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Coordinates: 51°23′N 7°40′E

Iserlohn
Country	Germany
State	North Rhine-Westphalia
Administrative region	Arnsberg
District	Märkischer Kreis
Population	97,478 source (2005)
Area	125.5 km²
Population density	777 /km²
Elevation	106-494 m
Coordinates	51°23′ N 7°40′ E
Postal code	58636-58644
Area code	02371, 02374
Licence plate code	MK
Mayor	Klaus Müller (CDU)
Website	iserlohn.de

Iserlohn is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located at the north end of the Sauerland near the Ruhr river, at 51°23′N 7°40′E. Population: 97,478 (2005). Area: 125.50 km². It is the largest city in the Märkischer Kreis county and of the whole Sauerland, both by area and by population. The police headquarters of the county are in Iserlohn.

Contents 1 History 2 Points of interest 3 Coat of arms 4 Twinning 5 Others 6 Literature 7 External links

The Pancratius church (also called Bauernkirche) was founded in around 985, but the first written document mentioning lon dates only from 1150. In 1237 the Count of the Mark gave Iserlohn municipal rights. In 1975 the city, which had been an urban district before, incorporated the surrounding ex-municipalities of Letmathe, Hennen, Sümmern and Kesbern, and became part of the district "Märkischer Kreis". As a larger mid-sized city, Iserlohn, however, still has a special status as compared to most other municipalities in the district. This means that the city takes on tasks more usually performed by the district (e.g. social and youth affairs) so that in some ways it is comparable to an urban district.

The Dechenhöhle was discovered in 1868 during the construction of the railway line Hagen-Iserlohn. 360m are accessible for visitors, and lots of stalactites make it a spectacular sight.

In the middle of the coat of arms is Saint Pancras (St. Pancratius), patron of the oldest church in Iserlohn. He is depicted between two towers of the historic city wall. The checked fess below is derived from the arms of the Counts of the Mark.

Iserlohn is twinned with:

• Almelo, Netherlands since 1954
• Biel/Bienne, Switzerland - since 1959
• Hall in Tirol, Austria - since 1967
• Auchel, France - since 1975
• Laventie, France - since 1975
• Nyíregyháza, Hungary since 1989
• Novocherkassk, Russia - since 1990
• Glauchau, Germany, Saxony - since 1991
• Chorzów, Poland - since 2004

"Iserlohn" is also the name of a giant Death Star-like space fortress in the Japanese science fiction novel series Legend of the Galactic Heroes (or "Ginga Eiyu densetsu" in Japanese), written by Yoshiki Tanaka. This series has also been adapted into Anime and Manga form.

• Götz Bettge: Iserlohn-Lexikon. Iserlohn 1987. ISBN 3-922885-37-3
• Ernst Dossmann: Iserlohner Tabaksdosen erzählen. Ein Einblick in die wirtschaftlichen, gesellschaftlichen, politischen und militärischen Verhältnisse und das Aufblühen von Gewerbe, Industrie und Handel im märkisch-westfälischen Wirtschaftsraum während der Regierungszeit Friedrichs des Großen, dargestellt an bekannten Iserlohner Industrieerzeugnissen. 1981. ISBN 3-922885-01-2
• Margret Kirchhoff: Pulsschläge einer Stadt. Die Oberste Stadtkirche Iserlohn - Zeitbilder und Momentaufnahmen. 2003. Eigenverlag Dr. Margret Kirchhoff.
• Fritz Kühn: Liebes altes Iserlohn. (released about 1956). Westfalenverlag Dortmund
• Peter Müller und Günter Stalp: Unsere gute alte Straßenbahn. Eine Reise in die Vergangenheit. Iserlohn 1995. ISBN 3-922885-78-0
• Hans-Herbert Mönnig Verlag Iserlohn (no author mentioned): Iserlohn - unsere lebendige Stadt. Ein Bildband von Iserlohnern für Iserlohner. Iserlohn 1997. ISBN 3-922885-93-4
• Heinz Stoob (†): Westfälischer Städteatlas; Band: I; 9 Teilband (Stadtmappe Iserlohn). Im Auftrage der Historischen Kommission für Westfalen und mit Unterstützung des Landschaftsverbandes Westfalen-Lippe; edited by Heinz Stoob and Wilfried Ehbrecht. Dortmund-Altenbeken, 1975. ISBN 3-89115-336-8

• Official city website
• Homepage of the newspaper Iserlohner Kreisanzeiger und Zeitung

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