Olfen

Town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

Coat of arms

Location of Olfen within Coesfeld district

(2020–25) Wilhelm Sendermann^[1] (CDU)Area

• Total52.43 km² (20.24 sq mi)Highest elevation

80 m (260 ft)Lowest elevation

45 m (148 ft)Population

(2022-12-31)^[2]

• Total13,253 • Density250/km² (650/sq mi)Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET) • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)Postal codes

59399

Dialling codes02595, 02592 (part of Vinnums)Vehicle registrationCOE/LHWebsitewww.olfen.de

Olfen is a town in the district of Coesfeld, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

History

Bishop Wolfhelm, who originated from the Ulfloa Oberhof, gave the small town its name in 889. Wolfhelm was the fourth bishop of "Mimingardeford", today called Münster.

The fire disaster of 1857, in which 142 houses were destroyed, has gone down as the "Great Fire of Olfen" in Olfen's history books.

Buildings

Interesting sights include St. Vitus church, a castle and a historic sawmill.

Olfen, St. Vitus church
Olfen, Füchteln mill
Füchteln mill on a foggy day (art project)

Politics

Wilhelm Sendermann (CDU) was elected for mayor in September 2015 with 87.4% of the vote.^[3] He was re-elected in 2020.

Notable people

Thomas Hoof (born 1948), founder of Manufactum
Günter Schlierkamp (born 1970), professional bodybuilder

Town partnerships

La Grange, United States^[4]

References

^ Wahlergebnisse in NRW Kommunalwahlen 2020, Land Nordrhein-Westfalen, accessed 30 June 2021.
^ "Bevölkerung der Gemeinden Nordrhein-Westfalens am 31. Dezember 2022 – Fortschreibung des Bevölkerungsstandes auf Basis des Zensus vom 9. Mai 2011" (in German). Landesbetrieb Information und Technik NRW. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
^ Wilhelm Sendermann ist neuer Bürgermeister, Ruhrnachrichten vom 13. September 2015
^ "Interactive City Directory". Sister Cities International.