Journey back to 1859. That’s when the Geestemünde Friedhof was established in Bremerhaven. It became the sole cemetery for Geestemünde within the Province of Hanover.
For centuries the graveyard of the Marienkirche sufficed. It served around 350 residents of Geestendorf. But Geestemünde grew rapidly after 1845. Its harbors caused the population to quadruple within a few years. By 1846 it had 1500 residents. The Landdrostei Stade rejected expansion of the cemetery at the Marienkirche due to costs.
Twelve years later in 1858 the church board petitioned. It asked the Royal Consistory in Stade to approve a new cemetery. Approval came quickly because the church community would bear the costs. They purchased ten pieces of farmland east of Geestemünde for 9000 gold talers.
Tragically on May 14 1859 Pastor Georg Plaß died. He passed the day before the official dedication of the Geestemünde Friedhof. Plaß had advocated for a new cemetery for years. The community buried him on May 18.
Initially funeral processions from Geestemünde’s Paschviertel had to take a detour. They weren’t allowed to proceed directly to the new cemetery. They had to go around the Marienkirche via Georgstraße. An order from the district administrator ended this custom in 1890.
Despite its distance the location in the open countryside proved wise. It allowed for expansions northward in 1892 and southward in 1905 and 1908. Only hereditary burials and row burials were planned. People from Bremerhaven and Lehe could only be buried in Geestemünde in exceptional cases.
Initially burials were difficult. There was no mortuary or cemetery chapel. The nearby hospital built in 1869 was too small. The new Geestemünde Hospital on Hartwigstraße had a mortuary. The Geestemünde community also used it. Until 1930 domestic laying-out was common despite housing shortages.
The community wanted a chapel with a mortuary. It had been planned for years. In July 1923 Geestemünde’s magistrate approached the church board. They wanted to municipalize the cemetery. In return they promised a mortuary. This would lower transport costs from the hospital to the cemetery. Negotiations were fruitless. Geestemünde and Lehe united to form the city of Wesermünde in 1924.
The community contacted the magistrate in April 1927. The new building regulations meant enormous road construction costs for a chapel. Mayor Walter Delius intervened. In late April 1930 agreements were made. The church board commissioned architect Wilhelm Allers to design a cemetery chapel. It was dedicated on December 22 1931.
The chapel secured the continued existence of the cemeteries. It also demonstrated the independence of the church community. A central cemetery project behind the Bismarck Tower was abandoned. However funds for redesigning the cemetery were lacking.
Franz Siebold a cemetery planner transformed the cemetery. He also beautified it within two years. The small administration building opposite the main entrance was built in 1937. Wesermünde and Bremerhaven merged in November 1939. It occurred after the invasion of Poland.
The chapel and its garden setting are formal. The chapel’s structure may reference the Marienkirche. The proximity to Brick Expressionism is evident. Above the entrance’s doors is the inscription “Jesus speaks: I live and you shall also live”.
In 1938 the Musterfriedhofsanlage was completed. It aimed to renew the design of gravestones. Individual graves lay side by side without separation. Lawn and uniform ivy hills dominated the entire site.
Today memorial sites honor those who fell. These include those in World War I and World War II. There are memorials to those expelled from their homelands. Also remembered are victims of ship disasters. This hallowed ground at Geestemünde Friedhof echoes with stories. They tell tales of life loss and remembrance.