Finnentrop is a ''Gemeinde'' (

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

) in Olpe district in

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia or North-Rhine/Westphalia, commonly shortened to NRW, is a States of Germany, state () in Old states of Germany, Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhabitants, it is the List of German states by population, most ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Geography

Finnentrop is situated in the

Sauerland The Sauerland () is a rural, hilly area spreading across most of the south-eastern part of the States of Germany, German federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia, in parts heavily forested and, apart from the major valleys, sparsely inhabited. ...

, near the forks of the rivers Bigge and

Lenne The Lenne () is a tributary of the river Ruhr in the Sauerland hills, western Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north a ...

. Finnentrop shares borders with

Sundern Sundern () is a town in the Hochsauerland district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The name Sundern is common in Westphalia, as it means "ground given away for private usage" in the Westphalian dialect. Geography Sundern is situated approxim ...

and

Eslohe Eslohe is a municipality in the Hochsauerland district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Eslohe is situated approximately 25 km south-west of Meschede. Neighbouring municipalities * Finnentrop * Lennestadt * Meschede * Schma ...

(both part of

Hochsauerland Hochsauerlandkreis (, ) is a (district) in the east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Soest, Paderborn, Höxter, Waldeck-Frankenberg, Siegen-Wittgenstein, Olpe, Märkischer Kreis. The district is named “High Saue ...

district),

Lennestadt Lennestadt (occasionally also ''die Lennestadt'') lies in the Sauerland in southeast North Rhine-Westphalia and is a community in Olpe district. It is the district's most populous municipality. Lennestadt itself is not an actual town but a commun ...

and

Attendorn Attendorn () is a German town in the Olpe district in North Rhine-Westphalia. As of 2019 it had a population of 24,264. History The town's location was favoured by the good climate in the Attendorn-Elsper Limestone Double Basin (''Attendorn- ...

(both in Olpe district), as well as with Plettenberg (

Märkischer Kreis The Märkischer Kreis (, ) is a district ('' Kreis'') in central North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighbouring districts are Unna, Soest, Hochsauerland, Olpe, Oberbergischer Kreis, Ennepe-Ruhr, and the city of Hagen. History The district wa ...

district). Finnentrop is divided into the following constituent communities:

History

While the municipality of Finnentrop didn't come into being before 1 July 1969, the history of the constituting villages dates back from the Middle Ages. In 1162 Lenhausen and Rönkhausen were mentioned for the first time. Until 13 July 1908, the place now known as Finnentrop had three names: ''Habbecke'', ''Neubrücke'' (“Newbridge”) and, once the Ruhr-Sieg railway was built, ''Bahnhof Finnentrop'' (“Finnentrop Railway Station”). Neubrücke consisted of only one building at the forks of Bigge and Lenne (''Reuters Haus'', first mentioned in 1847). The “new bridge” seems to have already been built by 1847, as the “Reuter” had to charge tolls. The new municipality was cobbled together in 1969 from parts of the old Amt of Serkenrode (

Meschede Meschede () is a town in the Hochsauerland district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the capital of the district Hochsauerlandkreis. Education One of the five branches of South Westphalia University of Applied Sciences (also: Fachhoc ...

district), the communities of Schliprüthen and Oedingen and parts of

-Land and Helden. This restructuring also saw the municipality pass from

district (which was abolished in 1974) to Olpe district. The municipality's name is drawn from the original centre of Finnentrop situated a few hundred metres up the Bigge river, now known as ''Altfinnentrop'' (“alt” is

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

for “old”). The ending ''—trop'' comes from ''trop'' or ''torp'', meaning “village”. The

High German The High German languages (, i.e. ''High German dialects''), or simply High German ( ) – not to be confused with Standard High German which is commonly also called "High German" – comprise the varieties of German spoken south of the Ben ...

word ''Dorf'' is a cognate, as is the English word ''thorpe''. The municipal

arms Arms or ARMS may refer to: *Arm or arms, the upper limbs of the body Arm, Arms, or ARMS may also refer to: People * Ida A. T. Arms (1856–1931), American missionary-educator, temperance leader Coat of arms or weapons *Armaments or weapons **Fi ...

shows a rose under a wavy chevron. The rose stands for the Lords of Finnentrop (''von Vinnentrop'') and dates back to the year 1358. The chevron stands for the two rivers, the Bigge and the Lenne, which merge in the municipality. The colour green refers to the great swathes of greenery in the municipal area. Finnentrop maintains partnership arrangements with: *

Diksmuide (; ; ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the Flemish province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of proper and the former communes of Beerst, Esen, Kaaskerke, Keiem, Lampernisse, Leke, Nieuwkapelle, Oostkerke ...

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

(since 1979); * Helbra,

Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt ( ; ) is a States of Germany, state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.17 million inhabitants, making it the List of German states ...

(since 1990).

Mayors

The mayor between 1997 and 2020 was the jurist Dietmar Heß (* 1955) (CDU). In September 2020 Achim Henkel (CDU) has been elected. The 53 year old first chief police officer used to be in charge of the policestation in Olpe for many years.

Culture and sightseeing

Theatres & Museums

* Schützenhof Lichtspiele, 1954-vintage

movie theater A movie theater (American English) or cinema (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English), also known as a movie house, cinema hall, picture house, picture theater, the movies, the pictures, or simply theater, is a business ...

renovated in 2006 with 170 seats * Heimatstube Schönholthausen (museum)

Buildings

File:Kirche Schliprüthen-2.jpg, St. Georg in Schliprüthen File:Pfarrkirche Mariä Himmelfaht, Schönholthausen, Südostansicht.jpg, Mariä Himmelfahrt in Schönholthausen File:Matthiaskapelle im Winter.jpg, Matthiaskapelle in Altfinnentrop File:Haus Bamenohl-Haupthaus.jpg, Haus Bamenohl File:Schloss Ahausen-4.jpg, Schloss Ahausen File:Wasserschloss Lenhausen (7648999282).jpg, Schloss Lenhausen * ''St. Georg''

hall church A hall church is a Church (building), church with a nave and aisles of approximately equal height. In England, Flanders and the Netherlands, it is covered by parallel roofs, typically, one for each vessel, whereas in Germany there is often one s ...

in (Schliprüthen), dating from before the 12th century * Romanesque

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

parish church ''Mariä Himmelfahrt'' in Schönholthausen, dating in parts from the 13th century * Matthiaskapelle chapel in Altfinnentrop from 1383 *

Haus Bamenohl Haus Bamenohl is a castle in the village of Bamenohl, municipality of Finnentrop, Olpe (district), Olpe district in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. History 14th to 17th century The first owner of the Haus Bamenohl was probably the family ''vo ...

castle in Bamenohl (14th century) * Schloss Ahausen castle close to Heggen * Schloss Lenhausen castle in Lenhausen (13th century) * Reiterstellwerk ( historic signal box)

Regular events

Schützenfest A Schützenfest (, '' marksmen's festival'') is a traditional festival or fair featuring a target shooting competition in the cultures of Switzerland, Germany, Austria and the Netherlands. At a Schützenfest, contestants compete based on thei ...

(marksmen's festival) in the larger villages * Prunksitzung by the Lenhausen Carnival Club (LCC) (revue, Saturday before ''Altweibertag'' – Old Women's Day) * Prunksitzung by the Festkommitee Finnentroper Karneval (revue) * Waldfest “Im Schee” Finnentrop (“forest festival”, weekend before

Whitsun Whitsun (also Whitsunday or Whit Sunday) is the name used in Britain, and other countries among Anglicans and Methodists, for the Christian holy day of Pentecost. It falls on the seventh Sunday after Easter and commemorates the descent of the H ...

) * Spritzenfest of the fire station Bamenohl (second weekend in August) *

Open-air concert A music festival is a community event with performances of singing and instrument playing that is often presented with a theme such as musical genre (e.g., rock, blues, folk, jazz, classical music), nationality, locality of musicians, or holi ...

at Haus Bamenohl (third weekend in August) * Bürger

frühschoppen ''Frühschoppen'' (, meaning: an alcoholic drink before midday in company) is the German and Austrian tradition of meeting up at a pub, inn, or tavern in the late morning, usually on Sundays. The specific customs vary from region to region. ''Früh ...

of the fire brigade on

German Unity Day German Unity Day (, ) is the national day of Germany, celebrated on 3 October as a public holiday. It commemorates German Reunification in 1990 when the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) joined the Federal Republic of Germany (West Ger ...

Christmas market A Christmas market is a street market associated with the celebration of Christmas during the four weeks of Advent. These markets originated in Germany, but are now held in many countries. Some in the U.S. have Phono-semantic matching, adapted ...

at the town hall (second weekend in

Advent Advent is a season observed in most Christian denominations as a time of waiting and preparation for both the celebration of Jesus's birth at Christmas and the return of Christ at the Second Coming. It begins on the fourth Sunday before Chri ...

)

Economy and infrastructure

Among the nationally known companies in Finnentrop are Eibach (automotive springs), Metten Fleischwaren (meat processing) and a plant of ThyssenKrupp Steel Europe AG.

Transport

Finnentrop station is situated at the

Ruhr–Sieg railway The Ruhr–Sieg railway is a 106 km long double-track, electrified main line from Hagen Central Station, Hagen to Siegen station, Siegen via Iserlohn-Letmathe, Finnentrop station, Finnentrop and Kreuztal station, Kreuztal in the German state ...

, from where the Bigge Valley Railway connects to Olpe. The Attendorn-Finnentrop aerodrome is situated close to the village of Heggen.

Public institutions

* Rathaus Finnentrop (town hall) * Erlebnisbad Finto (

natatorium A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, paddling pool, or simply pool, is a structure designed to hold water to enable swimming and associated activities. Pools can be built into the ground (in-ground pools) or built above ground (as a ...

) * Jugendherberge Bamenohl (Germany's first private

youth hostel A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory sleeping 4–20 people, with shared use of a lounge and usually a kitchen. Rooms can be private or shared - mixe ...

after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

) * Jugendherberge Heggen (

hostel A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory sleeping 4–20 people, with shared use of a lounge and usually a kitchen. Rooms can be private or shared - mixe ...

* Finnentrop volunteer fire brigade with eleven fire stations

Education

There are six

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

s, one

Hauptschule A ''Hauptschule'' (, "general school") is a secondary school in Germany, starting after four years of elementary schooling (''Grundschule''), which offers Lower Secondary Education (Level 2) according to the International Standard Classification ...

, one

Realschule Real school (, ) is a type of secondary school in Germany, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It has also existed in Croatia (''realna gimnazija''), the Austrian Empire, the German Empire, Denmark and Norway (''realskole''), Sweden (''realskola''), F ...

and one

Gesamtschule A comprehensive school is a secondary school for pupils aged 11–16 or 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is restricted on the basis ...

Famous people

Honorary citizens

* Erwin Oberkalkofen, former mayor * Ernst Vollmer, former municipality director

Sons and daughters of the municipality

* Gertrud von Plettenberg († 1608),

Mistress Mistress is the feminine form of the English word "master" (''master'' + ''-ess'') and may refer to: Romance and relationships * Mistress (lover), a female lover of a married man ** Royal mistress * Maîtresse-en-titre, official mistress of a ...

Ernest of Bavaria Wittelsbach- Hapsburg aristocrat Ernest of Bavaria () (17 December 1554 – 17 February 1612) was Prince-Elector-Archbishop of the Archbishopric of Cologne and, as such, Archchancellor of the Holy Roman Empire and Duke of Westphalia, from 158 ...

Prince-elector The prince-electors ( pl. , , ) were the members of the Electoral College of the Holy Roman Empire, which elected the Holy Roman Emperor. Usually, half of the electors were archbishops. From the 13th century onwards, a small group of prince- ...

archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

of the Archbishopric of Cologne * Friedrich Georg Pape (1763−1816), one of the first German democrats * Johann Joseph Freidhoff (1768−1818), engraver * Alexander Haindorf (1784–1862), doctor, Jewish reformer, psychologist, university lecturer * Eduard Bartling (1845−1927), entrepreneur and politician * Lawrence Becker (1869–1947), lawyer and judge who served as

Solicitor of the United States Treasury The Solicitor of the Treasury position was created in the United States Department of the Treasury by an act of May 29, 1830 , which changed the name of the Agent of the Treasury. Function The Solicitor of the Treasury served as legal advisor to t ...

* Henry M. Arens (1873−1963), original name ''Heinrich Martin Arens'', politician who served in many offices in

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

, including the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

* Josef Baumhoff (1887−1962), German official, newspaper publisher and politician * Kilian Kirchhoff (1892–1944), priest, translator and dissident * Erich Feldmann (1929−1998), Priester, Kirchenhistoriker und Augustinusforscher * Klaus-Dieter Uelhoff (born 1936), politician, member of the

Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet (assembly), Diet") is the lower house of the Germany, German Federalism in Germany, federal parliament. It is the only constitutional body of the federation directly elected by the German people. The Bundestag wa ...

Reinhard Wilhelm Reinhard Wilhelm (born June 5, 1946) is a German computer scientist. Life and work Wilhelm was born in , today part of the municipality of Finnentrop, Westphalia. He studied math, physics and mathematical logic at University of Münster and co ...

(born 1946), scientist * Paul Scheermann (born 1949), soccer player * Hilde Mattheis (born 1954), politician, member of the

Famous people who have worked in the municipality

* John A. Roebling (1806−1869), original name ''Johann August Röbling'', civil engineer, designer of the

Brooklyn Bridge The Brooklyn Bridge is a cable-stayed suspension bridge in New York City, spanning the East River between the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn. Opened on May 24, 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge was the first fixed crossing of the East River. It w ...

* Johannes Dornseiffer (1837−1914), priest, co-founder of many savings and loan companies connected with

Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen (30 March 1818 – 11 March 1888) was a German mayor and cooperative pioneer. Several credit union systems and cooperative banks have been named after Raiffeisen, who pioneered rural credit unions. Life Friedrich Wilh ...

* Hermann Hagedorn, (1884–1951), German writer, lyric poet and teacher * Angela Maria Autsch (1900−1944), nun of the

Trinitarian Order The Trinitarians, formally known as the Order of the Most Holy Trinity and of the Captives (; abbreviated OSsT), is a mendicant order of the Catholic Church for men founded in Cerfroid, outside Paris, in the late 12th century. From the very ou ...

, was murdered in the

Auschwitz concentration camp Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 Nazi concentration camps, concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany, occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) d ...

Artists

* Andreas Schmidt, film actor and theatre director based out of

Kreuzberg Kreuzberg () is a district of Berlin, Germany. It is part of the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg borough located south of Berlin-Mitte, Mitte. During the Cold War era, it was one of the poorest areas of West Berlin, but since German reunification in ...

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

References

External links

* {{Authority control Olpe (district)