Karl Schneck (firefighter)

Bust in the St. Pölten Sparkassenpark

Karl Schneck (born November 17, 1846 in St. Pölten , Lower Austria, † December 4, 1926 there ) was an Austrian fire service pioneer, politician and gymnastics teacher.

Live and act

Karl Schneck was born the son of an innkeeper and attended grammar school in Krems and Vienna . In 1866 he graduated from high school and from 1871 was a gymnastics teacher at the St. Pölten grammar school run by the English ladies . After the teaching qualification examination in 1873, he was a gymnastics teacher at various schools. From 1878 he was a professor .

From 1866 Schneck was a member of the St. Pölten gymnastics club. Schneck was at its head from 1884 to 1897. He had been a member of the St. Pölten Volunteer Fire Brigade since it was founded in 1867 , and from 1887 to 1918 he was also captain. In addition, he was a member of the St. Pölten municipal council for 12 years.

During this time he also encouraged the establishment of numerous other fire brigades, as well as the St. Pölten District Fire Brigade Association, which he headed for 50 years until 1925. In 1893 he became the head of the Lower Austrian Fire Brigade Association . In 1903 he became chairman of the Reich Fire Brigade Association, which later became the Federal Fire Brigade Association . As its chairman, he organized the last Reich Fire Brigade Day in 1906, in which the regional associations of the crown lands also took part.

After the First World War, he headed the Sparkasse der Stadt St. Pölten for three years , of which he had been a member of the board of directors for more than twenty years.

On December 4, 1926, Schneck died in his hometown.

Father Schneck is considered one of the pioneers of Austrian volunteering in the fire service.

Managerial functions

• Captain of the St. Pölten fire brigade 1887–1918
• Chairman of the St. Pölten District Fire Brigade Association 1875–1925
• Chairman of the Lower Austrian Fire Brigade Association 1893–1922
• Chairman of the Reich Fire Brigade Association 1903–1914

Awards

• 1887 honorary citizen of St. Pölten
• 1913 honorary committee member of the German Reich Fire Brigade Association.
• 1914 Honorary President of the Reich Fire Brigade Association
• 1924 Honorary Commander of all Lower Austrian fire brigades
• 1926 Silver Decoration of Honor for Services to the Republic of Austria
• Civil Merit Cross

After his death in 1927, the Schneckgasse in St. Pölten was named after him in his honor. In addition, on the occasion of the 26th State Fire Brigade Day in St. Pölten on August 7, 1927, a bronze bust by the sculptor Wilhelm Frass was unveiled.

literature

• K. Gutkas:  Schneck Karl. In: Austrian Biographical Lexicon 1815–1950 (ÖBL). Volume 10, Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Vienna 1994, ISBN 3-7001-2186-5 , p. 361.
• Manfred Wieninger : Telling St. Pöltner street names . Loewenzahn, Innsbruck 2002, ISBN 3-7066-2208-4 , p. 337: Entry on Schneckgasse .

Web links

Commons : Karl Schneck  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Entry on Karl Schneck in the database of the state's memory for the history of the state of Lower Austria ( Museum Niederösterreich )