Amerika, Saxony
Encyclopedia
Amerika is a former company settlement
in the German
Free State of Saxony and a district of the town of Penig
.
As a small village of 79 residents (2010), it is known merely for its name, the German
word for America, which was given to it in the 19th century. In 1836, a spinning factory was built on a the left bank of the river Zwickauer Mulde
. Houses for workers and clerks were built in 1870. Initially, because a bridge was only built much later, workers and visitors coming from the right bank of the river had to cross the water using stepping stones or boats to access the place. As "crossing the big water" in those times was chiefly understood as emigrating to America, the factory was named "Amerika" by the local population. The name became official when in 1876 (incidentally, the centennial of the United States of America) the village's railway station was named "Amerika".
The factory was closed in 1991. Amerika was part of Arnsdorf until 1993 and, together with the latter, became part of Penig
in 1994. In 1995, the town of Penig bought the buildings from the Treuhandanstalt, and new trades and a museum (including workshops of locksmiths and file cutters, powered by a refurbished water turbine) have been established since.
Company town
A company town is a town or city in which much or all real estate, buildings , utilities, hospitals, small businesses such as grocery stores and gas stations, and other necessities or luxuries of life within its borders are owned by a single company...
in the German
States of Germany
Germany is made up of sixteen which are partly sovereign constituent states of the Federal Republic of Germany. Land literally translates as "country", and constitutionally speaking, they are constituent countries...
Free State of Saxony and a district of the town of Penig
Penig
Penig is a town in the district of Mittelsachsen, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Zwickauer Mulde, 19 km northwest of Chemnitz. Penig housed a concentration camp during World War II....
.
As a small village of 79 residents (2010), it is known merely for its name, the German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
word for America, which was given to it in the 19th century. In 1836, a spinning factory was built on a the left bank of the river Zwickauer Mulde
Zwickauer Mulde
The Zwickauer Mulde is a river in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is the left tributary of the Mulde and 166 km in length.The source of the river is in the Ore Mountains, near Schöneck, in the Vogtlandkreis. It runs northeast to Aue, then northwest to Zwickau , and further north through...
. Houses for workers and clerks were built in 1870. Initially, because a bridge was only built much later, workers and visitors coming from the right bank of the river had to cross the water using stepping stones or boats to access the place. As "crossing the big water" in those times was chiefly understood as emigrating to America, the factory was named "Amerika" by the local population. The name became official when in 1876 (incidentally, the centennial of the United States of America) the village's railway station was named "Amerika".
The factory was closed in 1991. Amerika was part of Arnsdorf until 1993 and, together with the latter, became part of Penig
Penig
Penig is a town in the district of Mittelsachsen, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Zwickauer Mulde, 19 km northwest of Chemnitz. Penig housed a concentration camp during World War II....
in 1994. In 1995, the town of Penig bought the buildings from the Treuhandanstalt, and new trades and a museum (including workshops of locksmiths and file cutters, powered by a refurbished water turbine) have been established since.