I’m adding a new series to the blog starting today called Monday Mysteries. It was inspired by a book that Chris and I ran across recently which talks about 50 secret places or little-known stories that “solve” the mysteries of things you see on the streets in Tübingen. To kick things off, today we’re going to answer the question “Why is there a high water mark on the building across the street from our apartment?”

1972 High Water Mark, Tübingen

The writing  says Wasserstand, 15.8.1972 (“Water level, August 15, 1972″). According to the book, on August 15, 1972 a huge hail storm hit Tübingen. It produced enormous hailstones that piled up to great heights. As they melted, they created a rather deep temporary river flowing down the street, and the water reached as high as 60-80 centimeters (2-2.5 Ft). And here I thought that our hail storm last July was bad!

The book mentions this mark only in passing in the section on the oldest high water marks in Tübingen, which turn out to be just around the corner from our building.

1613 and 1663 High Water Marks, Tübingen

On the left, the cross next to where it says 1613 marks the height the flood waters reached that year. On the right,  the Friendly Tourist is pointing to the mark that shows the height of the flood waters in 1663. As you can see, the water in those floods came up pretty high, considering that this building was not next to the river; the Ammer river is actually several blocks away.

This spot is right around the corner from our street, Bachgasse, actually. The word Bach means “brook” in German. Back in the Middle Ages it really was a brook. Between that and the nearby Ammer River, water used to flood these streets fairly regularly. In fact, the book quotes a local historian who says that until the early 20th century it was quite normal for Tübingen to flood when there were heavy rains. He says people back then were constantly having trouble with the streets and houses flooding as the streets were often underwater. However, work was done to divert the course of the rivers elsewhere in town in the early 1900s, which has helped alleviate the flooding in modern times in the city center.

However, we still do occasionally get those massive hailstorms. I don’t think anyone made a high water mark back in July, though. Of course, I’m just as glad that out recent storm wasn’t worthy of that kind of note.

Anyway, now you know the answer to the first of our Monday Mysteries. Look for the answer to another Tübingen “mystery” to be revealed next Monday.