Michael Felke (
Laufersweiler
Laufersweiler is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis (district) in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' of ...
, 18 April 1895 -
Sohren, 8 April 1977) was a German furniture manufacturer.
Life
Michael Felke was the first of four children and came from a poor family background. He learned the job of a joiner in his father’s small carpenter's workshop in Laufersweiler (State of
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...
).
Michael Felke inherited his father’s carpenter's workshop in 1919 after
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. He then moved the workshop to Sohren in 1928 and started expanding - the beginning of the company
Felke-Möbelwerke GmbH & Co.KG.
[''Laufersweiler, Geschichte eines Hunsrückdorfes'', Schriftenreihe 22, Fritz Schellack, Argental 1994]
Due to his dedication he was known as an industrial pioneer in the
Hunsrück region. He managed to boost the region’s industry and created many jobs.
Michael Felke was married to Maria Felke and the father of 3 sons.
Among his sons were
Aloys Felke, manufacturer and politician, and
Günter Felke, manufacturer, numismatist and patron.
Distinctions
In 1957
Pope Pius XII decorated Michael Felke with the „Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice“ award for his social commitment. His home town Sohren nominated Felke
honorary citizen
Honorary citizenship is a status bestowed by a city or other government on a foreign or native individual whom it considers to be especially admirable or otherwise worthy of the distinction. The honour usually is symbolic and does not confer an ...
. In 1965 he was awarded the German
Federal Cross of Merit, First class.
[''18.April 1895–1995, Michael Felke 100 Jahre, Pionier der Industrieansiedlung im Hunsrück'', ]Rhein-Zeitung
The Rhein-Zeitung (''RZ'') is a regional German daily broadsheet newspaper published in Koblenz by Mittelrhein-Verlag GmbH and distributed across Rhineland-Palatinate.
Notable people Editors
References
German-language newspapers
Da ...
vom 22./23. April 1995
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Felke, Michael
1895 births
1977 deaths
People from Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis
German Roman Catholics
German furniture makers
Officers Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
People from the Rhine Province