Oevenum ( Fering: ''Ööwenem'', ) is a municipality on the island of

Föhr Föhr (; ''Fering'' North Frisian: ''Feer''; ) is one of the North Frisian Islands on the German coast of the North Sea. It is part of the Nordfriesland district in the federal state of Schleswig-Holstein. Föhr is the second-largest North Sea ...

, in the district of

Nordfriesland Nordfriesland (; ; Low German: Noordfreesland), also known as North Frisia, is the northernmost Districts of Germany, district of Germany, part of the state of Schleswig-Holstein. It includes almost all of traditional North Frisia (with the e ...

, in

Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; ; ; ; ; occasionally in English ''Sleswick-Holsatia'') is the Northern Germany, northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical Duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of S ...

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 ...

History

In 1796 23 houses in the neighbouring village of Nieblum were destroyed by a fire. Subsequently, a bell was installed atop Oevenum's school house to warn the people in case of fire. The bell was moreover rung in the morning and at noon and was also used as a means of alarm during

storm surge A storm surge, storm flood, tidal surge, or storm tide is a coastal flood or tsunami-like phenomenon of rising water commonly associated with low-pressure weather systems, such as cyclones. It is measured as the rise in water level above the ...

s. In 1882 Germany's first junior firefighters were recruited in Oevenum. Thus Oevenum's Junior Fire Service is presumably also the oldest of its kind in Europe. At the end of the

Franco-Prussian War The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...

in 1871 an oak tree was planted in Oevenum to celebrate the subsequent peace.

Homeland museum

In a former barn, a homeland museum has been established which documents life in general and the agricultural development on Föhr. You will also find information on navigating, the construction of sea

dikes Dyke or dike may refer to: General uses * Dyke (slang), a slang word meaning "lesbian" * Dike (geology), formations of magma or sediment that cut through and across the layering of adjacent rocks * Dike (mythology), ''Dikē'', the Greek goddess ...

and on the sea surrounding Föhr.

Politics

Since the communal elections of 2008, the ''Oevenumuer Wählergemeinschaft'' holds eight seats out of nine in the municipality council. A single candidate holds the other seat.

History

Homeland museum

Politics

Economy

References

External links