Theodor Fuendeling
Theodor Fuendeling (born November 10, 1852 in Hildesheim , † June 23, 1919 in Hameln ) was a bookseller and publisher in Hameln. He played a key role in the founding of the Hanover-Braunschweig booksellers' association (the union of booksellers and publishers in what is now Lower Saxony). This is the forerunner of today's Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels - Landesverband Niedersachsen-Bremen, which has been merged with the regional association of the region of Northern Germany to form Landesverband Nord eV since April 26, 2015.
Life
Fuendeling grew up as the youngest son of the pastor and high school teacher Friedrich Fuendeling († 1854) in Hildesheim. There he attended grammar school from 1858 to 1870. Through a classmate who was already a bookstore assistant, I came into contact with the Finckeschen Buchhandlung in Hildesheim, where Fuendeling soon helped out regularly. The owner of Finckesche Buchhandlung, Gotthilf. Friedrich. Schmidt, who, according to Fuendeling, is a long-term relative, convinced him to embark on a book trade career and start working as an apprentice in his bookstore.
At Easter 1870 he began his apprenticeship as a book trade assistant and finished his training in December 1872. At Easter 1873 he moved to Ludwig Schmidt's bookstore in Freiburg im Breisgau through a book trade assistant from Hildesheim. According to his own statement, it was here that he got to know the academic public in particular - students and scholars - and rose to become first assistant.
In 1874 Fuendeling returned to Hildesheim to do the one-year military service. After the suicide of his former teacher [2. May 1875] - a friend of his military superior - he was however regularly released from duty in order to support the widow Schmidt in running Fincke's bookstore. However, he turned down the takeover of the bookstore, which was finally offered in autumn 1875, because of the "conditions attached to it that cut deeply into my personal wishes".
Instead, he moved to the Gustav Elkan bookstore in Harburg, where he got to know the publishing business. In April 1876 he moved to Stuttgart in the Jul. Weisesche Hofbuchhandlung. The owner became aware of Fuendeling through his uncle, the Freiburg bookseller Ludwig Schmidt. His work there brought him back into contact with scientific circles and made frequent trips, including to Leipzig , necessary. As a result of the serious illness of the owner of the Weisesche Hofbuchhandlung, Fuendeling left the company in 1879 in order to become self-employed.
Work in the booksellers association
Driving force in founding the association
In 1879, Theodor Fuendeling started his own bookseller. A few years later he began to advertise intensively among booksellers and publishers for the establishment of a regional association in the province of Hanover and the neighboring countries of Braunschweig, Lippe and Waldeck. Finally, on August 26, 1883, the time had come.
The fact that Fuendeling was the driving force here was expressly emphasized in the commemorative publication for the 25th anniversary of the association: "It is thanks to our Hamelin colleague Theodor Fuendeling that, through his spirited advocacy of the association, the 'somewhat clumsy character of Lower Saxony' [... ] to have defeated. The first attempt in 1882 failed. It was not until 1883, when the tireless initiator had the support of Emil Kallmeyer [...] and other influential colleagues, that a booksellers association for Lower Saxony [...] was founded. "
Honorary positions in the association of booksellers and publishers
Fuendeling was elected the first secretary to the board. He held this office under various chairmen of the association from 1883 to 1908, and in this capacity he was also the main contact person in matters of the association. This earned him the reputation of the actual head of the association.
Fuendeling was a member of the stock exchange association's election committee for six years (1893–1898), most recently as chairman. He was one of the people who had a significant influence on the filling of board and other association positions.
In 1894 he was one of the signatories of an open letter to Reich Chancellor Count v. Caprivi regarding a planned amendment to the colportage book trade .
Independent bookseller in Hameln
Initially conducted takeover negotiations with Elkan in Harburg failed because of unfavorable conditions. Finally, at the end of 1879, he bought the Schmidt & Suckert bookstore in Hameln, which was originally founded as a branch by his Hildesheim teacher Schmidt. The annual turnover was 20,000 marks and was mainly achieved with the distribution of the "Hannoversche Kurier" and some magazines. Fuendeling paid the purchase price of 18,000 marks with a deposit of 3,000 marks (“without own assets, with money borrowed from friends”). The rest was paid off in annual installments of 1,500 marks. In 1881 he married Charlotte Kaufmann. In 1884 the business was relocated to Osterstrasse. Fuendeling thus followed a post office move. In 1885 a branch was established in Rinteln.
Fuendeling was seen by his contemporaries as an enterprising bookseller who took intensive personal care of his customers and expanded the "neglected" school book business again. After 32 years as an independent bookseller and publisher, he sold his business in 1911 to the bookseller Hermann Paul Ehrich from Genthin “out of health considerations”. He died on June 23, 1919.
Publisher Theodor Fuendeling
The “Theodor Fuendeling Verlag”, which was founded soon after the bookstore was bought, published, among other things, address books, official documents, regionalia and song books for school use.
Diverse voluntary commitment
According to contemporary statements, Fuendeling showed intense interest in "all things of public life". He was involved several times in the organization of large city festivals (Pied Piper Festival in 1884, first association festival of the Academic Gymnastics Federation in 1901, 100th anniversary celebration in honor of Schiller in 1905) and was co-founder of the Weser Mountains Association, board member in various warrior associations, the (Hamelin) Beautification Association, managing director of the municipal transport committee and the tourist association; he was secretary and treasurer in the Patriotic Women's Association and was active in military aid and caring for the wounded. Even as a retiree, his social commitment remained high. In his obituary, the district administrator of the Hameln district mentioned that after the outbreak of the First World War he had made a special contribution to alleviating the war needs of “the sick, the economically weak and those otherwise in need”. When he died, he was held in high esteem by the rich and poor, high and low, always helpful and with a kind heart, [Fuendeling] spent many years in town and country in the field of social welfare and voluntary charity stood in the front line. "
Theodor Fuendeling Culture Prize
The North Regional Association of the German Book Trade Association has been awarding a culture prize named after Theodor Fuendeling since 2013. The first prize winner is Christian Pfeiffer as head of the Criminological Research Institute Lower Saxony . The 2014 award winner is Bremen ex-professional footballer Marco Bode . The 2015 award winner is Georg Ruppelt , Director of the Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Library in Hanover. He “receives the award in recognition of his services to book culture and his social commitment”, especially for his involvement in founding and maintaining the Academy for Reading Promotion .
| Bearer of the Theodor Fuendeling plaque | |
|---|---|
| 2013 | Christian Pfeiffer , Hanover |
| 2014 | Marco Bode , Bremen |
| 2015 | Georg Ruppelt , Hanover |
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Carola Markwa (responsible):Theodor Fuendeling badge( Memento from August 27, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) on the boersenverein.de page
- ↑ Carola Markwa (Responsible): Annual General Meeting 2015 The state associations Lower Saxony-Bremen and Region Northern Germany merge into Landesverband Nord eV ( Memento from August 27, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ Theodor Fuendeling in memory. 1919 (German National Library, Leipzig - 1919 A 12557)
- ^ Börsenblatt for the German book trade, 1908, 4728/97
- ^ "Letters to the association still to Mr. Th. Fuendeling in Hameln" - Börsenblatt für den Deutschen Buchhandel, 1894, 1577/59
- ^ "According to § 8 of the statutes, the board of directors is represented by the 1st chairman and the 1st secretary." - Börsenblatt für den Deutschen Buchhandel, 1909, 3441/65
- ^ Börsenblatt für den Deutschen Buchhandel, 1898, 5321/164
- ↑ Theodor Fuendeling in memory. 1919 - loc. cit.
- ^ German National Library, Leipzig - Bö-GR / S / 849
- ^ German National Library, Leipzig - Bö-GR / S / 850
- ^ Address book City of Hameln…: based on official documents and own research; Journal, published: Hameln, [1879–1921: Fuendeling] Niemeyer, 1879–2004
- ↑ Selection: The larch: its easy and safe cultivation in central and northern Germany thanks to the successful fight against larch cancer; with 3 figure panels / Franz Boden. Hameln: Fuendeling, 1899; Description and brief history of the city of Hameln / Friedrich Meissel. Hameln: Fuendeling, [1899]; Liederborn. Songbook for German schools / H. Hogrefe u. W. Stolte; 8th edition Hameln and Leipzig: Fuendeling, 1914 (German National Library, Leipzig - 1914 B 1575)
- ↑ Theodor Fuendeling in memory. 1919 - loc. cit.
- ↑ (Theodor Fuendeling plaque for Christian Pfeiffer) ( Memento of the original from January 6, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ (Theodor Fuendeling plaque for Marco Bode) .
- ↑ (Theodor Fuendeling plaque for Georg Ruppelt) ( Memento of the original from April 7, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Fuendeling, Theodor |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Bookseller and publisher in Hameln |
| DATE OF BIRTH | November 10, 1852 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Hildesheim |
| DATE OF DEATH | June 23, 1919 |
| Place of death | Hamelin |