The local scales – the scales in the lower lane
Every community in Rheinhessen had a functioning community scale until the mid-1990s. The old weighing house still reminds of the Harxheim local scales in the Untergasse. Dark stones in the pavement in front of it show the outlines of the former cradle platform.
Every community in Rheinhessen had them: a public local scale! This facility was indispensable for the trade of agricultural goods and products. Sugar beets, potatoes, grain and grapes, as well as many a head of cattle, passed through the large scales in the Untergasse on their way to be processed or sold. In the scale housing, directly behind the weighing platform embedded in the floor, you will find the technical data.
The last weighing technology installed dates back to 1966. The weighing capacity is specified at 15,000 kg. The manufacturer Josef Väth puts the minimum load at 400 kg. According to Friedrun Roßbach, Harxheim’s last weighmaster, however, the scales were set so precisely that even the smallest quantities could be weighed accurately and without any problems. Along with the modernization of the weighing equipment, a new scale house made of stone with a concrete flat roof was also built. It replaced the previous corrugated iron house, which was almost identical in construction to that of the scale at the former railroad crossing in Bahnhofstraße.
In order to document the accuracy of the scales, they had to be checked annually by an official weights and measures inspector. A weighing master or a weighing mistress was responsible for the current weighing activity. This person and two representatives were appointed by the local church and were responsible for the proper weighing and collection of the weighing fees. The proceeds benefited the municipal coffers.
Report in the Allgemeine Zeitung Mainz on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the service of Wiegemeisterin Friedrun Roßbach
Image source: Friedrun Roßbach, Allgemeine Zeitung Mainz, May 1993
Friedrun Roßbach served as the last weighmaster for 25 years until the local scales were closed on January 6, 1993. She was predestined for this, since the “Wieheisje” was located in the immediate vicinity of her residence.
“The weighing process was purely routine,” Friedrun Roßbach recounts, “the loaded cart or a roll (trailer used for agricultural purposes) was driven onto the weighing platform, weighed and receipted on the weighing card. If the team later returned empty, it was weighed again. The difference resulted in the weight of the weighed goods, which was finally documented and served as the basis for calculating the weighing charge.”
Square at the scales before the redesign 2021
Image source: Irmgard Kaiser-Vreke
When asked if there had ever been any irregularities, Friedrun Roßbach answers: “They cheated, I always looked closely. She knew who was standing behind the woo!”
Weighing fees (January 19, 1981)
Cattle/piece 5,00 DM
Cartage up to 5.000 kg total weight 7,70 DM
Cartage over 5,000 kg total weight 8.90 DM
Once even the police asked for the service of the weighmaster. Law enforcement officers had stopped a caravan team on suspicion of overloading and directed them to the scales. Fortunately, the caravan owner got away without a ticket, because he had just complied with the permissible total weight.
With the change in agriculture and the use of larger transport vehicles, the need for weighing also decreased significantly from the 1980s onwards. Revenue from weighing fees no longer covered maintenance and calibration costs. At the beginning of the nineties, the municipality stopped the weighing operation.
On the initiative of the municipal administration and the support of numerous volunteers, the weigh house was refurbished in 2016/17.
In 2019/20, as part of the renovation of the square at the scales and parts of the lower lower alley, the cradle platform was removed and the pit underneath was backfilled. Today, black paving stones trace the area or outline of the former weighing platform in front of the scale house.
Today, the square and the historic Waaghäuschen are used as a bar and meeting place during festivities such as the Kerb or the Harxheimer Weinhöfefest.
Square at the scales after the redesign 2021
Image source: Irmgard Kaiser-Vreke
References:
Contemporary witness report as well as collected documents by Friedrun Roßbach
Own research
