Leben mit Wasser in Calw

This city tour on the topic of "water" provides you with vivid examples of the diverse presence of this important life-giver in the past and present.

Living with water

Calw, with its location on the Nagold, has always been shaped and influenced by water. Over the years, Calw's townscape has been greatly changed by the power of water as a design element. The destructive effect on the city and the usable energy potential should be made clear, the river should be shown as a transport route and finally the efforts of the people of Calw to ensure a good drinking water supply and disposal of wastewater in the history of the city should be shown.

1st central bus station (ZOB): Fountain

The fountain at the Central Bus Station at Bischofstraße 10 consists of various motifs on the theme of "Bishop". A cart, a bishop and various other symbols and signs adorn the fountain. According to legend, the Bishop of Verdun passed through the valley in 1077 and was held for ransom at Calw Castle. According to another interpretation, the name comes from "Büsch nuff", as the slope was densely covered with bushes before the railroad was built. A spring rises near the ZOB. This flows into the Nagold.

In Hermann Hesse's youth, the spring was collected in a cellar there. His father Johannes sent his son down there to fetch fresh spring water when he was tired of the water from the house pipes (which were made of lead). Hermann Hesse describes this in his memoirs of his youth.

2nd Nikolaus Bridge: The Nagold

The Nagold rises from a spring near Urnagold (municipality of Seewald) and flows into the Enz in Pforzheim city center. The Nagold is 92 kilometers long and has a catchment area of approx. 1,150 square kilometers. It has always been of great importance to Calw: it supplied drinking water for humans, animals and plants, washing and service water for domestic use and many (pre-)industrial operations such as the tannery. In the past, the Nagold used its water power to drive mills and sawmills; today it is used to generate electricity. The Nagold also has an important function as a habitat for animals and plants. The most important tributaries are the Waldach, Teinach and Würm.

Water power from the Nagold

A run-of-river power plant located above the Nikolausbrücke bridge in the middle of Calw generates electrical energy. The water of the Nagold drives a generator with an output of 220 kilowatts (kW) via a Kaplan turbine. This generates one million kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity per year without carbon dioxide emissions. The newly constructed power plant building also houses the switchgear for Calw's electricity supply.Amazing: in 1910, electric lights were switched on in Calw homes for the first time.

3rd Nikolausbrücke: Rafting and flooding

Rafting in Calw

Rafting shaped the town until the opening of the railroad line in 1872. The last raft passed through Calw in 1911. Logs 20 to 30 meters long (also known as Dutchmen) were transported to collection points in the lowlands of the Nagold and Enz rivers. The mighty fir and spruce trunks from the northern Black Forest were tied into rafts up to 200 meters long and floated down the Nagold and Enz rivers to the Neckar. From here, the journey continued along the Rhine to the Netherlands, where the raw material from the Black Forest found a ready market. Thanks to rafting and the cloth trade, Calw became a well-known and wealthy trading town in the 19th century. Palais Vischer in Bischofstraße, which now houses the town museum, is still a sign of this wealth today.

Calw at risk of flooding

Calw's geographical location in the narrow valley of the Nagold favors flood events and is a constant reason for Calw to take precautions.

Chronology of severe flood events:

1472: Main altar of the Marienkapelle am Brühl was submerged in water.

1613: 20 people "miserably taken away and drowned".

1633: Upper bridge torn away except for two arches, Ledergasse 2.5 cubits under water, corpses washed away from the Brühl cemetery, the Schießbach tears a large hole in the city wall, it is converted into a small salt marsh.

1740: St. Nicholas Bridge severely damaged, two wooden bridges washed away.

1824: Two days of rain, two stone bridges and 132 private buildings damaged.

1851: Heavy thunderstorm, 3,000 rafts pile up in front of the Nikolausbrücke, nine dead, followed by a typhus epidemic. The raftsmen from the Nagold and Enz valleys worked for weeks to tie up the rafts again.

Further severe floods followed in the 19th and 20th centuries. Because of these dangers, the houses along the Nagold had no cellars. There were rented cellars

were located on the slopes, mainly on the Gäus side of the Nagold

4th Hermann Hesse Square: Hermann Hesse Fountain

The fountain on the small square was renamed the "Hermann Hesse Fountain" in 1920 by a decision of the local council, but was later moved to the vicinity of the Brühl and reinstalled in its old location during the city's renovation in the 1970s. On Hesse's 70th birthday in 1947, the square itself was also named after the 1946 Nobel Prize winner. He donated part of the prize money from the Nobel Prize to the town of Calw for the care of the poor and schools.

Hermann Hesse was in Calw for the last time in 1931, accompanied by his eldest son Bruno Hesse. The poet did not answer questions about his youthful memories, instead describing the experiences of one of his novel characters, the tramp Knulp - a lifelong wanderer like the poet.

5th Tannery Museum: Tannery in Calw

Tanning is not possible without water. Alongside cloth-making, tanning has been one of the most important trades in the town of Calw since the 15th century. The tanners mainly settled along the Nagold, as they needed plenty of water for the tanning process. The hides were hung in the Nagold and soaked there. The waste water was also discharged directly into the river. It was probably a foul-smelling business, which is why the tanners were not exactly among the most popular craftsmen.

Tip: Visit the tannery museum (formerly the Balz white tannery), Badstraße 7/1, telephone 07051 3751, www.calw.de/Gerbereimuseum

Open: April to October, Sundays 2-5 p.m.

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On the first floor and in a brick extension on the Nagold are the water workshops with historical machines. The rooms on the second floor were used as a hide room and a dressing room when the tannery was set up. Today, the dry processing of hides and skins and their measurement is shown here. Exhibition rooms were set up on the second floor of the front building. They offer opportunities for temporary exhibitions and are to be integrated into the museum. There is also a cafeteria and a museum store.

Market square: the market fountains

The two market fountains were first mentioned in 1523. The fountains were probably given their current appearance in 1686. The water was supplied via so-called Teuchel pipes until around 1877. The fountains were also used as water reservoirs for firefighting.Unfortunately, the water was not enough to contain the major town fires in 1634 and 1692.

6th lower market fountain

The four-spout, octagonal fountain in front of the town hall, which was renovated in 1842 and whose lion holds the Württemberg coat of arms, was part of the town's former drinking water supply along with 19 other public fountains. There was a fountain regulation that not only regulated the distribution of water, but also contained rules to prevent contamination of the water. Compliance with the regulations was monitored by a well master or the city guard. Violations were severely punished.
The fountain was renovated in 2021.

7th upper market fountain

In 1622, the stonemason Hans Kessler rebuilt the upper market fountain for 760 guilders. The fountain bears the year 1686 on its column and a lion holding the Württemberg and Calw coats of arms. The lion is not only the heraldic animal of Calw but also the shield bearer of the Duke of Württemberg's coat of arms.

8th Hessegarten: Hagbrunnen spring

On the 125th anniversary of the birth (2002) of the Calw-born poet Hermann Hesse, the spring and part of the once hollowed-out Hagbrünnlein were

Brought into daylight and designed as a garden (Hesse Garden).

There used to be six springs in Calw:

' Hafnerbrunnen (located to the east of the Nagold) - supplied the southern part of the town and the lower market fountain

' Walkmühlenbrunnen (Teuchelbrunnen) - supplied the northern part of Calw and the upper market fountain

' Wurstbrunnen - supplied the area around the Burgberg

' Bad-Brunnen/Hag-Brünnlein/Bischofsbrunnen - had only limited significance

From 1878, the town had a central water supply with cast iron pipes (29 wells and 289 house pipes).

9th Lower Bridge/Brühl: rainwater overflow basin

Under the oversized "chairs" is a modern rainwater overflow basin.

By storing the dirt that accumulates during heavy rainfall, the Nagold and the downstream sewer network are relieved. Almost 300 cubic meters of basin volume, an agitator, a measuring and throttle shaft and the switchgear are located under this artistically designed cover plate.

10th Nagolduferweg: opening to the river

The Nagolduferweg (along the Nagold from the Marktbrücke to the Untere Brücke) was created in 2002. It opens up the city to the river and invites you to stroll along the water.

11th playground: mouth of the Hagbrunnenbach

The Hagbrunnenbach stream, whose source is in the Hesse Garden, flows into the Brühl playground. The short, open course connects to the playground. A popular place to spend time just a few meters from the lively Lederstraße.

12th Lederstrasse 46: Historical flood marks

The flood levels were documented on various facades, some of them carved in stone. The oldest mark is from 1633. The flood marks in the sandstone of the house at Lederstraße 46 are particularly striking, as are those on the facades of the houses facing the Weinsteg. The iron ring on the neighboring house was used to tie up the boats used to supply the population during floods. The flood marks from December 1947 show how the town was flooded to a depth of several meters from Lederstraße to Brühl. From 1948 to 1950, the Nagold was lowered. Old raft traps and weirs were removed, lowering the water level by two meters. This had a positive effect, as flood marks from 1990 and 1993 show. After 1993, the flood protection was further improved with metal plank constructions. The metal planks are permanently installed in winter.Find more flood marks:

• Beim Weinsteg: Turn left into the alley after Ledersraße 34
• Marktstraße: Under the market bridge, path along the Nagold
• Badstraße 10

13th Villa Wagner: fountain with sculpture "Viola"

The "Viola" fountain sculpture in Lederstrasse was created by artist René Dantes. It is made of black granite. The sculpture measures 2.70 m and weighs 1.5 tons. The sculpture was unveiled on June 23, 2001 and is surrounded by a water feature.

14th Palais Vischer: timber trade

Calw was the richest industrial town in Württemberg in the 17th and 18th centuries thanks to the successful activities of the Calw Zeughandlungs-Compagnie (Zeuge = cloth, woolen fabrics). Part of the wealth was also generated by the timber trade, a privilege conferred by the princes (see also Station 3). The Vischer family was in charge of this business. Johann Martin Vischer could afford to buy up three houses in Bischofstraße in 1787, have them demolished and have this Louis Seize-style palace with outbuildings built in their place (insured value: 20,000 guilders).

15th Lower Mill: Largest mill wheel in the northern Black Forest

The former "Untere Mühle" flour mill, which dates back to 1843 and was in operation from the mid-19th century until 1957, is located in the Schleiftal district of Stammheim. Driven by the largest wooden, overshot water mill wheel in Europe, with a diameter of 11.50 meters, it has become a cultural monument.Note: As the mill wheel is located in the Stammheim district, it will not be visited on this tour of Calw city center.