Johannes Dürrstein

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Johannes Dürrstein (1845–1901)

Johannes Dürrstein (born August 22, 1845 in Niederrad ; † May 7, 1901 ) was a German entrepreneur and founder of the watch factory "Union" in Glashütte .

Dürrstein grew up in a middle-class family and completed a commercial apprenticeship at the Frankfurt watch wholesaler Ludwig & Fries. On business, he repeatedly traveled to Switzerland and got to know the country's major watch manufacturers.

Watch wholesale Dürrstein & Co.

On January 19, 1874, Dürrstein founded the watch wholesaler Dürrstein & Co. in Dresden and built up a trading network in the German Empire , Austria-Hungary , Bohemia and Switzerland . He realized that there was a large market for everyone for an inexpensive utility watch. After a while, Dürrstein sold up to 50,000 pocket watches a year, which he obtained from suppliers in Switzerland.

As early as 1874, Dürrstein negotiated a contract with Ferdinand Adolph Lange in Glashütte for the exclusive sale of Lange watches. The precision watches did not sell to the desired extent, however, as the prices were high due to the quality. Dürrstein managed to get A. Lange & Söhne to produce a simpler and cheaper variant of pocket watches, the so-called DUF quality, which subsequently sold well. After 1880 Dürrstein introduced the Union brand , which he had produced in Switzerland. The hallmark of these Union pocket watches was a bell with 5 stars on the case and movement, the dials were unsigned. In 1885 his brother Friedrich Dürrstein became a partner in the company.

Pocket watch manufacturer Glashütter Uhrenfabrik "Union"

Dürrstein's desire for more and comparatively inexpensive Glashütte pocket watches resulted in the establishment of his own watch manufacture in Glashütte, the then center of German precision watchmaking. On January 1, 1893, he founded the Union watch factory, Glashütte iS , relocated the majority of the production from Switzerland to Glashütte and began with the industrial and technologically modern template watch production. The clocks showed a Greek temple as the case mark, on the dial was the word "Uhrenfabrik Union Glashütte". The Glashütte watchmaker Julius Bergter (1856–1944) was in charge of technical management . In the first year, Dürrstein was able to report the production of a Grande Complication . After six years, the new watch factory was opened on May 1, 1899, where the production of pocket watches began with around 40 employees. Simple precision pocket watches and chronographs , but also watches with complications , as well as pocket chronometers and tourbillons were made. Later, observation and marine clocks added.

Dürrstein died on May 7, 1901 after a long illness.

His brother Friedrich Dürrstein became the sole owner of both companies, but died in 1903. After that, his widow Lina Helene Dürrstein successfully continued the business. The observation watches and marine chronometers from the Glashütte watch factory “Union” have received several awards from the German marine observatory .

Due to the First World War , the economically weak 1920s that followed, and the advent of wristwatches , the companies got into financial difficulties. With the onset of the global economic crisis , the Glashütte watch factory "Union" disappeared in 1926, and some time later the wholesaler Dürrstein & Co.

literature

References and comments

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g Bernd Schaarschmidt: Festschrift for the 100th anniversary of the death of Johannes Dürrstein. In: knirim.de. Retrieved August 11, 2012 .
  2. ^ GH Baillie: Watchmakers & Clockmakers of the World. Third Edition, NAG Press Ltd., London 1966.
  3. ↑ DUF (= Deutsche Uhrenfabrikation) is part of the signature of movements of this quality.
  4. ^ A b c d Fritz von Osterhausen: Callweys Uhrenlexikon . Callwey, Munich 1999, ISBN 3-7667-1353-1 .
  5. ^ Watch manufacturers and movements from Glashütte 1845 to 1899. Hans-Georg Donner, accessed on January 27, 2015 .
  6. ↑ Glashütter Uhrenfabrik Union Dürrstein & Co. 1893 to 1936. Hans-Georg Donner, accessed on January 27, 2015 .
  7. ^ Hans-Heinrich Schmid: Lexicon of the German Watch Industry 1850-1980. Sponsorship Association for a Living Clock Museum, Villingen-Schwenningen 2005, ISBN 3-927987-91-3 .
personal data
SURNAME Dürrstein, Johannes
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German entrepreneur
DATE OF BIRTH August 22, 1845
PLACE OF BIRTH Frankfurt-Niederrad
DATE OF DEATH May 7, 1901