Sinsheim

Also see: Sinzheim.

Sinsheim is a town in southwestern Germany, in the Rhine Neckar Area of the state Baden-Württemberg between Heidelberg and Heilbronn in the district Rhein-Neckar. It consists of a city center and 11 suburbs with a total population is 35,605 (as of December 2006). Its area encompasses 127 km² (49 square miles).

Tourist attractions

Sinsheim's main tourist attraction is the Sinsheim Auto & Technik Museum, actually situated in the suburb Steinsfurt, displaying a collection of historic vehicles to over 1 million visitors per year. In 1989, a trade fair area was established that features all kinds of industrial and popular events.

Additionally, Sinsheim has a historic city core; the Altes Rathaus (old city council) is a museum for the town and its role in the 1848 revolution. The town is overlooked by an old fortress, Burg Steinsberg in the village of Weiler. With its octagonal tower, dating back to the 13th century, it has sometimes been called the "compass" of the Kraichgau region, and nowadays contains a restaurant. More recently Hotel O Sinsheim was built also by the owner of the Sinsheim Auto & Technik Museum.

Synagogues

Sinsheim has restored two synagogues, one from 1838, and one from 1832 An older, 1795 half-timbered survives at Kaiserstraße 95, but it is in use as a residence.

Stadium

On September 19, 2006 the mayor of Sinsheim announced a stadium would be built in the suburb of Steinsfurt, not far from the Sinsheim Auto & Technik Museum, for the town's football club 1899 Hoffenheim. The €40 million stadium, which will seat 30,000, is being built by Dietmar Hopp, a cofounder and major share holder of software giant SAP and chief investor in 1899 Hoffenheim.

History

The region around Sinsheim has been settled since 700,000 BC, as shown by the finding of the fossil Homo heidelbergensis in the village of Mauer, about 12 km (7 miles) north of Sinsheim. The Romans ruled the area from 90 AD to 260 AD. The city was possibly founded in about 550 AD by the Frankish nobleman Sunno. It was first historically mentioned in 770 AD in the Codex of the cloister Lorsch. Since 1192, the town had "city rights" (special privileges), first granted by Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor.

Sinsheim has been a rather poor town throughout the ages, and has been affected heavily by wars from the 16th to the 18th century. Sinsheim-born revolutionary Franz Sigel became a famous general in the American Civil War.

The first railroad in Sinsheim was built in 1900; electricity and public water pipes were introduced into the city from 1910 on. While Sinsheim's inhabitants take some pride in the long history of their town, the local history during Nazism is not a popular topic, but it can be said that there was little exception to the rest of Germany during that time.

The World Wars and the Great Depression kept Sinsheim from growing until the A6 Autobahn was built in 1968. It connected Sinsheim to national and international roads, with Mannheim, Stuttgart, Frankfurt am Main, Heilbronn, Heidelberg, Ludwigshafen all now within 1 hour by car. While traditionally being an agricultural town, the highway made it into a small industrial center, but it has been hit by recession and international outsourcing in recent years.

Population

Historic population

The numbers are estimates, census results(¹) or official data of the statistical offices (only primary residences).

Year Population 14th century ca. 1,200 1705 823 1798 1,705 1852 2,854 1 December 1871 2,716 1 December 1880 ¹ 2,990 1 December 1890 ¹ 2,952 1 December 1900 ¹ 3,011 1 December 1910 ¹ 3,327 8 October 1919 ¹ 3,184 16 June 1925 ¹ 3,497 16 June 1933 ¹ 3,767 17 May 1939 ¹ 3,900

Year Population December 1945 ¹ 4,101 13 September 1950 ¹ 5,860 6 June 1961 ¹ 6,532 27 May 1970 ¹ 8,056 31 December 1975 25,373 31 December 1980 26,658 27 May 1987 ¹ 27,454 31 December 1990 29,307 31 December 1995 32,828 31 December 2000 34,171 31 December 2005 35,524 31 December 2006 35,605

¹ census results

Population of the suburbs

as of 31 December 2004

City part Population Sinsheim (city) 12,229 Adersbach 565 Dühren 2,374 Ehrstädt 638 Eschelbach 2,353 Hasselbach 299 Hilsbach 2,199 Hoffenheim 3,286 Reihen 2,086 Rohrbach 2,020 Steinsfurt 3,295 Waldangelloch 1,740 Weiler 2,008

References