Welcome to Schneverdingen
Schneverdingen
Schneverdingen is located in the administrative district Soltau-Fallingbostel which is located in the middle of Hamburg, Bremen and Hannover. The small towns Ehrhorn, Großenwede, Heber, Insel, Langeloh, Lünzen, Schülern, Wesseloh, Wintermoor and Zahrensen belong to Schneverdingen. More than 30% of Schneverdingen’s 234 km² area is a part of the nature reserve Lüneburger Heide.
History
Schneverdingen was mentioned for the first time in 1231, when the bishop Iso von Verden forced the appointee Lippold von Zahrenhusen to renounce the bailiwick "Snewordinge". Reminiscent of those old days is also the bronze baptismal fond from the 14th century in the Protestant-Lutheran church which was built in 1746.
Life in Schneverdingen was characterized for a long time by agriculture on the poor land and the animal husbandry of the smallholders. In the middle of the 19th century the handicraft became an important economy branch. Of importance was the stitching leather for the production of shoes. More than three hundred shoemakers produced shoes and boots during the heyday of the boot making. As a consequence of the structural change in this branch, nowadays there is only one company which still produces shoes.
After the Second World War, Schneverdingen turned from an idyllic village to a lively small town. Since the population grew very fast, there was a growth of economy which led to a considerable improvement of infrastructure. Since 1972 Schneverdingen has been a governmentally accepted climactic spa and in 1976 Schneverdingen received its town charter.
Nowadays the townscape is characterized by 1000 companies which represent handicraft, business and service and which provide 4000 jobs. On the 1st October 2007 the population in Schneverdingen was 19,186. Moreover, Schneverdingen has a twin town in Poland (Barlinek since 1995) and another one in Sweden (Eksjö since 2001).
Tourism
Due to the unique landscape around Schneverdingen, tourism is a broad and important economical factor. Every year about 200,000 overnight stays and one million guests are counted. There are 2,400 beds in hotels, guest houses and holiday flats. Furthermore, there is a wide variety of food at many different restaurants. .
Nature
Schneverdingen is surrounded by heath areas, silent swamps, forests, fields and pastures, through which you can walk on marked tracks. At one time the area had been an exercise area for the British military, but was restored nearly to its original state. After the military had left the area, it was built with new path networks for hiking, cycling and horse riding. If one does not want to be guided through the area, there are independent paths called learning-paths. The heath-garden with its 140 different types of heather, is located in the recreation area "Höpen" close to the town, as well as the swamp Pietzmoor.
The Alfred Toepfer academy for conservation (NNA) is located on Möhrs yard and is an international place for further education and meeting concerning conservation.
Free time and culture
For both the inhabitants and the guests there are many possibilities to engage in free time. The offer reaches from the bath "Heidjers Wohl" and the open air bath ”Quellenbad” to a large sports centre where all kinds of sports are offered. Furthermore there is a ballroom and some other parish houses. More than 100 associations arrange different parties and events. A meeting place for young people is the youth recreation centre FZB ("Freizeitbegegnungsstätte"). Moreover, in Schneverdingen there is a library, a music school and different churchly and social institutions.
The museum of local history "De Theeshof" is a typical north German yard. On the one hand it gives some knowledge about the native district and on the other hand there are arranged exhibitions, readings and plays. In addition to this, in Insel you can visit a school museum ("Pult- und Federkielmuseum") where the old school life from the past is shown.
"Heideblütenfest" (heathblossom festival)
The Heideblütenfest is an annual festival which occurs during the last weekend in August. The festival was celebrated for the first time on the 16th July 1922. At that time the festival was called "the white rose festival" and was celebrated unsteadily until the outbreak of the Second World War. In the year 1936 the name was changed to "Heideblütenfest" and since 1948 the festival has occurred annually.
During the festival one can admire beautiful fireworks on Saturday evening. On Sunday afternoon a pageant is performed from the station to the "Höpen", where a play is shown and afterwards the new heath-queen is crowned who represents Schneverdingen for one year.
Schneverdingen is located in the administrative district Soltau-Fallingbostel which is located in the middle of Hamburg, Bremen and Hannover. The small towns Ehrhorn, Großenwede, Heber, Insel, Langeloh, Lünzen, Schülern, Wesseloh, Wintermoor and Zahrensen belong to Schneverdingen. More than 30% of Schneverdingen’s 234 km² area is a part of the nature reserve Lüneburger Heide.
History
Life in Schneverdingen was characterized for a long time by agriculture on the poor land and the animal husbandry of the smallholders. In the middle of the 19th century the handicraft became an important economy branch. Of importance was the stitching leather for the production of shoes. More than three hundred shoemakers produced shoes and boots during the heyday of the boot making. As a consequence of the structural change in this branch, nowadays there is only one company which still produces shoes.
After the Second World War, Schneverdingen turned from an idyllic village to a lively small town. Since the population grew very fast, there was a growth of economy which led to a considerable improvement of infrastructure. Since 1972 Schneverdingen has been a governmentally accepted climactic spa and in 1976 Schneverdingen received its town charter.
Nowadays the townscape is characterized by 1000 companies which represent handicraft, business and service and which provide 4000 jobs. On the 1st October 2007 the population in Schneverdingen was 19,186. Moreover, Schneverdingen has a twin town in Poland (Barlinek since 1995) and another one in Sweden (Eksjö since 2001).
Tourism
Due to the unique landscape around Schneverdingen, tourism is a broad and important economical factor. Every year about 200,000 overnight stays and one million guests are counted. There are 2,400 beds in hotels, guest houses and holiday flats. Furthermore, there is a wide variety of food at many different restaurants. .
Nature
Schneverdingen is surrounded by heath areas, silent swamps, forests, fields and pastures, through which you can walk on marked tracks. At one time the area had been an exercise area for the British military, but was restored nearly to its original state. After the military had left the area, it was built with new path networks for hiking, cycling and horse riding. If one does not want to be guided through the area, there are independent paths called learning-paths. The heath-garden with its 140 different types of heather, is located in the recreation area "Höpen" close to the town, as well as the swamp Pietzmoor.
The Alfred Toepfer academy for conservation (NNA) is located on Möhrs yard and is an international place for further education and meeting concerning conservation.
Free time and culture
The museum of local history "De Theeshof" is a typical north German yard. On the one hand it gives some knowledge about the native district and on the other hand there are arranged exhibitions, readings and plays. In addition to this, in Insel you can visit a school museum ("Pult- und Federkielmuseum") where the old school life from the past is shown.
"Heideblütenfest" (heathblossom festival)
The Heideblütenfest is an annual festival which occurs during the last weekend in August. The festival was celebrated for the first time on the 16th July 1922. At that time the festival was called "the white rose festival" and was celebrated unsteadily until the outbreak of the Second World War. In the year 1936 the name was changed to "Heideblütenfest" and since 1948 the festival has occurred annually.
During the festival one can admire beautiful fireworks on Saturday evening. On Sunday afternoon a pageant is performed from the station to the "Höpen", where a play is shown and afterwards the new heath-queen is crowned who represents Schneverdingen for one year.
