William Frishmuth (April 22, 1830–August 1, 1893) was a German-born American architect and metallurgist. William Frishmuth was born Johann Wilhelm Gottfried Frischmuth in 1830 in

Coburg Coburg () is a town located on the Itz river in the Upper Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. Long part of one of the Thuringian states of the Wettin line, it joined Bavaria by popular vote only in 1920. Until the revolution of 1918, it was ...

in the

Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (german: Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha), or Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (german: Sachsen-Coburg-Gotha, links=no ), was an Ernestine, Thuringian duchy ruled by a branch of the House of Wettin, consisting of territories in the present-d ...

(now Germany). Frishmuth studied with

Friedrich Wöhler Friedrich Wöhler () FRS(For) HonFRSE (31 July 180023 September 1882) was a German chemist known for his work in inorganic chemistry, being the first to isolate the chemical elements beryllium and yttrium in pure metallic form. He was the firs ...

in Germany;

aluminum Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It has ...

is a metal not found in a pure state in nature, and the first patent for refining aluminum by electrolysis was granted to Wöhler. In 1855 Frishmuth settled in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

and became a US citizen. He established the Frishmuth

Foundry A foundry is a factory that produces metal castings. Metals are cast into shapes by melting them into a liquid, pouring the metal into a mold, and removing the mold material after the metal has solidified as it cools. The most common metals pr ...

in Philadelphia. In 1876 his Philadelphia foundry produced the first authenticated aluminum castings made in America and is believed to be the only aluminum foundry in the US until the late 1880s. He used a chemical process, unlike the electrolytic processes used today. One of the first castings he produced was an engineer's transit. The foundry was declared an Historical Landmark in 1985 by the American Society for Metals (now

ASM International ASM International is a Dutch headquartered multinational corporation that specializes in design, manufacturing, sales and service of semiconductor wafer processing equipment for the fabrication of semiconductor devices. ASM's products are use ...

). In 1861 Frishmuth became a special secret agent to the

War Department War Department may refer to: * War Department (United Kingdom) * United States Department of War (1789–1947) See also * War Office, a former department of the British Government * Ministry of defence * Ministry of War * Ministry of Defence * Dep ...

at the request of

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

. On 5 November 1861, he received authority from President Lincoln, which was confirmed by Governor Curtin of Pennsylvania, to raise a cavalry regiment. In 1862 the regiment was raised for active service, and he was commissioned

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

of the 12th Pennsylvania Cavalry; he resigned his commission on April 20, 1862. Because Frishmuth had previously done plating work for the

Washington Monument The Washington Monument is an obelisk shaped building within the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate George Washington, once commander-in-chief of the Continental Army (1775–1784) in the American Revolutionary War and the ...

, in 1884 the Army Corps of Engineers asked Frishmuth to construct a small metal form for the top of the monument. The small pyramid was to be artistic, and function as the terminus of a

lightning rod A lightning rod or lightning conductor (British English) is a metal rod mounted on a structure and intended to protect the structure from a lightning strike. If lightning hits the structure, it will preferentially strike the rod and be conducte ...

. Frishmuth suggested aluminum, as its color would blend well with the granite, would not stain, would polish well, and could be engraved with inscriptions. In 1884 he cast the aluminum cap, which was the first architectural use of aluminum. Frishmuth needed 100 ounces (about 2.8 kg) of aluminum to produce the pyramid. At that time aluminum was $1.00 per avoirdupois

ounce The ounce () is any of several different units of mass, weight or volume and is derived almost unchanged from the , an Ancient Roman units of measurement, Ancient Roman unit of measurement. The #International avoirdupois ounce, avoirdupois ounce ...

; for perspective, silver was $1.30 per troy ounce ($1.18 per avoirdupois ounce). Through his lifetime, Frishmuth received 12 patents, mostly on

electroplating Electroplating, also known as electrochemical deposition or electrodeposition, is a process for producing a metal coating on a solid substrate through the reduction of cations of that metal by means of a direct electric current. The part to be ...

and production of aluminum. The

American Foundry Society The American Foundry Society (AFS) is a professional, technical and trade association for foundries and the broader metal casting industry. The society promotes the interests of foundries to policymakers, provides training for foundry workers, an ...

(AFS) Aluminum and Light Metals Division regularly presents the "Frishmuth Award" honoring the "Foundryman of the Year" in the aluminum and light metals foundry sector.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Frishmuth, William 1830 births 1893 deaths German metallurgists Foundrymen People from Coburg German emigrants to the United States 19th-century American architects People associated with the Philadelphia Museum of Art Engineers from Bavaria