Max Hildebrand
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a9/SAM_PC_1_-_Surveyor_with_Hildebrand_theodolite_diorama.jpg/220px-SAM_PC_1_-_Surveyor_with_Hildebrand_theodolite_diorama.jpg)
Max Hildebrand (born December 23, 1839 in Falkenberg ; † June 26, 1910 in Freiberg ) was a German precision mechanic and entrepreneur. His work led to an improvement in the quality of many geodetic instruments and the machines used to make them.
Life
Max Hildebrand was a son of the Falkenberg manor owner and later Sorau station master Karl Hildebrand and his wife Emma, née Lemm. Already during his time in pre-school and high school in Sorau, Max Hildebrand carried out technical handicrafts in the railway workshops. After an accident that shattered one of the boy's legs, he attended grammar school in Frankfurt (Oder) . After starting an apprenticeship as a watchmaker, he switched to a mechanic in Berlin. Here he designed and built a shuttle sewing machine and an improved lathe on his own. After completing his apprenticeship, Max Hildebrand first worked as a precision mechanic at the Pistor & Martins company in Berlin , and later in Paris, where he represented the company at the 1867 World Exhibition . In order to be able to optimally observe the solar eclipse on August 18, 1868, he joined an expedition to Siam . Hildebrand then gained professional experience in England before returning to Berlin to set up his own workshop here. He sought contacts with the Berlin observatory , the Imperial Standard Calibration Commission and the General Staff of the military.
In 1873 Max Hildebrand moved to Freiberg in Saxony ; Here he became a partner in the precision engineering workshop August Lingke & Compagnie , later Hildebrand & Schramm . In 1873 he took part in the deliberations of generals Helmuth Johannes Ludwig von Moltke , Otto von Morozowicz and the director of the observatory Wilhelm Foerster , which later led to the establishment of the Physikalisch-Technische Reichsanstalt . The request made to him to open a workshop in Berlin, he refused. In 1895 Hildebrand was appointed a member of the board of trustees of the Reichsanstalt. Many well-known precision mechanics learned from Hildebrand.
Max Hildebrand's brother was the painter Ernst Hildebrand . Hildebrand was married to Maria Ockel (1842–1908), his daughter Charlotte (1880–1953) married the mountain official Karl Spitzner .
Services
Max Hildebrand improved many geodetic and astronomical instruments. He was particularly interested in equipment for mining mining : in 1875 he developed the patented Markscheider repetition theodolite , in 1875/76 he constructed a device for setting up theodolite and target signs in underground mines, he invented the ablator , a steep shaft signal and a Test device for the hanging equipment. A new dragonfly auditor , tube compass and a level auditor left his workshop in the years 1883-1892. He introduced technical improvements to the theodolite. He continuously improved his workshop machines.
Honors
In 1909 the Bergakademie Freiberg and the Technical University of Dresden awarded him the title of Dr.-Ing. honorary.
literature
- Fischer, Walther: Hildebrand, Max. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 9, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1972, ISBN 3-428-00190-7 , p. 123 ( digitized version ).
personal data | |
---|---|
SURNAME | Hildebrand, Max |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German precision mechanic and entrepreneur |
DATE OF BIRTH | December 23, 1839 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Falkenberg / Elster |
DATE OF DEATH | June 26, 1910 |
Place of death | Freiberg |