Gescher is a municipality in the district of Borken, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located near the border with the Netherlands. It is most often known for its bell work, and it includes a Museum of Bells.

Gescher
Townhall of Gescher
Townhall of Gescher
Flag of Gescher
Coat of arms of Gescher
Location of Gescher within Borken district
Borken (district)North Rhine-WestphaliaKleve (district)Wesel (district)Coesfeld (district)Coesfeld (district)Lower SaxonySteinfurt (district)NetherlandsRaesfeldHeidenRhedeBocholtBorkenRekenVelenStadtlohnHeekAhausGescherLegdenSchöppingenGronauVredenSüdlohnIsselburg
Gescher is located in Germany
Gescher
Gescher
Gescher is located in North Rhine-Westphalia
Gescher
Gescher
Coordinates: 51°57′25″N 7°0′20″E / 51.95694°N 7.00556°E / 51.95694; 7.00556
CountryGermany
StateNorth Rhine-Westphalia
Admin. regionMünster
DistrictBorken
Subdivisions6
Government
 • Mayor (2020–25) Anne Kortüm[1] (Ind.)
Area
 • Total
80.78 km2 (31.19 sq mi)
Elevation
59 m (194 ft)
Population
 (2023-12-31)[2]
 • Total
17,467
 • Density220/km2 (560/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC 01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC 02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes
48712
Dialling codes02542
02863 (Hochmoor)
Vehicle registrationBOR
Websitewww.gescher.de

Geography

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Gescher is surrounded by farming communities and can be seen as more of a rural town.

Farming Communities and Suburbs

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Farming Communities and suburbs belonging to Gescher include:

  • Harwick
  • Estern
  • Büren
  • Tungerloh-Capellen
  • Tungerloh-Pröbsting
  • Hochmoor

Location

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Gescher is located in the western half of the Regierungsbezirk, Münsterland. It finds itself within the District of Borken, just to the south of Stadtlohn. To the east lies the District of Coesfeld, and the Dutch border can be found to the west.

The river, Berkel runs through Gescher and used to be used extensively to deliver goods between Dutch towns and Münster.

History

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The early history of Gescher starts as a connecting stop on a postal route running from Muenster to the Netherlands. In 1570, Gescher suffered an enormous village-wide fire that destroyed the entire town. During the time of reconstruction, many looters came over from the Netherlands to take advantage of the unfortunate situation. After the Second World War, Gescher was under the control of Mr. Ball and the British sovereignty in Germany. Gescher was under the authority of Kreis Coesfeld up until 1975 when Gescher was pulled into Kreis Borken.

Population Changes over the Years

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Population Changes 1834-2002
Year Population
1834 3,784
1846 3,807
1849 3,790
1855 3,876
1858 3,806
1864 4,002
1871 3,912
1885 3,962
Year Population
1890 4,048
1900 4,206
1905 4,486
1914 5,219
1926 5,943
1939 7,223
1950 10,177
1961 10,795
Year Population
1981 14,397
1990 15,092
1995 16,154
2000 16,851
2005 17,146
2010 17,164
2011 16,869
2012 16,889

Local council (Rat)

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Elections in 2014: Vote share and seats

  • CDU 41,7 %=14 seats
  • SPD 24,2 %= 8 seats
  • UWG 14,6 %= 5 seats
  • The Greens 13,1 %= 5 seats
  • FDP 6,3 %= 2 seats
  • Total 34 seats

Infrastructure

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Transportation

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Private

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The Bundesautobahn 31 connects Gescher with the Ruhr Region and the North Sea.

The Bundesstrasse 525 connects Gescher with the Dutch border and Nottuln/Bundesautobahn 43.

Public

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Westfalenbus operates a few scheduled bus services through Gescher:

Line Route
R51 Coesfeld - GescherHochmoor - VelenBorken - Rhede - Bocholt
R61 Vreden - Stadtlohn - Gescher - Hochmoor - Coesfeld
776 Ahaus - Gescher - Hochmoor
N7 Stadtlohn - Gescher - Rosendahl - Billerbeck - Havixbeck - Münster
Rail
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Up until 1985, Gescher was on the railroad offering services between Empel and Muenster. The old train station building can still be seen on the southside of Gescher.

The closest general aviation airport is Stadtlohn-Vreden Airport, located about 15 kilometers from Gescher. The closest airport with scheduled commercial traffic is Münster Osnabrück Airport, which is located about 50 kilometers away from Gescher. A way bigger alternative is the Düsseldorf Airport, which is located about 85 kilometers from Gescher.

Sons and daughters of the city

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  • Heinrich Hörnemann (1906-1977), farmer and German politician (CDU), Member of Bundestag 1961-1969
  • Peter Schmidt (born 1944), German writer, multiple recipient (first and second place) of the Deutscher Krimi Preis
  • August Wessing (1880-1945), Catholic clergyman and NS victim, died in Dachau concentration camp
  • G. Mescher (2000), Naamgenoot van de stad

Photos

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References

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  1. ^ Wahlergebnisse in NRW Kommunalwahlen 2020, Land Nordrhein-Westfalen, accessed 19 June 2021.
  2. ^ "Bevölkerung der Gemeinden Nordrhein-Westfalens am 31. Dezember 2023 – Fortschreibung des Bevölkerungsstandes auf Basis des Zensus vom 9. Mai 2011" (in German). Landesbetrieb Information und Technik NRW. Retrieved 2024-06-20.
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