Former Oppelschacht – Mine Out of Operation

The Oppelschacht was a hard-coal pit of the Royal Zauckerode Coal Works. The shaft lay in the western part of the coal deposit of the Döhlen Basin.

In 1833, at 193.95 m above sea level, the Royal Zauckerode Coal Works began sinking a main, machine and hauling shaft, which was initially named Friedrichschacht. It was not until after the death of Carl Wilhelm von Oppel in November 1833 that it was given his name. Here, on 25 August 1882, the mine locomotive supplied by Siemens & Halske completed its first test run. Christened Dorothea, the locomotive was the world's first electric locomotive in continuous operation and can be seen today at Burgk Castle. After the coal reserves in the district were exhausted, operations ceased on 30 June 1927 and the shaft was backfilled. In 1980 the shaft was re-secured by the Bergsicherung Dresden. Of the surface installations, only the building of the former coal accounting office survives. It is used by the town of Freital as a youth centre and library. In 2001 the headframe of Shaft 2 in Dresden-Gittersee was re-erected on the shaft site as a technical monument.