Wilhelm Seyfferth

Wilhelm Theodor Seyfferth

The Seyfferthsche Villa at Weststrasse 5 (today Friedrich-Ebert-Strasse, not preserved)

Wilhelm Theodor Seyfferth (born July 24, 1807 in Leipzig ; † July 18, 1881 there ) was a Leipzig banker and entrepreneur and one of the pioneers of the German railroad .

Life

His father was from Eilenburg originating Wilhelm Gotthelf Ernst Seyfferth († 1832), owner of the private bank "Vetter & Co.". After his death in 1832 he took over the business and became one of the founders of the Leipziger Bank . He was one of the initiators of the Leipzig-Dresden Railway , which opened in 1839 as the first German long-distance railway line. Until the sale of the railway company to the Saxon State in 1876, he was its chairman. Since the concept of this privately financed and operated railway was successful, he was also involved in the establishment of the Saxon-Bavarian Railway in 1841 , which initially ran from Leipzig to Hof . His name was immortalized on the Leipzig railway monument during his lifetime (1878).

Bust in Johannapark

He is best known to the people of Leipzig as the founder of the Johannapark . He dedicated it to his daughter Johanna Natalie Schulz, who had tragically died in 1858 at the age of only 21.

Wilhelm Theodor Seyfferth was also a city ​​councilor and city ​​councilor for the city of Leipzig at times . In addition, from 1843 he was on the board of directors of the Gewandhaus concerts and a member of the board of directors of the racecourse club . He was also a member of the Leipzig Freemason Lodge Minerva to the three palms . In 1878 he received honorary citizenship of the city of Leipzig.

literature

• Ulrich Heß:  Seyfferth, Wilhelm Theodor. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 24, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 2010, ISBN 978-3-428-11205-0 , p. 298 f. ( Digitized version ).

Web links

Commons : Wilhelm Theodor Seyfferth  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Entry in the Leipzig Lexicon