The canal along Jorkerfelde. Photograph taken in 1955
This photograph (which was taken around 1955) shows the canal in Jorkerfelde from the south, looking towards St. Matthew’s church. Following World War II, almost every house along Jorkerfelde owned at least one landing stage on the water, in other words, a small wooden stage that was used either to do the washing or to board a boat on the canal.
The town canals were originally natural waterways, whose courses flowed from the upper-lying Geest region, through the marshlands and into the River Elbe. They were canalised at a later date. The waterways were not just used for drainage, but for transport purposes as well. By comparison, the roads were poor or non-existent. In former times, fruit was transported almost exclusively by boat or barge on the canals.
Even grain, which was grown on some of the farms, had to be transported to the mills in Borstel and Jorkerfelde by water. To the right of the photograph we can see what were then tall cherry trees in full bloom. To utilise fruit-growing areas to the full, trees were even planted down to the water’s edge on the banks of the canal. These were picked from ladders set up in the canal, by harvesters in wellingtons.
