Erwitte

Erwitte (German pronunciation: [ˈɛʁvɪtə] ^ⓘ) is a town in the district of Soest, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

Erwitte
Town
Coat of arms
Location of Erwitte within Soest district
Erwitte Show map of Germany Erwitte Show map of North Rhine-Westphalia
Coordinates: 51°37′N 08°21′E
Country	Germany
State	North Rhine-Westphalia
Admin. region	Arnsberg
District	Soest
Subdivisions	15
Government
• Mayor (2020–25)	Hendrik Henneböhl[1]
Area
• Total	89.41 km2 (34.52 sq mi)
Elevation	105 m (344 ft)
Population  (2023-12-31)[2]
• Total	16,317
• Density	180/km2 (470/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes	59597
Dialling codes	02943 02945
Vehicle registration	SO, LP
Website	www.erwitte.de

Erwitte, church: die Sankt Laurentius Kirche

Schmerlecke, windmill Am Alten Hellweg

Geography

Erwitte is situated approximately 8 km south of Lippstadt and 15 km east of Soest.

Neighbouring municipalities

• Lippstadt
• Geseke
• Rüthen
• Anröchte
• Bad Sassendorf

Division of the town

After the local government reforms of 1975 Erwitte consists of 15 districts:

• Erwitte (6510 inhabitants)
• Eikeloh (518 inhabitants)
• Merklinghausen/Wiggeringhausen (179 inhabitants)
• Horn-Millinghausen (894 inhabitants)
• Berenbrock (309 inhabitants)
• Seringhausen (65 inhabitants)
• Stirpe (1079 inhabitants)
• Ebbinghausen (201 inhabitants)
• Böckum (209 inhabitants)
• Völlinghausen (811 inhabitants)
• Schallern (291 inhabitants)
• Norddorf (159 inhabitants)
• Schmerlecke (732 inhabitants)
• Weckinghausen (67 inhabitants)
• Bad Westernkotten (4097 inhabitants)

International relations

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Germany

Erwitte is twinned with:

• Aken (Germany)

History

Officially the town of Erwitte is mentioned in the year 836 for the first time and the medieval architecture can still be seen in the town center.

Industry

Erwitte is home to a thriving cement industry which, together with the heating valve company Heimeier, make up the largest companies in the area.

Sons and daughters of the town

• Charles Nordhoff (1830–1901), American journalist and author, was born in Erwitte
• Friedrich Blumenröhr (born 1936), jurist, former chairman at the Federal Court
• Ulrich Cyran (born 1956), actor and lecturer
• Christof Rasche (born 1962), politician (FDP)
• Wolfgang Schäfers (born 1965), owner of the chair for real estate management at the University of Regensburg
• Jens Behrens (born 1978), politician (SPD)

People who are connected to the place

• Jodocus Boget († 1630), Erwitt pastor, burned for witchcraft on the pyre
• Heinrich Gersmeier (nickname: Schäfer Heinrich) (born 1966), farmer and singer from Völlinghausen