Gerhard Lucas Meyer

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Grave site of Gerhard Lucas and Emilie Meyer in the Hehlentorfriedhof in Celle

Gerhard Lucas Meyer (born May 6, 1830 in Burgerbrug-Zijpe ( Netherlands ), † December 30, 1916 in Hanover ) was a German entrepreneur .

Early years

Meyer spent his childhood at the Meyerhof in Menslage . He received his first education from a tutor . Between 1845 and 1850 he attended the higher trade school in Hanover.

After finishing school, he first ran a hand-weaving mill in Berge near Quakenbrück, which was owned by the family, but soon resigned it. He started his own business with a small chemical factory in Haste . In 1857 Meyer married Emilie, the daughter of the lawyer Schimmelpfeng. After his factory was destroyed by fire in the same year, he became a partner in the textile wholesaler and bank Naesmann & Schultz in Celle .

In addition, he gave lectures on economic topics. Meyer also became a member of the German National Association . In 1862 he took part in the Munich Trade Day. He was also a member of the state assembly of the state from 1863 until the annexation of the Kingdom of Hanover by Prussia . He was a member of the National Liberal Party of the Kingdom.

Mining industrialist

In 1860 Meyer made a name for himself in the mining industry as a member of a five-person shareholder committee in the renovation of the ailing Georgs-Marienhütte . Therefore, he was also appointed to the creditors' committee after the mining and metallurgical company in Peine in the bankruptcy went.

As early as 1858, Ilseder Hütte was founded as a stock corporation from part of the bankruptcy estate . Meyer joined the company's board of directors in 1863 and became general manager in 1868. When he took over the post of chairman of the board of directors, he took over the management of the hut in 1884. Meyer was primarily responsible for expanding the hut into a large company.

A key competitive disadvantage was the lack of a railway connection. Therefore a railway company was founded for the route between Peine and the Ilseder Hütte . Meyer took the chair. The line was completed in 1872.

In the first few years of its existence, the smelter sold the pig iron produced mainly to the province of Westphalia . At Meyer's initiative, a steel and rolling mill was also built in Peine in 1872 for further processing. As the Peiner Walzwerk stock corporation , it was initially legally independent of the ironworks. At about the same time, the smelter took over the ore deposit Sophienglück . This ensured the supply of raw materials with ore. One disadvantage of the location was the high cost of coal compared to the Ruhr area. The introduction of the Thomas process in the Peine plant brought a significant cost reduction . In 1880 the iron and steel works were merged.

Meyer pursued an intensive internal social policy in the companies he ran and also founded other social foundations.

Representation of interests and politics

In addition to his main activity, Meyer was also a member of the supervisory boards of the Hannoversche Bank (temporarily chairman of the supervisory board) and Hanomag . From 1867 he was chairman of the Chamber of Commerce in Celle. Between 1873 and 1895 he was also a member of the Hanover Chamber of Commerce , in 1886 its vice-president and 1888 president. He was also a member of the Prussian Economic Council. Between 1894 and 1906 Meyer was chairman of the Association of German Iron and Steel Industrialists .

Meyer was a member of the Provincial Parliament for the Province of Hanover between 1894 and 1898 . He also belonged to the regional synods of the Evangelical Church for a time. In 1901 Meyer was appointed to the Prussian mansion for life . In 1894 he was made an honorary citizen of Peine, the city of Celle followed in 1905. His sons Gerhard and Wilhelm Meyer followed him in the management of the Ilselder Hütte.

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personal data
SURNAME Meyer, Gerhard Lucas
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German entrepreneur in the coal and steel industry
DATE OF BIRTH May 6, 1830
PLACE OF BIRTH Burgerbrug-Zyde
DATE OF DEATH December 30, 1916
Place of death Hanover