Laboratory (chemical factory)
The laboratory in Winterthur was the first chemical factory in Switzerland and started operations in 1778 .
history
The laboratory was founded by three businessmen from Winterthur, Johann Heinrich Ziegler , Johann Sebastian Clais and Johann Jakob Sulzer (1733–1797). They built the laboratory in what is now the Neuwiesen district between 1777 and 1781, where they first began producing vitriol oil (old name for sulfuric acid), which was used for bleaching and dyeing textiles.
The first head of the laboratory when it was commissioned in 1778 was Johann Jakob Sulzer. Sulzer's son, Jakob Ziegler-Pellis , took over the management of the laboratory . In 1830 the laboratory was expanded to include a glass blowing workshop. Later, under the leadership of Jakob Ziegler, two explosions occurred in which two people were killed. While the first explosion of a powder mill had no further consequences, Ziegler was sentenced to prison for negligent homicide for the second explosion in an experiment with explosives in which a maid was killed . However, the 88-year-old Ziegler died before the judgment could be carried out. In 1854 the factory ceased operations.
In 1960 the last building of the former laboratory on Laboratoriumsstrasse in Winterthur was demolished. Today, next to the street name "Laboratoriumstrasse", a plaque reminds of the importance of this place, where the parish home of the Catholic parish of St. Peter and Paul stands today.
Web links
- “Laboratorium”, the chemical industry in Winterthur in the Winterthur glossary.
- History of the laboratory (PDF)
Coordinates: 47 ° 30 '9.3 " N , 8 ° 43' 9.6" E ; CH1903: 696 490 / 262101