Walk through Ottensen with the Hamburg Greeters

A village north of the Elbe
Long before Ottensen was incorporated into Altona in 1890 as the largest village in Prussia (and fell to Hamburg in 1938 together with Altona), it was a rather tranquil village with a handful of farms on the Geestrücken above the river. The network of paths of this village can still be seen today in the narrow streets of Ottensen. The area belonged to the Danish royal house since 1640 due to inheritance disputes.

The railroad comes
In 1844, the Danes built a railroad line on the border between Altona and Ottensen,  which led from Kiel to the Elbe. From the terminal station (parts of which are still preserved in today’s Altona Town Hall), goods were brought from Copenhagen over an inclined plane to the Danish free port in Neumühlen, from where they were shipped across the North Sea. The village of Ottensen became interesting for small trades (fish processing, glass blowers, cigar makers).

A border with Altona emerges
Because wealthy merchants from Altona had supported German efforts for freedom in Schleswig-Holstein, Altona was excluded from the Danish customs union “as a punishment”. Now trade flourished in Ottensen without Altona’s competition, and smuggling across the customs border also flourished. Only after the German-Danish War of 1864 did the area fall to Prussia.

Rampant production
After Ottensen came to Prussia and now belonged to the German Customs Union, the first factories of iron processing emerged. The company Menck & Hambrock employed up to 2000 workers in the production of steam pile drivers and excavators. Employment figures fluctuated by up to 40% from week to week, depending on the order situation, because the company could dismiss its workers without notice in the evening of each day.

Gulash Cannon and Propellers
The inventor and tinkerer Theodor Zeise founded an iron foundry in Ottensen and produced a mobile field kitchen, the so-called goulash cannon, for the army. His son Alfred refined the production of ship propellers. Ship’s propellers up to 9 m in diameter could be produced at 6 locations in the district. The individual parts of the plant were connected by an industrial railroad.

Structural change and gentrification
Although world market leader in the 60s, Zeise was no longer competitive in the 70s. The halls stood empty for a long time or were demolished. There were plans to erect gigantic new buildings on the now empty factory sites. But citizens’ initiatives managed to keep their playgrounds and some open spaces. The creative media industry moved into other industrial buildings and brought about considerable structural change in the neighborhood (“gentrification”).

Not only the moths
When the iron industry left the district at the end of the 1970s, some city planners dreamed of demolishing the entire area on a large scale and erecting residential towers of up to 20 stories here. Great misery was associated with the district: For example, 130 years ago, many glassblowers in their cramped living quarters suffered from tuberculosis, colloquially known as “the moths.” Tuberculosis victims had holes in their lungs, like a piece of cloth eaten away by moths. From this derives the popular name “Mottenburg” (moth castle) for Ottensen.

From the redevelopment area to a hip district
Nothing came of the planned area redevelopment. Many students or families of foreign workers moved into the cheap apartments of the old working-class district, and some gaps between buildings were closed by new buildings. But the change from a redevelopment area to one of the hottest districts of Hamburg is also related to the fact that unusual things could be preserved.

A chicken yard in the middle of the city
“Die Motte” is an initiative in a former chocolate factory for children, youth and adult work. Behind it is a chicken yard, right between the daycare center and the neighborhood garden. Families often stop here on their way to the playground to watch the animals. Those who are lucky can also get eggs in the morning.