Bergkamen
Town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bergkamen (German pronunciation: [bɛʁkˈkaːmən] ⓘ; Westphalian: Biärgkoamen) is a town in the district of Unna, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated south of the river Lippe, approx. 15 km (9 mi) north-east of Dortmund and 15 km (9 mi) south-west of Hamm.
Bergkamen | |
|---|---|
Bergkamen city hall | |
 Coat of arms | |
Location of Bergkamen
within Unna district  | |
 Location of Bergkamen | |
  Bergkamen Location within Germany  Bergkamen Location within North Rhine-Westphalia | |
| Coordinates: 51°37′N 7°38′E | |
| Country | Germany |
| State | North Rhine-Westphalia |
| Admin. region | Arnsberg |
| District | Unna |
| Government | |
| • Mayor (2025–30) | Thomas Heinzel (CDU) |
| Area | |
• Total | 44.9 km2 (17.3 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 68 m (223 ft) |
| Population (2025-12-31)[1] | |
• Total | 49,198 |
| • Density | 1,100/km2 (2,840/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| Postal codes | 59192 |
| Dialling codes | 02307, 02389, 02306 |
| Vehicle registration | UN |
| Website | www.bergkamen.de |
Bergkamen, a fairly new town in the east part of the Ruhr Area and south of the Münsterland, was founded in 1966 by the merging of at first five smaller communities. The town's history, however, reaches back to ancient Roman times - this can be experienced by visiting the Bergkamen Municipal Museum, which has a large Roman department, and the nearby archeological site, the “Roemerlager“.
Main sights
- Westphalian Sports Boat Centre - Marina Ruenthe
- The neighbouring national trust area, “Beversee“, and the wooded hill, “Grosses Holz“, a renaturalized former slag heap, provide an inviting atmosphere for relaxation.
Cultural events
- Harbour Festival ("Hafenfest") in June
- Light Festival ("Lichtermarkt") in October.
Bergkamen is home to theatre performances at the “studio theater bergkamen“ and numerous exhibitions in the town's own art gallery “sohle1“ or the “Stadtmuseum“
History
In February 1946, a coal mine in the city suffered a dust explosion that killed 418 miners. This was the worst mining accident in German history.[2]
Politics
The current mayor of Bergkamen is Thomas Heinzel of the CDU, who has been serving as mayor since 2025. In the 2025 local election he was elected with 53,4 % of the vote in the runoff election against former mayor Bernd Schäfer of the SPD.[3]
City council
After the 2025 local elections, the Bergkamen city council is composed as follows:
| Party | Votes | % | +/- | Seats | +/- | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Social Democratic Party (SPD) | 6,556 | 34.3 |  8.6 |
19 | 2 | |
| Christian Democratic Union (CDU) | 5,221 | 27.3 | 0.6 |
15 |  1 | |
| Alternative for Germany (AfD) | 4,194 | 21.9 | New | 12 | New | |
| Alliance 90/The Greens (Grüne) | 1,208 | 6.3 | 10.6 |
4 | 4 | |
| The Left (Linke) | 1,033 | 5.4 | 2.3 |
3 | 1 | |
| Uphill (BergAUF) | 584 | 3.1 | 2.8 |
2 | 1 | |
| Free Democratic Party (FDP) | 346 | 1.8 | 1.8 |
1 | 1 | |
| Valid votes | 19,142 | 98.4 | ||||
| Invalid votes | 310 | 1.6 | ||||
| Total | 19,452 | 100.0 | 56 | 6 | ||
| Electorate/voter turnout | 37,647 | 51.7 | ||||
| Source: City of Bergkamen | ||||||
Twin towns – sister cities
Notable people
- Ernst von Bodelschwingh-Velmede (1794–1854), Prussian Minister of Interior and Cabinet
- Carl von Bodelschwingh (1800–1873), Prussian Finance Minister
- Ernst von Bodelschwingh (1906–1993), politician (Member of Bundestag, CDU)
- Josef Ledwohn (1907–2003), anti-Nazi resistance activist
- Hans Sennholz (1922–2007), economist
- Dietrich Schwanitz (1940–2004), best-selling author, grew up in Rünthe
- Eugen Drewermann (born 1940), theologian, church critic, best-seller author
- Peer Steinbrück (born 1947), politician (SPD), Member of Landtag, for Bergkamen 2000–2005
- Konrad Ott (born 1959), philosopher and ethicist
- Heiko Antoniewicz (born 1965), cook
- Frauke Petry (born 1975), politician (independent, former AfD), lived in Bergkamen and went to school there
