Simmering

Simmering, 11^th district of Vienna, area 23.24 km², pop. 66,881 (1991), in the southeastern part of Vienna, on a terrace of the River Danube, on the main road to Hungary (ancient Roman road); documented as Simanningen in 1028. The Simmeringer Heide comprises low-lying sections between the Danube Canal and the lower Schwechat river (vegetable gardening, allotment settlements with rural character). When Simmering was incorporated into the municipality of Vienna in 1890/92, Kaiserebersdorf and parts of Albern were also incorporated; in 1955 the village of Albern and the Danube harbour (from 1938 part of the 23^rd district, Schwechat; between 1954 and 1955 temporarily part of the 2^nd district, Leopoldstadt) became part of Simmering. Between 1803 and 1879 the Wiener Neustadt Canal ran through Simmering; Eastern railway; thermal power station (1965).

Industrialisation started in the late 19^th century: erection of municipal public utilities on the Simmeringer Heide: central workshop of the Wiener Verkehrsbetriebe (Vienna Public Transport), Entsorgungsbetriebe Simmering (main sewage treatment plant of Vienna and treatment of hazardous wastes), Vienna gas and electricity companies; 1992, inauguration of the new block-power station No. 3; since 1988, new business premises of the electricity generating station); former gasometers of Simmering (now industrial monument); construction of new residential and business area with 800 homes and business and communication centre since 1999; central workshops of the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB); SGP Verkehrstechnik GmbH, Steyr-Bus Ges. m. b. H., Steyr-Daimler-Puch Spezialfahrzeug AG, Steyr Maschinenbau Ges. m. b. H., Dietzel Ges. m. b. H. Kunststoff- und Metallwarenfabrik, TEERAG-ASDAG AG.- Vienna Central Cemetery (1874, area 2.5 km²), crematorium (built by C. Holzmeister between 1921 and 1923 on the grounds of the former imperial hunting lodge ("Neugebäude") dating from 1569); Protestant church (1962-1963 by R. Rainer). - Housing developments: e.g. Friedrich-Engels-Hof (1925), Karl-Höger-Hof (1925), Weißenböckstraße settlement (1923, 1928), Leberberg city development area offering more than 3000 new homes,( since 1994). - Kledering central shunting station, Albern harbour with freight station.

Literature: F. Czeike, Simmering, Wiener Bezirkskulturführer, 1980; H. Havelka, Simmering, 1983; idem, Der Zentralfriedhof, ²1985; F. Czeike, Historisches Lexikon Wien, 5 vols., 1992-1997.