Piotr Antoni Steinkeller (English: ''Peter Steinkeller''; 15 February 1799 - 11 February 1854) was a Polish entrepreneur, banker and pioneering industrialist. He was known as the "King of
Zinc
Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodi ...
" and opened the ''London Zinc Works'' in
Hoxton
Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, England. As a part of Shoreditch, it is often considered to be part of the East End – the historic core of wider East London. It was historically in the county of Middlesex until 1889. It li ...
in 1837.
Life
He was the son of Józefina, née Frey and Piotr Steinkeller descended from
Pomerania
Pomerania ( pl, Pomorze; german: Pommern; Kashubian: ''Pòmòrskô''; sv, Pommern) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The western part of Pomerania belongs to ...
n
nobility
Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The character ...
. The family being of Roman Catholic observance, migrated to the
Tyrol
Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...
at the time of the
Reformation
The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...
, and later moved to
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
. In mid 18th century, Steinkeller's grandfather arrived in Kraków to open a wholesale business in spices. The family business carried on into the next generation, headed by the following Piotr, who died prematurely in 1813, leaving a widow with 5 children. At that stage Piotr Antoni was sent to Vienna to study international trade and to do an internship in banking. He returned to Kraków in 1818 and took over the management of the family business.
From the start he evinced great energy and inventiveness. He proceeded to make local investments in
Kraków Free State. In 1822 he bought a mining concession near
Jaworzno
Jaworzno is a city in southern Poland, near Katowice. It lies in the Silesian Highlands, on the Przemsza river (a tributary of the Vistula). Jaworzno belongs to the historic province of Lesser Poland. The city is situated in the Silesian Voivod ...
, where he built a coal mine and a
zinc smelting
Zinc smelting is the process of converting zinc concentrates ( ores that contain zinc) into pure zinc. Zinc smelting has historically been more difficult than the smelting of other metals, e.g. iron, because in contrast, zinc has a low boiling poin ...
factory that he named "Józefina" after his mother. It became the scene of his broad range of economic interests as he proved himself a pioneer in the industrial field. He made contracts for an uninterrupted supply of raw materials from the
open-cast zinc mine in
Długoszyn and leased further zinc ore deposits in
Byczyna
Byczyna (Latin: ''Bicina'', ''Bicinium''; german: Pitschen) is a town in Kluczbork County, Opole Voivodeship, Poland, with 3,490 inhabitants as of December 2021.
History
The town of Byczyna was first mention in 1054 when it temporarily served as ...
. He established a state-of-the-art
Zinc
Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodi ...
production-line that employed around 80 people. He was a social innovator in relation to his work-force: he brought in signed work contracts outlining the rights and obligations of both parties and provided accommodation for the workers. For that purpose he erected an estate for his employees – this became the foundation of today's district. He also initiated a scheme to build a miners' hospital in Jaworzno and equipped the first industrial
Fire service
A fire department (American English) or fire brigade (Commonwealth English), also known as a fire authority, fire district, fire and rescue, or fire service in some areas, is an organization that provides fire prevention and fire suppression se ...
in the area.
Expansion in Warsaw
In 1825 Steinkeller resolved to sell the Niedzieliski business and move to
Warsaw
Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...
, where he settled permanently. There he continued his pioneering economic involvement in several fields. He opened a large
Department store
A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store made a dramatic app ...
, imported salt from
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, invested in mining and
Steel production in
Dąbrowa Górnicza
Dąbrowa Górnicza is a city in Zagłębie Dąbrowskie, southern Poland, near Katowice and Sosnowiec. It is located in eastern part of the Silesian Voivodeship, on the Czarna Przemsza and Biała Przemsza rivers (tributaries of the Vistula River, ...
, where exploration of deep mining had just begun at
Zagłębie Dąbrowskie Zagłębie in Polish means coalfield. It can refer to:
* Górnośląskie Zagłębie Węglowe, a mining region
*Zagłębie Dąbrowskie, a mining region
*Zagłębie Sosnowiec, an association football club
*Zagłębie Lubin, an association football cl ...
. He established a
Brickworks
A brickworks, also known as a brick factory, is a factory for the manufacturing of bricks, from clay or shale. Usually a brickworks is located on a clay bedrock (the most common material from which bricks are made), often with a quarry for ...
in
Pomiechówek
Pomiechówek is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Pomiechówek, within Nowy Dwór County, Masovian Voivodeship, Nowy Dwór County, Masovian Voivodeship, in east-central Poland. It lies on the Wkra river, approximately north-east o ...
and bought a steam-driven mill in
Solec in Warsaw. He expanded his zinc interests into large-scale production by leasing government owned tin mines and smelting facilities in
Congress Poland. He also imported zinc from the Kraków area, controlled then by
Habsburg Austria. Whereas in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
he set up a zinc works to produce galvanised sheeting and from there he developed an international trade in the metal.
In 1838 he set up a
Courier service
A courier is a person or organisation that delivers a message, package or letter from one place or person to another place or person. Typically, a courier provides their courier service on a commercial contract basis; however, some couriers are ...
whose network covered virtually all the main tracts in the Russian-controlled
Kingdom of Poland
The Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Królestwo Polskie; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a state in Central Europe. It may refer to:
Historical political entities
* Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom existing from 1025 to 1031
* Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom exi ...
and outlying areas, using specialist courier carriages he produced at his Solec depot, known as „steinkellerki" – Steinkeller's
Diligence
Diligence—carefulness and persistent effort or work—is one of the seven heavenly virtues. It is indicative of a work ethic, the belief that work is good in itself.
In students
Bernard et al. suggest that diligence in students is defin ...
”. He supplemented these with a river courier service. Until the opening of the
Warsaw-Vienna railway of which he was one of the early backers and investors, his messenger network was the chief source of his revenues.
Thanks to his efforts, on
Nowy Świat Street, the main commercial thoroughfare in Warsaw, the road was laid out in timber blocks. He acquired a vast country estate near
Częstochowa, in an area known as ''dominium żareckie'' or "Żarki domain", including the town of
Żarki
Żarki (german: Zarki) is a town in Myszków County, Silesian Voivodeship, Poland, with 4,556 inhabitants (2019). The history of Żarki dates back to the early 14th century, as the village was first mentioned in documents from the 1320s. For cen ...
, and villages like:
Jaroszów, Zawada, Leśniów, Przewodziszowice,
Jaworznik, Ciszówka,
Myszków
Myszków is a town in Poland, with 31,650 inhabitants (2019). Situated on the Warta river in the Silesian Voivodeship (since 1999), previously in Częstochowa Voivodeship (1975–1998), it is the capital of Myszków County. Myszków historically ...
,
Nowa Wieś and Warcianna.
There he brought in modern agricultural techniques in raising crops and
animal husbandry. He also opened a factory to produce agricultural machinery.
He was also an active investor and financier. Among his roles were consultant to
Bank Polski, where he worked closely with
Henryk Łubieński
Henryk Jan Nepomucen Łubieński, Pomian coat of arms, (11 July 1793, in Prague – 17 September 1883, in Wiskitki, Poland) – was the scion of a Polish magnate family, landowner, financier, lawyer, early industrialist, economic activist, an ...
, and was a senior consultant to the
Warsaw Stock Exchange
The Warsaw Stock Exchange (WSE), pl, Giełda Papierów Wartościowych w Warszawie, is a stock exchange in Warsaw, Poland. It has a market capitalization of PLN 1.05 trillion (EUR 232 billion; as of December 23, 2020).
The WSE is a member of the ...
. The registered office of his business was in the Mniszchów Palace in Warsaw, that had been refurbished for the Warsaw
Chamber of commerce (Warszawska Resursa Kupiecka), of which Steinkeller was an active member.
However, not all of Steinkeller's initiatives were crowned with success. This was due largely to problems of a technical nature.
Faith in foreign specialists was sometimes misplaced. Examples of this were his over-reliance on them in the restoration of
lead mines in
Olkusz
Olkusz ( yi, עלקיש ''Elkish'', german: 1941-45 Ilkenau) is a town in southern Poland with 36,607 inhabitants (2014). Situated in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship (since 1999), previously in Katowice Voivodeship (1975–1998), it is the capita ...
, or in the production of
Farm equipment, or importing river barges from England whose draught was inappropriate for Polish waterways. His own financial situation took a turn for the worse towards the end of the 1840s. His indebtedness to Bank Polski, a new management (Łubieński and president Lubowidzki had been removed on charges of
malfeasance
Misfeasance, nonfeasance, and malfeasance are types of failure to discharge public obligations existing by common law, custom, or statute.
The Carta de Logu caused Eleanor of Arborea to be remembered as one of the first lawmakers to set up the ...
) at the bank and a fire at his Solec works led to his being declared bankrupt in 1849. All his assets in Congress Poland were taken over by Bank Polski. He returned "over the border" to Kraków, where he still owned assets like his brickworks and a roof-tile factory in
Podgórze
Podgórze is a district of Kraków, Poland, situated on the right (southern) bank of the Vistula River, at the foot of Lasota Hill. The district was subdivided in 1990 into six new districts, see present-day districts of Kraków for more details. ...
. Not long after he died of a cardiac arrest.
Personal life
Steinkeller was twice married: firstly, to Aniela Anthonin, and secondly to Maria Lemańska. From his first marriage there were four sons and a daughter, Józef, Alfred, Aleksander, Edward and Paulina. There was one son from the second marriage, Henryk Artur. Steinkeller's nephew by his sister, was
Józef Hauke-Bosak.
Honours
![Steinkeller tablica](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/Steinkeller_tablica.JPG)
Among his contemporaries he was greatly admired and carried great authority. His appeal to colleagues can be summed up as follows: "aside from his astonishing energy and his enormous zest for industry, he had a solid and honest respect for industry itself, not as a pretext for speculation, not as an asset stripper, but looking out for organic growth for the benefit of the country as a whole." He was awarded;
* The
Order of Saint Stanislaus III class 1839
* The
Order of St. Anna
The Imperial Order of Saint Anna (russian: Орден Святой Анны; also "Order of Saint Anne" or "Order of Saint Ann") was a Holstein ducal and then Russian imperial order of chivalry. It was established by Karl Friedrich, Duke of Holst ...
III class 1842
On the 50th anniversary of his death in 1904 a commemorative plaque to Steinkeller was placed in St Peter and Paul church,
Warsaw
Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...
with the inscription: ''To a deserving Polish industrial pioneer, from his grateful countrymen.''
Bibliography
* Archiwum Państwowe w Krakowie, ''Zespół Wolnego Miasta Krakowa – Akta senatu, wydziału dochodów publicznych, akta górnicze''.
* ''Piotr Steinkeller'', w: Polski Słownik Biograficzny, t. XLIII/3, s. 336–342.
* Ryszard Kołodziejczyk, ''Piotr Steinkeller kupiec i przemysłowiec 1799–1854'', Warszawa, 1963.
* Ryszard Kołodziejczyk, ''Bohaterowie nieromantyczni'', Warszawa, 1961.
* Maria Leś-Runicka, ''Piotr Steinkeller – założyciel osiedla Niedzieliska'', „Zeszyty historyczne miasta Jaworzna”, grudzień 1999 nr 1/1, s. 21–23.
* Henryk Radziszewski, Jan Kindelski, ''Piotr Steinkeller – dwie monografie'', Warszawa, 1905
wersja elektroniczna* Stanisław Dziewulski, ''P.A. Steinkeller w 50-tą rocznicę śmierci'', „Ekonomista”, 1904, s. 104 i nast.
* Andrzej Kuśnierczyk, ''Bankructwo Steinkellera'', w: „Korzenie”, nr 53.
* L. Jenike, ''Piotr Steinkeller'', „Tygodnik Ilustrowany”, 1859, nr 7
.
* Piotr Hapanowicz, ''Pierwszy oligarcha. Piotr Antoni Steinkeller (1799–1854)'', „Kraków”, 2008, nr 2-3
wersja elektroniczna.
References
External links
*
The Annual Register
''The Annual Register'' (originally subtitled "A View of the History, Politicks and Literature of the Year ...") is a long-established reference work, written and published each year, which records and analyses the year's major events, developmen ...
, vol.9, published J. Dodsley 1938
p. 264. Consulted 6 February 2018
* Wójcik, Andrzej J. "CADMIA FOSSILIS – DZIAŁALNOŚĆ PIOTRA STEINKELLERA, POLSKIEGO „KRÓLA” CYNKU", ''Dzieje górnictwa – element europejskiego dziedzictwa kultury'', 5, pod red. P.P. Zagożdżona i M. Madziarza, Wrocław: 2013
p.379-392.Steinkeller's entrepreneurial activities with an Abstract in English
{{DEFAULTSORT:Steinkeller, Piotr Antoni
1799 births
1854 deaths
Businesspeople from Kraków
Nobility from Kraków
Pomeranian nobility
19th-century Polish businesspeople
Polish bankers
Businesspeople from Warsaw
Polish industrialists
German social reformers
Polish people of German descent
Burials at Rakowicki Cemetery
19th-century Polish landowners