Jacob Georg Bodemer

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Jacob Georg Bodemer

Jacob Georg Bodemer (born April 26, 1807 in Leipzig , † November 27, 1888 in Pillnitz ) was a German entrepreneur and philanthropist .

Life

His parents were Johann Jacob Bodemer , owner of a calico printer , and Christiane, née. Weigel (1776-1814). From 1820 Bodemer began his apprenticeship with a pharmacist in Erfurt for two years and then worked in the color kitchen (dyeing department) of his father's calico factory in Grossenhain . From 1825 to 1829 he studied mathematics, mechanics and physics at the Polytechnic in Vienna . In 1829 he gave up his studies and from then on worked at his own request in the company in Zschopau , which he also managed from 1830. On January 1, 1836, he became the sole owner of the Zschopau plant, which from then on bore his name. On June 2, 1835, he married Marie Auguste Charlotte Krause (1817-1854) in Chemnitz. From this marriage the son Johann Georg (1842–1916) and the daughter Friederike (* 1845) emerged.

With his brother he went on a study trip to England in 1839, which was then the leading industrial country. During this trip he was confronted with the misery of factory workers . A letter he sent to his wife in Zschopau gives evidence of this. Later, in 1845, his brother Heinrich published a book entitled “On Conditions of the Working Class” , which addresses this issue. Almost at the same time, Friedrich Engels published the almost identical publication “ The Situation of the Working Class in England ” . However, a direct connection could not be proven. In 1868 Bodemer handed over the technical management of the spinning mill to his son Johann Georg, the commercial management was taken over by his son-in-law Wilhelm Dürfeld. In 1872 Bodemer transferred ownership of the spinning mill to his son and son-in-law. Bodemer spent his retirement in Dresden and Pillnitz. He married the second wife Therese Josephine Rumpff, née Schmidt (1829-1917), who was 22 years his junior, and died on November 27, 1888 in Pillnitz.

social commitment

In 1845 Bodemer founded a factory school with a specially employed teacher. The factory school was not closed until 1878 because the city schools could take over the tasks. In 1848 Bodemer donated equipment for the gymnastics club founded in Zschopau . After its dissolution in 1852, he got some of the equipment back and made it available to his workers for gymnastics lessons. In 1850 he set up a company health insurance scheme for the workers.

In 1851 he founded a factory savings bank , into which male workers paid 50 pfennigs and women 20 pfennigs a week. The factory added half of this and pays 4% p.p. on the sum. A. When the worker left, he was paid his amount. When the company had to close temporarily in 1862, Bodemer supported his workforce with substantial payments during the period of unemployment. In 1880 a workers' pension fund was set up for the workers employed in the company after a testamentary decree with 10,000 marks .

In 1863 he made rich foundations available to the city of Zschopau, which were used to design the city ​​library , which opened on January 1, 1863 . The foundations included 714 books from various fields, as well as compilations and physical instruments, pictures, photographs and anatomical devices. In 1867 he donated the foundation stone for their city library to the city of Chemnitz. After various requests and further donations on his part, the scientific library opened on July 2, 1869. Bodemer added 714 books from theology, pedagogy, literature, history, geography and natural sciences, as well as copperplate engravings and lithographs. In 1878 he donated 5,000 marks, the annual interest of which was intended for the acquisition of scientific works for the Chemnitz City Library . In the same year he increased this sum to 10,000 marks.

Bodemer donated more than half of his substantial income to charity for over 20 years. He founded public and city libraries in more than 200 localities. In addition, around 200 villages and towns received books and teaching aids from him for their schools. He also promoted the formation of charity and trade associations, teachers' seminars, universities and NCO schools. He furnished the Chemnitzer Kunsthütte with numerous paintings and photographs, so that a special exhibition in its own room was awarded to him.

honors and awards

He was an honorary citizen of the cities of Zschopau, Chemnitz, Marienberg, Brand, Schlettau, Scheibenberg and Thum. In Pillnitz a bus stop and a street are named after him. The library of the city of Zschopau is named after him, the founder.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ^ City library "Jacob Georg Bodemer". In: zschopau.de. Retrieved February 9, 2016 .
  2. ↑ Ursula Forberger: Bodemer, Jacob Georg . In: Institute for Saxon History and Folklore (Ed.): Saxon Biography .
personal data
SURNAME Bodemer, Jacob Georg
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German entrepreneur and philanthropist
DATE OF BIRTH April 26, 1807
PLACE OF BIRTH Leipzig
DATE OF DEATH November 27, 1888
Place of death Pillnitz