April in Hannover, Germany

2000

The family of Carl Sommer (immigrated to Brookfield, Wisconsin in 1858) had deep roots in the area of Schoeningen, Hannover, Germany. Carl married his wife Wilhelmine Thies in Schoeningen. The town of Schoeningen has a history as a center of religious life and as a mining community (salt and coal.) Prehistoric man lived and thrived in the area. More recently, the West German town of Schoeningen was at the border between East and West, with the Wall between the two sections of Germany a few kilometers away. Schoeningen also was a center of resistance to National Socialism. In our visit to the town, we met a woman whose grandfather had simply disappeared during the 1930's; very recently, Soviet documents revealed that he had been starved to death in a concentration camp.

Our visit to Schoeningen was preceded by a few hours in the capital city of Hannover. The center of this lovely and historic town was easily navigated on foot, once we got our bearings!

The palace of George V of Hannover was the residence of this king in 1858 when Carl and Mina Sommer left Germany.

These were typical views of the river running through the old city of Hannover in early spring, 2000.

The town of Schoeningen, Hannover, was busy and appears to be thriving. The impending closure of the open pit coal mines, with impact on the power plant nearby, threatens prosperity. A few buildings down the street from our hotel, and a tavern window decorated with nostalgic figures, and a poster for the St. Lawrence Church Easter fire to be held a few weeks after our visit. More pictures of Schoeningen will be linked to this page soon.

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