Johann Zürcher (engineer)

Johann Zürcher (born September 13, 1831 in Grünen , † December 6, 1892 in Thun ) was a Swiss engineer and politician .

Johann was the son of the road builder Christian Zürcher. He presented it to Emanuel von Fellenberg , the head of the Hofwil school and educational institution, at the 1842 Federal Rifle Festival in Chur . After a few years, Johann Zürcher left the institution with excellent credentials. In 1850 he worked in the office of the district engineer and later government councilor Kilian in Thun. Zürcher worked from 1853 to 1857 as a surveyor and construction assistant in the United States . In 1858 he was commissioned by the government council to take over the construction management of the Brienzerseestrasse. The following year he married the Thun doctor's daughter Catharina Elisabeth Immer, known as Elise, and moved with her to Brienzwiler. In 1863 he was appointed district engineer in the Bernese Oberland .

Johann Zürcher became politically active from 1869, when he was elected to the Thun municipal council, two years later as its president. And the civic council honored him in 1870 with the award of Thun citizenship rights. At the same time, Zürcher played a key role in founding the Thun residents' association. From 1881 to 1892 he was a liberal national councilor and campaigned for the construction of railways. Zürcher was also lieutenant colonel in the engineering troops .

A monument commemorates Johann Zürcher, it stands near the former mouth of the Zulg - less than 100 meters from the Aare bridge. It bears the inscription: «The non-profit association of Uferanstösser and the Swiss Central Railway Company, with the help of the Canton of Bern and the Swiss Confederation, under the energetic direction and supervision of the district engineer Mr. J. Zürcher, has managed to ensure that these overgrown rivers run smoothly and their banks are protected and to give security. 1871–1892. »

literature

• Heinerika Eggermann Dummermuth: Thun's forgotten district engineer , in: Berner Zeitung, January 10, 2014
• Hermann Hofmann: The Aare and Zulg Correction , Thun 1956, 62 pp.

Web links

• Diego Hättenschwiler: Johann Zürcher (engineer). In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .