Economically it depended primarily on the production of steel and coal mining.
Here I was baptized, went to First Confession, received First Communion and was confirmed. Here I prayed for my future successes in America that our Lord God allowed me to achieve.
The "Marktstrasse" in Oberhausen.
Until recent times, the central shopping street in the city.
Princely/Ducal House Gulgowski-Doliwa
The Duke and Duchess of Lower Silesia (Glogau)
Our residence away from home in Paul's hometown Oberhausen/Rhld.
At this place, humble as it may appear, I absorbed the basics to my academic skills that allowed me to prosper and survive on three continents, on land as well as on the high seas. Note: My dear Mother Katharina and my Godfather German Air Force Colonel Uncle Hubert were earlier graduates of St. Mary's.
During my formative years, the Church of St. Mary and St. Mary Parochial School provided the anchors for my heart and my mind. For what I have achieved during my life, I have to be grateful to them. Glory be to God in the Highest.
The Municipal Theatre of Oberhausen enjoys tremendous renown in the entire Ruhr District, presently undergoing extensive renovation.
Oberhausen/Rhineland (Nostalgic Journey Continued)
To this very day, miners enjoy a sincere appreciation of the people of Oberhausen.
Crowns are much more than those who are entitled to wear them. They are a symbol for the entirety of a cultural whole and the idea of enlightened statesmanship.
However, to praise the Oberhausen/Rhineland population, after having endured 80 percent of distruction, by 1950 the city had mostly rehabilitated and reconstructed itself and was ready to function under the auspices of a democratic, competitive market economy.
From 1942 until 1949 to avoid the ravages of World War II, my dear mother had evacuated us to Austria and Rhineland-Palatinate. Upon our return truly a new life began for us.
The railroad station of Oberhausen that facilitated my world travels.
Four generations of the Hegenscheidts and the Gulgowskis have enjoyed coffee and cake at Cafe Bauer.
However, we preferred apple juice instead of coffee.
During all that time to the present, the city of Oberhausen was presided over by a most stoic and imminently important structure:
Das Rathaus (City Hall).
The Municipal Indoor Swimming Pool of Oberhausen, where a 12-year-old girl saved me, Paul (as a child), from drowning. To this very day, I cannot thank her enough for her presence of mind and personal bravery.
World War I left Oberhausen basically undamaged; however,
World War II made more than up for that, to put it mildly.
The Veterans' Memorial in the center of the Municipal Market.
Duchess Heide standing in front of the "Friedensplatz" (Plaza of Peace).
The Municipal Court of Oberhausen; please note the crowns that still document its Royal beginnings.
Prologue
As the next photograph clearly documents, Oberhausen was already in 1888 a functioning city within the Kingdom of Prussia.
On a lighter note, in the building behind us, once the only banking institution in town, I, Paul, deposited my first savings in the amount of 50 Pfennigs, basically the equivalency of 20 American Cents at the time.