zur Erinnerung an die Straßenbahn Sculpture

Were the streets of Steele ever silent? Here at the zur Erinnerung an die Straßenbahn Sculpture, we find a piece of track, a silent testament to a time when the rumble of trams filled the air. The zur Erinnerung an die Straßenbahn Sculpture is more than just a piece of old track. It’s a tribute to over 80 years of Steele’s tramway history. It honors the countless passengers who relied on this form of transportation. Werner von Siemens developed the world’s first tramway in Berlin in 1881. This innovation made affordable and easily constructed inner-city transportation a reality, extending its reach to suburbs like Steele. Starting in 1897, three companies laid tracks across Steele. They created a network that reached every corner of the town, all sharing a standard one-meter gauge. The Bochum-Gelsenkirchen Tramway Company, or BOGESTRA, reached Steele first on October 23, 1897. Their line ran from Gelsenkirchen through Kray. Their terminus was in what’s now Dreiringstraße. By 1899, the South German Railway Company’s Essen Tramway also connected to Steele. They even had to negotiate an agreement with BOGESTRA to share the tracks. More lines followed. By 1907, Steele’s tram network was complete, forming a loop through the city center. This network served Steele for nearly 80 years, enduring until the town’s renovation in the 1970s. The tracks saw heavy use, especially during and after the World Wars. The line connecting Kray, Steele, Wuppertal, and Remscheid carried vital coal supplies. Freight trains would rumble through Steele at night, delivering coal to homes and industries. The strain of the freight traffic and wartime neglect eventually took its toll. The final tram journey through downtown Steele occurred on May 29, 1977. The tracks were rerouted to a new transportation hub at the Essen-Steele S-Bahn station. Today, only hooks on building walls, where the overhead lines once attached, hint at the tram’s extensive past. The zur Erinnerung an die Straßenbahn Sculpture serves as a permanent reminder. It stands as a physical memory of a bygone era, a time when the rhythm of the city was set by the clang of the tram.