Carl Eckert Sohn & Co. (1833-1945) Nuremberg.

Eckert company hallmark [3]
Eckert company hallmark [3]
Eckert 'Hollandia' hallmark, #27954 registered with the Dutch authorities in 1911 [10].
Eckert 'Hollandia' hallmark, #27954 registered with the Dutch authorities in 1911 [10].

Number of employees

1833       10
1850       15
1870       35
1900       70

1910     125
1916     140
1925     150

Eckert advert in Adressbuch Nürnberg 1931. [Stadtarchiv Nürnberg]
Eckert advert in Adressbuch Nürnberg 1931. [Stadtarchiv Nürnberg]
In 1907 the company moved to new premises at Harsdörfferplatz 12 and remained there until around 1945. [Stadtarchiv Nürnberg]
In 1907 the company moved to new premises at Harsdörfferplatz 12 and remained there until around 1945. [Stadtarchiv Nürnberg]

The company founder Johann Carl Eckert

Johann Carl Eckert (*1806;†1873) was born to Zirkelschmied Sigmund Jacob Eckert (*1785;†1853) and Eva Katharina Lorenz (*1778;†1832). His grandfather was Zirkelschmied Conrad Matthäus Eckert († before 1800). Sigmund occupied house S.1558 (Rosenthal 9) in Nuremberg. Carl's sibling Johann Paul Jakob Eckert (*1815;†1860) mathematical instrument maker and clock-maker, known to have made a silver drawing set in 1844 for Franz Schierlinger, Direktor der königlichen obersten Baubehörde [19]. He is best known for inventing an improved polishing method for finishing drawing instruments.

In 1823, at age 17, Carl was registered Zirkelschmied-geselle and in the following years apprenticed to Nuremberg Zirkelschmiede Johann Georg Roming, Johann Paulus Starck, Leonhard Höfler and Johann Jakob Sixt. He was registered Zirkelschmiedmeister in 1832, and in the following year he married Maria Theresia Franziska Nikolasch (*1803) [13]. He established his own workshop in 1833 [6], his first recorded entry in the 1842 Nürnberg Adressbuch has him residing in his parental house at S.1558 (Rosenthal 9). In 1846 Carl acquired ownership of the property at S.1598 (Rosenthal 16) that would remain his residence until he moved to S.1073 (Untere Talgasse 2) in 1872.  

Successors Georg and grandson Carl

Initially low grade brass drawing instruments were made [18]. From around 1850 until the end of the 19th century Swiss pattern or high grade instruments (feine Reisszeuge) were produced. The founder's son Georg (Johann Georg Ludwig Eckert *1834;†1918) started working with his father in 1854 [2] and, after his father's death, became the company's sole proprietor in 1873 [7]. In the 1860s the company began exporting to Austria, Russia and Holland. The company is first listed as Carl Eckert & Sohn in 1863 [9]. In 1860 Georg married Anna Maria Magdalena Schink (*1840). Carl Johann Eckert (*1862), son of Georg, took control of the company in 1885 [2]. In the same year he married Maria Susanna Katharina Paul (*1866;†1920). In the early 20th century the company began to produce flat pattern instruments [2]. Eckert & Sohn was eventually acquired by the Bayerische Reisszeugfabrik A.G. [5]. 

A company history is given in [2], examples of Eckert drawing instruments are given in [3] and [4].

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[1] Signatur: Stadtarchiv Nürnberg C 7/II Nr. 6443: Eckert, Johann Karl, Geburtsdat.: 1807 Geburtsort: Nürnberg Beruf/Gewerbe: Zirkelschmiedgeselle, Datierung: 1832.

Signatur: Stadtarchiv Nürnberg A 4/III Nr. 3664: Karl Eckert, Zirkelschmiedmeister, owner of house S1598 (Rosenthal 16), 1846.

Adressbuch Nürnberg 1852: 'Eckert, Joh. Karl, Rosenthal S.1598 (feine Reisszeuge)'

Adressbuch Nürnberg 1863: 'Eckert, Joh. Carl. 24.D. S.1598'; 'Eckert, Gg. Ludw. l, 24.D. S.1598'

FamilySearch: Johann Georg Ludwig Eckert: born 22.03.1834, died 04.09.1918.

[2] Bayerische Handelszeitung. 15.1885 [MDZ]; Stadtarchiv Nürnberg, Niederlassungsakten: #21552, film #008277422, image 951. [Stadtarchiv Nürnberg]

[3] Schulwart; Ein Lehr- und Lernmittel Verzeichnis 1914, p.925-928. [Internet Archive]

[4] Friedrich Ganzenmüller 1909 catalogue, p.8-16 [Internet Archive]

[5] Jegel, A. (1952) Die wirtschaftliche Entwicklung von Nürnberg-Fürth, Stein und des Nürnberger Raumes seit 1806. p.187.

[6] STARCK, Georg; Die Entwicklung der Deutschen Reißzeugindustrie, Universitätsverlag von Robert Noske in Borna-Leipzig, 1925.

[7] Handelsregister-Einträge: 1873 [GoogleBooks] 

[8] Festschrift zum 40. Hauptversammlung des Vereins Deutscher Ingenieure in Nürnberg 1899 p. 477-479 [SLUB] 

[9] Einwohnerbuch Nürnberg 1863 [Stadtarchiv Nürnberg]

[10] Fabrieks- en Handelsmerken; Nederlandsche staatscourant 01.06.1911, p.158 [KB Delpher]. We note that 2 other firms Ahrend and Hertel used Hollandia as a trade name for ball-head dividers geared for the Dutch market. 

[11] Nürnberg 1895: Bayerische Staatsbibliothek - Signatur: Mapp. XI,493 fla Uniform Resource Name - Identifikator: urn:nbn:de:bvb:12-bsb00004917-0 B3Kat-Identifikator - Identifikator: BV01344206 

[12] Einwohnerbuch Nürnberg 1916 [Stadtarchiv Nürnberg] 

[13] Eckert, Johann Karl; Geburtsdat. 1807; Stadtarchiv Nürnberg, Niederlassungsakten C 7/II Nr. 6443.

[14] Eckert, Johann Georg Ludwig; Geburtsdat. 1834; Stadtarchiv Nürnberg, Niederlassungsakten C 7/II Nr. 15767.

[15] Eckert, Johann Karl; Geburtsdat. 1862; Stadtarchiv Nürnberg, Niederlassungsakten C 7/II Nr. 21552.

[16] Berechnung über die von hiesig löblicher Bürgerschaft vom 1. August bis 10. Dezember 1800. [Google Books]

[17] Nürnberger Künstlerlexikon

[18] For illustrations of standard compasses and sets see Kaspar Friedrich Scharrer (*1795;†1869); Musterbuch Nürnberger Manufakturwaren, (ca. 1850/65), Nr 191: Zirkeln, Reissfedern, Winkelmesser; Nr. 61: Reißzeuge in Etuis.

[19] Fränkischer Kurier, 18.04.1860 [BSB Digipress], Franz Schierlinger, death: 16.06.1855, 65 years old. Münchener Tages-Anzeiger, 18.06.1855, [BSB Digipress].