Gabriel von Jessernig

Monument in the Jessernigstrasse in Klagenfurt

Grave of Gabriel von Jessernig in St. Ruprecht

Gabriel Ritter von Jessernig (also Jessernigg ; born March 27, 1818 in Klagenfurt ; † May 31, 1887 ibid) was mayor of the state capital Klagenfurt.

Life

Gabriel Jessernig came from an old Klagenfurt family of tradespeople and stein beer brewers . He studied law in Vienna , then became adjudicator and took over all family businesses after the death of his father in 1853. From 1855 to 1887 he was director of the Kärntner Sparkasse, came to the Klagenfurt municipal council through the newly founded German party and in 1861 succeeded his father-in-law Ferdinand Hauser as mayor . In addition, he was a member of the state parliament, from 1870 to 1883 deputy governor and for several years also a member of the Reichstag in Vienna. During his first term of office, a school was founded which later became the Higher Technical College for Mechanical Engineering and Electrical Engineering, followed by the expansion of Bahnhofstrasse and the start of construction on "Neu-Klagenfurt" in the southeast of the old town (between today's Bahnhofstrasse and Mießenaler Strasse and the southern runway). The gas works and the municipal gas lighting were put into operation, the first Viennese café in Klagenfurt was opened and in 1863 one of the first volunteer fire brigades in the Austro-Hungarian monarchy was founded. Jessernig had the botanical garden built (this was later relocated to today's location at Kreuzbergl) and opened the Klagenfurt- Marburg railway line .

In 1865 Leopold Nagel was elected as Jessernig's successor, but he resigned after five years and Jessernig was re-elected Mayor of Klagenfurt in 1870 and held this office for 17 years until his death. During this time, the cityscape changed significantly, the founding style reached Klagenfurt and a new city nursery was founded. The hospital, several barracks and the swimming school were built. A horse-drawn tram from the city center across the Lend Canal to be drained to Lake Wörthersee was planned. House numbering was introduced in 1882. In 1885, Emperor Franz Joseph I visited the state capital during the opening of the state's first major trade exhibition. In 1883 the ten-hour day was introduced in Klagenfurt after threats to strike by metal workers.

On September 9, 1875, Jessernig was awarded the Order of the Iron Crown and thus ennobled by Emperor Franz Joseph I. From this point on he was allowed to call himself Ritter von Jessernig .

Ferdinand Jessernig was married to Hella Hauser, the daughter of his predecessor Ferdinand Hauser. He died in his office on May 31, 1887 and was buried in a large state funeral in the St. Ruprecht cemetery. He was the first mayor of Klagenfurt after whom a street was named (Jesserniggstraße).

literature

• Jessernigg Gabriel from. In: Austrian Biographical Lexicon 1815–1950 (ÖBL). Volume 3, Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Vienna 1965, p. 112.
• Gotbert Moro (ed.): The state capital Klagenfurt. From their past and present. 2 volumes. Self-published by the state capital, Klagenfurt 1970.

predecessor	Office	successor
Ferdinand Hauser	Mayor of Klagenfurt 1861 - 1865	Leopold Nagel

predecessor	Office	successor
Leopold Nagel	Mayor of Klagenfurt 1870 - 1887	Franz Erwein