The south machine house was created in 1922. It is a partially plastered brick building whose facade is representatively structured through pilasters. Drafts for the plant originate from the pen of master mine builder Heinrich von Bonin (1871 - 1927). In 1963, the machine house obtained a twin steam-driven winding machine, that visitors can still gaze at in wonder today in exhibition workshops. Its special feature: It is the last steam engine that was manufactured by the smeltery Gutenhoffnungshütte (GHH) in Oberhausen.
In 1937, the north machine house was constructed as a cubically designed brick building. The plant’s master builder was the industrial architect and head of the construction department of Mannesmannröhren-Werke AG, Dr. Engineer Hans Väth (1897 – 1950). This machine house shelters a twin steam-driven winding machine, too, letting you imagine the forces that were at work here. The machine also comes from the smeltery Gutenhoffnungshütte and was manufactured in 1938.
We’re writing the year 1904. In the direct neighborhood of the Consolidation mine, in the streets and backyards of the Schalke community, ten young people regularly got together to play soccer. Some of them are apprentices at the mine and work as knaves underground. The young men establish the Westphalia Schalke Club, that soon enthuses people from the whole surrounding area.
The club’s chairman, Fritz Unkel, was material administrator at Consol, and soccer legend Ernst Kuzorra worked at the mine as a coal miner. The plant provided the soccer club with property for the arena 'Glückauf- Kampfbahn' and supported the club in realizing the construction project. And even today, players of FC Schalke 04 are still described as knaves and they let the traditional miners’ song (Steigerlied) resound in the stadium.
Ever since it was founded in 1862, Consolidation mine ensures a strong upturn in the region’s population. Already at that time, the mine was considered as the most productive coal mine in the Ruhr region between 1872 and 1876. Already in 1873, the approx. 2060 employees mined at least 366,000 tons of coal. Ten years later, the yield was almost twice as large with 700,000 tons. Before the First World War, the mine produced an impressive amount of 1.95 million tons and was able to continue its success after the Second World War. In the 1950s, Consol cracked the magic mark of two million tons and over the course of its history it increased this up to more than three million.
Die im Jahr 2000 entstandene Lichtinstallation "Consol Gelb" verwandelt das Fördergerüst Schacht 9 bei Einbruch der Dunkelheit allabendlich in eine Lichtlandmarke. Die vom Künstler Professor Günther Dohr im Auftrag der Stadt Gelsenkirchen installierten gelben Natriumdampflampen und roten Leuchtstoffröhren tauchen den oberen Bereich des Fördergerüsts in eine Lichtwolke.
"Consol Gelb", Symbol des Sonnenlichts und der Lebensenergie, steht gleichzeitig für Kunstlicht und Elektrizität als Basis der Industriealisierung und des technischen Fortschritts.
Die Installation ist Teil des Projektes "Public Art Ruhr" der RuhrKunstMuseen. Weitere Informationen finden Sie hier
1922 (south) and 1937 (north)
(pit bank with wagon turnaround)
1922 headframe, southern hoisting machine building
1937 northern hoisting machine building
1993
Headframe (1987), machine houses (1992)
Officially since 2004,
supported by the Foundation since 1997
9.000 m²
1922
1938 (northern) and 1963 (southern)
Maintenance of the twin trestle
Renovation of machine houses
Installation of stairs in scaffold for operational purposes