Wildau

Wildau is a German municipality of the state of Brandenburg, located in the district of Dahme-Spreewald. It is located close to Berlin and easily reached by the S-Bahn. As of 2006 its population was of 9,649 inhabitants.HistoryThe history of Wildau began with fisherman's families that settled by the Dahme River and then came to deliver sand, gravel and bricks from the region by boat to Berlin.Mechanical engineering put Wildau on the map as a location for industry. In 1897, the company Schwartzkopff GmbH established a locomotive factory here, and built housing for the factory workers that is today is under cultural heritage management. During the Second World War, local factories were involved in armaments production. After the war, they became East Germany's state enterprise in heavy engineering. After German unification, the factories were mostly shut down by the Treuhand.