Wilhelm August Pape

Wilhelm August Pape (born January 3, 1830 in Neuendorf am Speck , † December 13, 1914 in Magdeburg ) was a German shoe manufacturer.

Life

Pape was born the son of a farmer and horse breeder. From 1844 to 1848 he learned the craft of shoemaker from his older brother in Danzig . He then went on a hike and experienced the revolution of 1848 in Berlin . In 1852 he reached Vienna on his wanderings and then came to Magdeburg. In 1855 he founded his shoe manufacture Wilhelm August Pape, shoe factory there . During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870/1871 , French prisoners of war worked in his company. It was from these that Pape learned the technique of penciling shoes used in France. The soles of the shoes are attached to the boots with wooden pins , which means that very sturdy footwear can be produced. After the war, Pape traveled to France and learned about the French methods of making shoes. He used production technology , which was new for Germany, in his company and expanded his business considerably. At the end of the 19th century, his shop was the largest retail shop in the shoe industry in Germany.

literature

• Horst-Günther Heinicke: Pape, Wilhelm August. In: Guido Heinrich, Gunter Schandera (ed.): Magdeburg Biographical Lexicon 19th and 20th centuries. Biographical lexicon for the state capital Magdeburg and the districts of Bördekreis, Jerichower Land, Ohrekreis and Schönebeck. Scriptum, Magdeburg 2002, ISBN 3-933046-49-1 , p. 530.