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Apartment Cologne explains: Ehrenfeld

Ehrenfeld is a district and a district at the same time. As a district it has the serial number 401. The Ehrenfeld district can be found in the west of the cathedral city. The district, which is very popular today, was taken over by the Cologne people in 1888. The former working-class district still has a very high proportion of guest workers from all over the world: many Turkish, Italian restaurants and shops determine the cityscape. There are also companies from Africa and the Middle or Far East.

Köln Ehrenfeld
District number area residents
401 3,721.5 square kilometers 37,000

The zip codes are 50823, 50825 and 50827.

Ehrenfeld's phone code is 0221.

Location of Ehrenfeld

The following towns border: Neuehrenfeld , Bickendorf , Müngersdorf , Braunsfeld , Lindenthal and in the east of the Veedel Neustadt-Nord .

Apartment Cologne Tip

Immerse yourself in the world of trendy pubs and clubs in Ehrenfeld . Here you can experience something away from the mainstream and the normal world. Here you can also be alternative and different!

Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld

History of Ehrenfeld

The emergence of Ehrenfeld came about through the expansion of the city limits from Cologne to the west. The discovery of a Roman country villa near today's Mechtern Church has shown that this area had to be inhabited from the 1st to the 3rd centuries AD. The term "Mechtern" goes back to the derivation from the Latin "ad martyres sanctos". It means something like: "to the holy martyrs".

Agricultural use was absolutely common for the area until the middle of the 19th century. Most of the goods in Mechtern, Ziegelfeld and Subbelrath were owned by the church, and a brick distillery was still operated there in 1840 (Am Ziegelfeld).

Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld

The founding of the suburb was allegedly stimulated and promoted by the antiquarian and book printer Franz Anton Kreuter. Due to the population growth, new and inexpensive areas for the urban expansion had to be found quickly and Mr. Kreuter convinced both the politicians and the necessary investors of the development of this new suburb of the cathedral city. Ultimately, in 1845 the decision was made to initiate the construction under the name "Ehrenfeld". And how is the new name explained? Well, if you wanted to go to this place, you had to go through the "Ehrenportz" and walk westwards along the Ehrenstraße to get to the "Ehrenstraßener Feld" at some point. Already in 1845 on the streets:

  • Venloer Strasse
  • Subbelrather Straße
  • Körnerstraße
  • Simrockstraße
  • Stammstrasse

the first houses that can be called "three-window houses". There is even a preserved house or facade: Venloerstraße 260.

Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld

Initially the mayor's office in Müngersdorf was responsible for the district until then in 1867 Ehrenfeld, with around four thousand inhabitants at that time, became an independent municipality. The citizens were very proud when in 1875 a so-called rank increase to the "status of the cities" was received. In 1879 city law followed immediately!

Industry and Business

As mentioned above in the text, Ehrenfeld was a real "boomtown" for industry and thus the citizens of the city of Cologne, who naturally benefited from it. A large number of industrialists with their companies settled in Ehrenfeld and you can still see this today by the street names named after them. For example Phillipstrasse, which is named after the company founder Phillip Hoffmann. The following companies and businesses were opened among others:

  1. Wallpaper factory Phillip Hoffmann
  2. Metal processing
  3. Glass manufacturing
  4. Chemistry
  5. Electrical engineering (Helios company)
  6. Lead products (Leyendecker company)
  7. Waggonfabrik (Herbrand company)
  8. Colors (Herbig, later known as Herbol )
  9. Automobile factory (Horch company, later founder of Audi company)
  10. Perfumery factory (Ferdinand Muelhens, 4711)
  11. Foundry (Ostermann and Co.)
  12. first grocery store by Cornelius Stüssgen
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld

Of course, due to the high population growth and the positive development of the industry, there was a great need to install new facilities and buildings. Schools and dormitories had to come to meet the needs. What if you wanted to post a letter at the post office and didn't necessarily want to start your way into town? Post, train, everything needed for everyday life was needed! The following buildings and facilities were therefore built:

  • School building Catholic elementary school
  • Vocational school and school for people with learning difficulties
  • Post
  • train station
  • City Hall (for the 1st and only mayor Mr. Hugo Jesse)

This town hall was unfortunately badly damaged during the Second World War and then finally torn down. The Americans entered Venloer Strasse! The Ehrenfeld synagogue on Körnerstrasse was also destroyed. Many stubble stones by the artist Gunter Demnig still commemorate the bad times. During the Nazi era there were many resistance groups and some executions, which are still commemorated by a plaque on Schönsteinstrasse. Resistance fighters and Polish and Russian forced laborers were simply killed here.

Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld

After the war a great economic acceleration started again, which culminated in the economic miracle. The result was a new space problem, especially for heavy industry, which was now looking for alternative areas in the open surrounding area. Ehrenfeld was just too densely populated! Smaller companies in the areas:

  • Food industry
  • Mechanical engineering
  • Tool making

However, were mostly preserved and so a lively bustle developed on site. Administrations and other service companies also found their place. Particularly interesting is the fact that the entrepreneur Herbert Eklöh opened the first supermarket in Europe in 1957 in the former company halls of the Helios company. Also worth mentioning is the opening of the Fridolinbad , which was also a center for medical massage and physiotherapy.

Basically, all free areas have now been built on and filled (simple residential houses have been set in vacant lots) or dilapidated buildings have simply been demolished and replaced by new, inexpensive buildings.

The boom naturally also led to local prosperity, which was expressed, among other things, by numerous restaurants, cinemas or other shops in Ehrenfeld. A lot of money was also spent and invested in the Ehrenfeld Carnival. A very large carnival association that makes a important contribution to the Cologne Carnival .

Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld

The economic boom was even so great that there was a significant labor shortage and this was covered with guest workers from the southern European countries. Of course, many stayed in Ehrenfeld permanently, which can be seen from the numerous tea rooms or mosques, for example.

Ehrenfeld in transition

From the 1970s, a change began in the social structure and also in the economic structure in Ehrenfeld. Many companies had to shut down their businesses and therefore local unemployment ultimately increased. Of course, this naturally leads to a chain reaction, since the lack of purchasing power of local citizens also leads to problems for restaurant operators or retailers. In the end, they had to leave the site and space was created for a new species of traders:

  • "strange" pubs and restaurants
  • Junk shops
  • arcades
  • Callshops
  • Internet cafes

With the lack of money, crime automatically increased and led to a further neglect of the district. Low rents then led to a renovation and renovation backlog, which then quickly burned into the cityscape of Ehrendfeld. The working-class district was in danger of being neglected.

Kriminalität Ehrenfeld

The low rents attracted many students and artists again over time. The term “life artist” is perhaps a bit exaggerated and should be replaced by the term “culture-interested self-employed”. These now turned the empty industrial buildings back into meaningful things like:

  • (music) clubs
  • theater
  • Studios
Aterlier Ehrenfeld

The most famous clubs are certainly the underground, the ruin, the live music hall or the loft. Not to forget the herbrands. And of course, people who dance and celebrate also need a basis for it and this is how many scene bars and snack shops came into being. Although the purchasing power was perhaps not the greatest, interesting and sophisticated restaurants were also created to satisfy the culinary interests of the people. The district sparkled with creativity and ideas and soon the first program cinema opened in Ehrenfeld. Culture and creativity are a special mixture, and entrepreneurs with new and creative business ideas followed a short time later. This creative boom and the hope of a further increase in the value of the district led many homeowners to be willing to take money in hand. The missed renovations and refurbishments were increasingly carried out and so some streets shone again with their colorful Wilhelminian-style facades. The district of Ehrenfeld has developed into a creative and innovative spot in Cologne and, with its great diversity, provides an interesting mix for the citizens. With the arrival of creative and up-and-coming companies, the unemployment rate in the district fell back to a normal level and the share of citizens with a migrant background leveled off again by the end of 2011 by around 30 percent.

Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld

Buildings and facilities

Basically, you have to mention in advance that the district is a colorful mixture of town houses and industrial relics . Town houses that have been preserved from the Wilhelminian period are just as important here as the industrial monuments in the Ehrenfeld district. Sore spots like cheap tenement houses that were simply built in war gaps, as well as the Hercules high-rise are unfortunately also available.

Now we report on the "three-window houses" from Ehrenfeld already mentioned. These are absolutely the oldest houses in Ehrenfeld and were only built so quickly to save taxes! The people of Cologne were already very creative at that time in saving some money: Houses that were a maximum of 6.28 meters (i.e. 20 feet) wide did not have to pay taxes. Of course, the houses were then always extended far back and still provided enough space. Shops or workshops were often set up on the ground floor. In the later course of time, these also changed in doctor's offices, offices or in garages. Of course, citizens with a lot of money built larger houses and villas to make their success clear. Entrepreneurs and company owners such as Xavier Liek.

Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld

The Neptune Bath

In 1912, a public bathing establishment even opened in Ehrenfeld and can be found directly on Neptunplatz. The Neptune bath was built by Mr. Johannes Babtist Kleefisch (then urban planning inspector). There is even a statue of "Neptune" in the swimming pool. The interior of the bathroom has been completely furnished in Art Nouveau style.
After a long time the bath was closed in 1994. It was probably just not economical and the appropriate funds from Inverstoren were missing. Apparently this could be found again in 2002, because the bathroom was reopened as "Health Club & Spa".

House Scholzen

Previously under the name "Ehrenfelder Hof" there is a restaurant on Venloerstraße which is now run under the name "Haus Scholzen". Traditional Cologne dishes and even an in-house distillery lure into the house, which has been owned by the Scholzen family since 1907. If you are in the area, a visit is definitely recommended.

Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld

The Hercules Tower

And now we come to a small eyesore in Ehrenfeld: the so-called Hercules Tower. It can be found directly on Herkulesstraße, which then explains the name of the colorful skyscraper. Colorful because the facade is strikingly clad with red, blue and orange sheets. Colorful and somehow arranged in a mosaic style, that's why the house in Cologne got the funny names like "Parrot Tower" or "Villa Kunterbunt". The house was built in 1973 and is 31 stories high! The architect was Mr. Peter Neufert. In the meantime, living in the Hercules tower is no longer very popular and apartments can always be bought there at affordable prices.


The Central Mosque

Another large and controversial building is the Central Mosque on the corner of Venloerstrasse and Innere Kanalstrasse. The foundation stone was laid in 2009 and here exactly on November 7th. It was built on the site of the "Turkish Islamic Union of the Institute for Religion". The mosque was designed by the brothers Gottfried and Paul Böhm. At the same time, there were also opponents of the building, which organized themselves per Cologne in the civil movement. Again and again there were arguments, which have now decreased significantly.

Churches and chapels

The oldest church in Ehrenfeld is the "Marktkapelle St. Mariä Himmelfahrt". It is located on the Geißelmarkt and was financed or donated by Johann and Cäcillie Wahlen. It was planned or designed by Vincenz Statz in 1860. Unfortunately, the chapel was destroyed by the war in 1944 (or by the bombing raids at that time). In 1955 the chapel was rebuilt by Mr. Karl Band. From then on, however, it was not only a chapel, but also a memorial for the victims of the Nazi era and World War II.

Other churches are:

  • Church of St. Mechtern, which got this name by the vernacular at the latest in the 18th century. The church was then closed and even demolished. In 1909 a church was built on this site, which was given the popular name again and was now officially named. The war came again and so this church was unfortunately completely destroyed in World War II. A new church was built in 1954 and is the work of Mr. Rudolf Schwarz (architect).
  • Friedenskirche Rothehausstrasse (Evangelical): It was built in 1876 and around 1877 was additionally provided with a tower over 40 meters high! The Second World War struck again here and the church was ultimately largely destroyed. The church was reopened in 1949 and then renamed "Friedenskirche" in 1950.

Industry in Ehrenfeld

As mentioned before, Ehrenfeld was a large and important industry and business location for the city of Cologne . A large and significant relic from this period is the Helio Tower, which stands on Heliosstrasse of the same name. This inland lighthouse (yes, there was no water and the tower was only symbolic) was built in 1885 and is still considered a landmark of Ehrenfeld. It was not used as a classic lighthouse, but was used as a poster for the then Helios AG. Unfortunately, these are no longer available. Helios AG had great success in the field of electrical engineering. Now the Heliosturm is an industrial monument, which also includes the old office buildings on Venloerstrasse and some production halls. This production hall was also used for sports and entertainment events from 1928. Known as the "Rhineland Hall", the Cologne six-day race was also held there. In the meantime, the company's building complexes are used by a fitness club, various doctors, shops or, for example, furniture stores. So you can see: a lot of space ! Incidentally, the heliosturm has been shining again since 1996 because it is illuminated with fluorescent tubes.

Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld

Another large company was the "United German Metal Works (VDM)" which was taken over by an even larger company in 1930, namely the "Bleihröhrenwerke Wilhelm Leyendecker & Cie". Today there is an area called "Leo Amann Park" and there is another industrial monument, namely the production facilities of the factory and its large water tower. Nicely decorated with corner towers and battlements, it gives an impressive picture. Today it is only called the Blua Gold Tower and this is because the tower was restored by the resident carnival society "Bürgergarde Blau-Gold" or it paid for the restoration. The tower has a fundus chamber, a party room and a roof terrace.

Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld

Ehrenfeld cemetery

The former Old Ehrenfeld Cemetery is located on Weinsbergstrasse and is still an independent cemetery even today, although it is adjacent to the Melaten Central Cemetery! You can also recognize this by the different system of paths and of course also by an imposing wall that represents a clear separation. The cemetery was established more than 60 years after the opening of the Melaten cemetery and only because the honorary fields should not buried your deceased in the large Melaten cemetery. The Ehrenfeld cemetery is of course not as big as the well-known, large Melaten cemetery, but it also has many imposing graves, which are also an example of the prosperity in Ehrenfeld.

Culture and Theater

As already mentioned, Ehrenfeld is a very creative place and therefore there is also a great theater culture. Here is a list of the free stages in Ehrenfeld:

The district also has its own cinema. Namely the Cinenova Kino . As already mentioned above, Ehrenfeld has a distinctive club culture with many well-known and popular clubs and live stages that were installed in former industrial facilities.

Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld

Transport connections

Ehrenfeld has its own train station. However, it is only a regional train station, which is served by the following lines:

  • RE1
  • RE8
  • RE9
  • RB27
  • RB38
  • S12
  • S13
  • S19

In Ehrenfeld, however, there are also "normal" trams operated by Cologne's public transport company. These are the following lines:

  • Line 3
  • Line 4
  • Line 13

It is also easy to get to Ehrenfeld by car, as the direct connection with Venloerstraße is possible. Likewise, of course, through the A 57, which should relieve the traffic so that there is no traffic chaos in Vogelsanger or on Subbelrather Straße.

Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld
Ehrenfeld

Celebrities from Ehrenfeld

Even if you may not know all the people and they are not really famous, they have made a name for themselves in Cologne! The following personalities are concerned:

  1. Peter Brings, musician
  2. Gerhard Wilczek, politician
  3. Günter Wallraff, journalist
  4. Jean Pütz, TV presenter

Apartments and guest houses in Ehrenfeld

There are certainly some apartments in Ehrenfeld, but we would of course be very happy if you would rather book our apartments! Take a look at our apartment in Siegburger Str. In Cologne! It lies perfectly! Your Cologne vacation will be a complete success! Your Ferienwohnung-Koeln.com

Ferienwohnung Köln Ehrenfeld
Gemütliche Wohnung!

Book accommodation

Do you want to spend a few days in the cathedral city? We have the perfect accommodations for you! Ask right away at Apartment cologne for a non-binding offer! furnished apartments at the fair and vacation rentals are very close to the fair! We look forward to your non-binding inquiry!

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