Ludo Mayer

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Ludo Mayer, 1907

Ludwig Ludo Mayer (born April 28, 1845 in Offenbach am Main , † November 14, 1917 in Bad Nauheim ) was a German leather goods manufacturer , councilor and patron .

Mayer is considered one of the pioneers of chrome tanning in Germany.

Live and act

Entrepreneurship

After finishing school in 1860, Mayer joined the Lederwerke Mayer & Feistmann company founded by his father Julius Mayer together with Josef Feistmann . He first completed the practical apprenticeship in order to acquire comprehensive knowledge of tanning . He then spent his commercial apprenticeship at a Frankfurt bank. To complete his training, he went to London in 1866. In 1869 he joined the Chakele company in Paris to learn the production of glossy Chevreau leather , which at that time was only produced in Paris.

After Feistmann founded his own company with his sons in 1868 and left the company, Mayer returned to Offenbach in 1870 and became a co-owner of the company with his father, which from then on was named J. Mayer & Sohn . In contrast to other German manufacturers, Mayer recognized the great importance of chrome tanning , which was invented in the USA in 1892, and replaced the alum tanning that had been practiced up until then in the factory. For this purpose he employed master tanners from the USA and sent his own staff there to perfect the process.

His entrepreneurial vision made the company one of the most important in the European leather goods industry. In the mid-1920s it was one of the largest works in Europe in its field. 1200 employees processed around 20,000 goat skins every day into colored and black shiny chrome Chevreau leather. The products enjoyed a good reputation worldwide.

Patronage

Mayer's entrepreneurial activity was accompanied by a social attitude and a high artistic sense. The administration building built by Hugo Eberhardt by J. Mayer & Sohn is based on his suggestion. The net income of an associated with the handover of the new building sale day of 66,000 Goldmark came of tuberculosis - benefit and infant care. This corresponds to around 372,849 euros based on today's purchasing power.

Ludo Mayer fountain

In 1907, Mayer initially donated 50,000 marks for a fountain that now bears his name. Since the fountain was to be set up in front of the Isenburg Palace and the surroundings of the new monument at that time were not considered sufficiently worthy, Mayer donated a further 150,000 gold marks to purchase the houses on Schlossplatz, thus making room for the new technical training institutes, today's university for Design to create Offenbach am Main . The total corresponds to around 1,218,014 euros based on today's purchasing power.

Thanks to his willingness to donate, the artistic design of the public reading room in Isenburg Castle and the construction of an organ in the newly built synagogue were made possible. In order to alleviate the economic hardships of the surviving dependents of his employees, he founded a widow and orphan pension fund in 1899, to which he added another 100,000 gold marks (equivalent to 609,007 euros at today's value) in 1907. In addition, he repeatedly made substantial sums of money available to Hugo Eberhardt in order to acquire valuable pieces for the collection to build up the German Leather Museum .

In addition, Mayer used funds for various institutions; For example, the Liebieghaus and the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University in Frankfurt am Main run him as patrons. After all, Mayer was also known for quietly giving to anyone who turned to him personally for help.

Family and death

Grave of Ludo Mayer

Mayer was married to Louise Mayer, born Henle. The couple had no children.

Mayer died on the occasion of a spa stay in Bad Nauheim in 1917. The obituary notice signed by Mayor Andreas Dullo at the time ended with the sentence: "He was Offenbach's greatest benefactor." This was reflected in the participation of the population at his funeral. When the funeral procession moved, no wheel was said to have turned in Offenbach, and no chimney was said to have smoked. Ludo Mayer's grave is in the old cemetery in Offenbach.

In memory of her husband, the widow Mayers donated the painting Baptism of Christ by the artist Giovanni Battista Crespi to the Städel Museum .

Appreciations

literature

  • Bruno Knapp : Ludo Mayer (1845-1917) . In: Offenbacher Geschichtsverein (ed.): Alt-Offenbach: Leaves of the Offenbacher Geschichtsverein . New episode, issue 10/11, August 1984, ISSN  0174-8726 , p. 18-21 .

Web links

Commons : Ludo Mayer  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Notes and individual references

  1. ↑ a b c Automatic calculation according to price index development; annual update; compare overall template: inflation .
  2. ↑ Maraike Bückling: The Liebieghaus and its patrons. In: liebieghaus.de. Retrieved October 14, 2019 .
  3. ↑ Patrons. Scholars. Citizen. Jewish commitment and scholarship in Frankfurt university history. (PDF; 1.6 MB) In: uni-frankfurt.de. May 2014, accessed October 14, 2019 .
  4. ↑ a b Baptism of Christ. In: staedelmuseum.de. Retrieved October 14, 2019 .
  5. ^ A b c d e Lars Adler : Award list "Orden Stern von Brabant" (Grand Duchy of Hesse, 1914–1918). (PDF; 212 kB) In: deutsche-gesellschaft-fuer-ordenskunde.de . July 22, 2015, p. 3 , accessed October 14, 2019 .
  6. ^ Reports on individuals from the Jewish community in Offenbach in the 19th and 20th centuries. In: alemannia-judaica.de. Alemannia Judaica - Working Group for Research into Jewish History in Southern Germany and the Adjoining Region, February 13, 2014, accessed on October 14, 2019 .
personal data
SURNAME Mayer, Ludo
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Mayer, Ludwig (real name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German leather goods manufacturer, councilor and patron
DATE OF BIRTH April 28, 1845
PLACE OF BIRTH Offenbach am Main
DATE OF DEATH November 14, 1917
Place of death Bad Nauheim