Antti Ahlström (7 November 1827 – 10 May 1896) was a Finnish businessman, who founded Ahlstrom-Munksjö. He was one of Finland's influential and wealthy 19th-century businessman. In addition, Ahlström was an industrialist,

ship owner A shipowner, ship owner or ship-owner is the owner of a ship. They can be merchant vessels involved in the shipping industry or non commercially owned. In the commercial sense of the term, a shipowner is someone who equips and exploits a ship, us ...

patron Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, art patronage refers to the support that princes, popes, and other wealthy and influential people ...

, commercial counselor and legislator.

Biography

Ahlström was born on 7 November 1827, in

Merikarvia Merikarvia (; ) is a municipality in Finland. It is located in the Satakunta region. The neighboring municipalities are Isojoki, Kristinestad, Pomarkku, Pori and Siikainen. The municipality has a population of 3,169 (2024) and it covers an are ...

, and was a socially active citizen, representing the bourgeoisie of the Town of

Pori Pori (; ; ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Satakunta. It is located on the west coast of the country, on the Gulf of Bothnia. The population of Pori is approximately , while the Pori sub-region, sub-region has a population of a ...

at the Diet of the Estates in 1877–1878 and in 1894. He was awarded the highly distinguished honorary title of Commercial Counsellor in 1881. Ahlström and his wife made considerable donations to public schools and to public education to further the national interest, and to the arts, for instance to the

Finnish National Theatre The Finnish National Theatre (), established in 1872, is a theatre located in central Helsinki on the northern side of the Helsinki Central Railway Station Square. The Finnish National Theatre is the oldest Finnish speaking professional thea ...

and the

Finnish National Opera The Finnish National Opera and Ballet (; ) is a Finnish opera company and ballet company based in Helsinki. It is headquartered in the Opera House on the coast of the Töölönlahti bay in Töölö, which opened in 1993, and is state-owned throu ...

. The Ahlströms were also patrons to several Finnish artists, including

Akseli Gallen-Kallela Akseli Gallen-Kallela (born Axel Waldemar Gallén; 26 April 1865 – 7 March 1931) was a Finnish painter who is best known for his illustrations of the ''Kalevala'', the Finnish national epic poetry, epic. His work is considered a very importa ...

.Vierivä kivi opera
Between 1866 and 1874, Ahlström's big business was shipping; he became the largest

shipowner A shipowner, ship owner or ship-owner is the owner of a ship. They can be merchant vessels involved in the shipping industry or non commercially owned. In the commercial sense of the term, a shipowner is someone who equips and exploits a ship, us ...

in 1871. It was in shipping that he earned the starting capital which he subsequently used to build his sawmill empire. The purchase of the manor and iron works in

Noormarkku Noormarkku () is a former municipality of Finland. It is located in the province of Western Finland and was part of the Satakunta region. The municipality had a population of 6,158 (31 December 2009) and covered an area of of which is water. ...

in 1870 was a milestone in Ahlström's career: the purchase sealed his status as an important businessman and a 'lord of the manor'. One month after the deed of sale was signed, his wife Margaretha died of a sudden illness. In 1871, Antti Ahlström married again, this time to a woman 20 years his junior, Eva Holmström. Ahlström's business grew rapidly through major acquisitions, such as the iron works in Kauttua, Leineperi and Strömfors and the sawmills in Haminaholma, Suursaari and

Tampere Tampere is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Pirkanmaa. It is located in the Finnish Lakeland. The population of Tampere is approximately , while the metropolitan area has a population of approximately . It is the most populous mu ...

. When Ahlström died on 10 May 1896, aged 68, in

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

, he left behind a fortune estimated at 11.4 million Finnish markkas, which was Finland's largest at the time. Although difficult to estimate, this would likely be the equivalent of billions of

Euro The euro (currency symbol, symbol: euro sign, €; ISO 4217, currency code: EUR) is the official currency of 20 of the Member state of the European Union, member states of the European Union. This group of states is officially known as the ...

today.

References

External links

Biografiskt lexikon för Finland (BLF): Antti Ahlström

Ahlström, Antti
Kansallisbiografia
Vierivä kivi opera
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ahlstrom, Antti 1827 births 1896 deaths People from Merikarvia People from Turku and Pori Province (Grand Duchy of Finland) Members of the Diet of Finland 19th-century Finnish businesspeople 19th-century businesspeople from the Russian Empire Finnish patrons of the arts Finnish industrialists

Biography

See also

References

External links