Erlangen district: Anger/ Bruck

Green

The Anger district was once pastureland belonging to the municipality of Bruck. In the mid-19th century, it was drastically restricted by the construction of the railway and the canal. After 1868, it also served as a parade ground for the Erlangen garrison. In 1906, construction of the "ERBA settlement", which is closely linked to the founding of the Baumwollspinnerei AG in 1880. It was the successor to a carded yarn spinning mill established after 1852. Since 1924, Anger and Bruck have belonged to Erlangen.

In 1927, the company merged with "Ofr. Textilwerk AG" in Schwarzenbach am Wald and the "Mechanische Baumwollspinnerei und Weberei Bamberg," which resulted in the company name being changed to "Baumwollindustrie Erlangen-Bamberg AG (ERBA)." The workforce consisted primarily of young women, nicknamed "Spinnerbuzn" (women's spun yarn) because of the cotton threads that got stuck in their hair. They responded to their critical social and financial situation with union activity. On the eve of the Second World War, ERBA already employed 5.200 people.

Between 1951 and 1983, 1.930 residential units were built in Anger. The number of residents peaked at 1974 in 8.230 and fell below 1999 by 6700. The GEWOBAU (non-profit housing association) of Erlangen launched an extensive renovation program here in 2000. Today, approximately 8.230 people live here.

bruck

South of Anger lies the district of Bruck, which originated as "Brucca" in the 11th century and was first mentioned in documents in 1282. In the First Margrave War, the town was burned down in 1449 and largely destroyed in the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648). Nevertheless, Bruck developed due to its convenient location on the only Regnitz Bridge between Vach and Baiersdorf, it became a thriving village. Numerous carters and innkeepers lived there, and at one point there were even four breweries. From the 17th century onwards, tobacco processing flourished alongside trade. In 1924, the town was incorporated into Erlangen, while development continued to grow steadily. Before the Second World War, a factory settlement of the "Baumwollindustrie Erlangen-Bamberg AG (ERBA)" with small single-family homes was built in the southeast of Bruck, across the railway line.

After the Second World War, the streets were named after inventors, scientists, and industrialists. In the late 1970s, several resistance fighters against National Socialism, primarily from the conservative Christian spectrum (such as Stauffenberg), were honored in this way. In the 1990s, a street district named after Erlangen's twin cities was added along Bruck train station.

Due to the strong structural expansion with many high-rise buildings in the east and the proximity of the federal motorway, Bruck with around 20.000 inhabitants has lost its village character, which has, however, been old town center around the fortified church can still be felt.