Siedlung Ziethenstraße

“A simple brick, a miner’s sweat.” That’s the essence of Siedlung Ziethenstraße. This small but significant settlement in Lünen tells a story of hard work, community, and transformation. Built in 1898, Siedlung Ziethenstraße provided housing for the miners of the Preußen colliery, which began operations in 1895. The Harpener Bergbau AG, which employed around 1,000 miners at its Preußen collieries in 1897, built these homes. Siedlung Ziethenstraße showcases the early days of worker housing in the Ruhr region. The houses, simple brick structures, stand in rows, a testament to practicality over extravagance. Each house could accommodate up to four families. Behind each house, across a small alley, stood a stable building. Deep front gardens and rows of plane trees added a touch of nature to the otherwise utilitarian landscape. Life in Siedlung Ziethenstraße wasn’t always easy. The housing standard was low. The surroundings were often in poor condition. Until the 1950s, families shared outhouses located along the stable alley. Imagine two families sharing one outhouse. This detail paints a vivid picture of the challenges faced by the residents. However, the Siedlung Ziethenstraße persevered. In 1984, students from Münster University of Applied Sciences demonstrated that the existing buildings could be adapted to modern living standards with minimal changes. This sparked public interest in preserving the settlement. Finally, in 1989, the Landesentwicklungsgesellschaft (LEG) NRW undertook a comprehensive renovation. The Siedlung Ziethenstraße stands today as a reminder of the area’s mining heritage. The Landesentwicklungsgesellschaft NRW now owns the settlement, a testament to its successful transformation. The renovated Siedlung Ziethenstraße offers a glimpse into the past, a story of resilience and adaptation, etched in brick and shadowed by the plane trees. It’s a story worth remembering, a tribute to the miners and their families who called this place home.