André Koechlin (1789–1875) was a French industrialist and the railroad equipment maker from the

Koechlin family The Koechlin family is an Alsatian family which acquired its wealth in the textile industry and became leading industrialists and politicians of the region. Early family history The first traces of the family can be found in 1440, when Johann Koe ...

Life

André Koechlin was born in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

to the

, where he was the grandson of Samuel Koechlin, son-in-law of Daniel Dollfus-Mieg, head of the Dollfus-Mieg textile company and the

first cousin once removed Most generally, in the lineal kinship system used in the English-speaking world, a cousin is a type of familial relationship in which two relatives are two or more familial generations away from their most recent common ancestor. Commonly, ...

of structural engineer,

Maurice Koechlin Maurice Koechlin (8 March 1856 – 14 January 1946) was a Franco- Swiss structural engineer from the Koechlin family. Life A member of the renowned Alsatian Koechlin family, he was born in Buhl, Haut-Rhin, the son of Jean Koechlin and hi ...

, who is an ancestor of actress

Kalki Koechlin Kalki Koechlin (; born 10 January 1984) is a French actress and writer who works in Hindi films. Known for her unconventional body of work, she is the recipient of such accolades as a National Film Award, a Filmfare Award, and two Screen Awar ...

. Under his lead, between 1818 and 1826, the company became the leading textile company of Mulhouse. Turning in 1826 to the building of machinery for the textile industry, Koechlin became knowledgeable in the fabrication of steam machines and started making railroad equipment. The firm prospered and in 1839 already employed 1,800 people. By 1842, they were the largest French locomotive maker, having built 22 of them by then. This rose rapidly, and in 1857 alone, they made 91 locomotives. They stayed one of the six large French locomotive constructors until the merger with

Elsässische Maschinenbau-Gesellschaft Grafenstaden The Elsässische Maschinenbau-Gesellschaft Grafenstaden (Alsatian Engineering Company in Grafenstaden) was a heavy industry firm located at Grafenstaden in the Alsace, near the city of Strasbourg. In 1826, André Koechlin founded the engineering ...

in 1872, when the company became

Société Alsacienne de Constructions Mécaniques The Société Alsacienne de Constructions Mécaniques (the Alsatian Corporation of Mechanical Engineering), or SACM, is an engineering company with its headquarters in Mulhouse, Alsace, which produced railway locomotives, textile and printing machi ...

. André Koechlin was mayor of Mulhouse from 1830 until 1843, and was elected a deputy in 1830, 1831, 1841 and 1846. He became a Knight in the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...

in 1836.

References

1789 births 1875 deaths Politicians from Mulhouse Mayors of places in Grand Est Orléanists Members of the 2nd Chamber of Deputies of the July Monarchy Members of the 5th Chamber of Deputies of the July Monarchy Members of the 6th Chamber of Deputies of the July Monarchy Members of the 7th Chamber of Deputies of the July Monarchy French industrialists French railway entrepreneurs Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur Businesspeople from Mulhouse {{France-business-bio-stub