The Lausward Werth refers to an island in a river or lake. The Lausward was an island in the Rhine, formed from deposits. In the 13th century, parts of today's peninsula on the left bank of the Rhine and Heerdt, which is on the opposite bank, were not directly on the Rhine. Over time, the untamed river repeatedly shifted its course, the Werth silted up north of Haus Hamm and grew. The peninsula was born.
First, the Lausward was used as pasture, later - to ensure the supply of the population - also for vegetable cultivation. The soil was fertile. Asparagus, savoy cabbage, carrots, horseradish, salsify, Hamm had made a name for itself in the cultivation of asparagus.
Then, in 1870, the railroad cut through the precious farmland. Around the turn of the century, townspeople discovered the Lausward for their pleasure. Horses now “plowed through” the meadows. The Düsseldorfer Reiter- und Rennverein built a permanent venue with grandstands and stables on the Hammer Rheinwiesen.
It opened on July 11, 1886, and the traditional Düsseldorf Grand Prix took place there for the first time in 1891. What took half an eternity to build came to an end in 1905. The expansion of the port forced the racing club to move. Since then, Grafenberg has been the home of the gallopers.
In 1903, the Turnklub Düsseldorf also moved to the north of Lausward, where the current golf course is. An outdoor swimming pool was built and the club's boat was named "Odin's Beach". It was the most beautiful outdoor pool on the Rhine in Düsseldorf.
After the war, the Rhine was too polluted to swim in it. That was the end of all bathing establishments in Düsseldorf.
Then came the thermal power station on the Lausward, construction started in 1955 and was completed in 1957. Initially, electricity and heat were generated with hard coal, then switched to natural gas and heating oil. One of the customers for the electricity is Deutsche Bahn.
The Stadtwerke are proud of their “Fortuna” block, which was officially commissioned in 2016. It is considered to be one of the most efficient and powerful gas and steam turbine power plants (CCPP) in the world.
So agriculture gradually disappeared from the Lausward. But one field remains. Shortly before the golf course in the middle of the meadows, a patch is further tilled. In autumn cabbages lie there in the furrows like relics from the old days.