor, had the first steam cylinder for a high-pressure steam engine cast at the ironworks Veckerhagen in Reinhardshagen around 1700, remarkable inventions and ground-breaking developments have followed which originated in the North Hessia region. Who knows the history of the textile industry in North Hessia? What about the “Cannon Railway” which stopped off at various North Hessia locations?

NINO (Netzwerk Industriekultur Nordhessen, the North Hessen Network of Industrial Culture) is dedicated to raising the profile of North Hessen’s industrial past, linking small and large sites in relation to subject matter and creating a dialogue between their stakeholders. Joint activities are designed to help enshrine North Hessia’s industrial heritage as an important part of its regional identity.

A fixture in the calendar since 2009, BLAUER SONNTAG is an event which takes place on the last weekend of the summer holidays in Hessen and showcases the industrial heritage of North Hessen.