Friedhof der Heimatlosen
In Westerland on Sylt, Friedhof der Heimatlosen is a preserved memorial cemetery at the corner of Elisabethstraße and Käpt'n-Christiansen-Straße. It stands within the city today, although heathland once surrounded it south of Westerland. Wulf Hansen Decker established the cemetery in 1854 for unidentified seafarers washed ashore along the island’s coast.
The first burial followed in 1855, after a sailor was found on Westerland beach. Over the years, 53 unidentified bodies received burial here. Simple wooden crosses record each discovery’s date and location, giving the site its stark maritime character. Only Harm Müsker, an eighteen-year-old sailor from Holterfehn, was identified after burial in 1890.
Queen Elisabeth of Romania visited Westerland in 1888 and donated a plaque bearing a stanza from Rudolf Kögel. The cemetery closed in 1907, while later unidentified seafarers went to other local cemeteries. The memorial’s wooden crosses keep the sea’s unknown dead visible among Westerland’s streets.
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