Ernesto Carlos Tornquist (31 December 1842 – 17 June 1908) was an

Argentinian Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish (masculine) or ( feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, ...

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values th ...

and

businessman A businessperson, businessman, or businesswoman is an individual who has founded, owns, or holds shares in (including as an angel investor) a private-sector company. A businessperson undertakes activities (commercial or industrial) for th ...

, considered to be one of the most important entrepreneurs in Argentina at the end of the 19th century. The diversified business empire he created played a key role in helping to link Argentina with the trading and financial systems of the first world. Amongst many other achievements, he founded the Tornquist Bank, the Plaza Hotel in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

, the partido of Tornquist and Tornquist its main city, in the south of

Buenos Aires Province Buenos Aires (), officially the Buenos Aires Province (''Provincia de Buenos Aires'' ), is the largest and most populous Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of th ...

Biography

Born in Buenos Aires in 1842, Ernesto Tornquist was the seventh son of Jorge Pedro Ernesto Tornquist (1801-1876), a

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

born in

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, United States and whose parents came from a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

family in the city of

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with roots in Karlskrona in Sweden. The father was consul of the city of

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...

Montevideo Montevideo () is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

, and was an importer and property investor in Buenos Aires. His mother, Rosa Camusso Alsina, a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, was born in Buenos Aires in 1805 and died there of

yellow fever Yellow fever is a viral disease of typically short duration. In most cases, symptoms include fever, chills, loss of appetite, nausea, muscle pains – particularly in the back – and headaches. Symptoms typically improve within five days. In ...

in 1871. Tornquist started his schooling at Escuela Evangélica Alemana and in 1856 was sent to study in Germany in the city of

Krefeld Krefeld ( , ; li, Krieëvel ), also spelled Crefeld until 1925 (though the spelling was still being used in British papers throughout the Second World War), is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located northwest of Düsseldorf, i ...

for two years. On his return to Argentina he took up a job working for a company directed by his brother-in-law which

export An export in international trade is a good produced in one country that is sold into another country or a service provided in one country for a national or resident of another country. The seller of such goods or the service provider is an ...

wool Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool. As ...

and

leather Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and hogs, ...

and

import An import is the receiving country in an export from the sending country. Importation and exportation are the defining financial transactions of international trade. In international trade, the importation and exportation of goods are limited ...

agricultural machinery Agricultural machinery relates to the mechanical structures and devices used in farming or other agriculture. There are many types of such equipment, from hand tools and power tools to tractors and the countless kinds of farm implements that the ...

. In 1872 he married his niece, Rosa Altgelt Tornquist in Buenos Aires, and in 1874 took over the running of his brother-in-law's company which was now renamed, ''Ernesto Tornquist y Cia''. With the help of Belgium capital the company diversified its activities to include investment in the sugar, meat-salting and cold-storage industries. The company also invested in railways and acquired land in the provinces of Santa Fe and Entre Rios, previously occupied by Indians. In the 1880s he set up a large sugar refinery, ''Refineria Argentina'', in

Rosario Rosario () is the largest city in the central provinces of Argentina, Argentine province of Santa Fe Province, Santa Fe. The city is located northwest of Buenos Aires, on the west bank of the Paraná River. Rosario is the third-most populous ci ...

. Other initiatives included founding the ''Bieckert'' brewery, the ''Seeber'' margarine manufacturer and the ''Bianchetti'' scale manufacturer. Marriott Plaza Hotel Buenos Aires, Argentina - exterior

Marriott Plaza Hotel Buenos Aires, Argentina - exterior

On 17 April 1883 he founded Tornquist, the main city of Tornquist Partido, in the south of Buenos Aires Province. From the beginning the town was organized as an agricultural colony for German and

Volga German The Volga Germans (german: Wolgadeutsche, ), russian: поволжские немцы, povolzhskiye nemtsy) are ethnic Germans who settled and historically lived along the Volga River in the region of southeastern European Russia around Saratov ...

immigrants. After the economic crisis of 1890 he took charge of organizing the recovery of the company ''Sansinena'' and its cold-storage plant ''La Negra'' in Riachuelo and set up the plant ''Cuartreros'' in

Bahía Blanca Bahía Blanca (; English: White Bay) is a city in the southwest of the provinces of Argentina, province of Buenos Aires Province, Buenos Aires, Argentina, by the Atlantic Ocean, and is the seat of government of the Bahía Blanca Partido. It had 3 ...

. Amongst other activities the Tornquist group organised the hunting of whales (not controversial in those days) around the

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through the ''Compañía Argentina de Pesca'', oil exploration in Mendoza, the exploitation of quebracho in

Santiago del Estero Santiago del Estero (, Spanish for ''Saint-James-Upon-The-Lagoon'') is the capital of Santiago del Estero Province in northern Argentina. It has a population of 252,192 inhabitants, () making it the twelfth largest city in the country, with a surf ...

and the construction of the Ferrocarril del Norte de Santa Fe with the help of Belgium capital. Ernesto Tornquist played a crucial role in helping to avoid a war between

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and

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in 1902 by managing the British mediation in the border dispute, and by strongly opposing the bellicose Foreign Minister

Estanislao Zeballos Estanislao Severo Zeballos (27 July 1854 - 4 October 1923) was an Argentine lawyer and politician who was Minister of Foreign Affairs of his country three times. He was one of the most prominent intellectuals and politicians of his time. He w ...

. He represented the German armaments group

Krupp The Krupp family (see pronunciation), a prominent 400-year-old German dynasty from Essen, is notable for its production of steel, artillery, ammunition and other armaments. The family business, known as Friedrich Krupp AG (Friedrich Krup ...

in Buenos Aires where he organised a strong lobby for the armaments industry, whilst on the other hand he helped to resolve a conflict with Brazil. In 1903 he built the

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, ''Sierra de la Ventana'', in Tornquist, designed by the German immigrant architect Carlos Nordmann in

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style typical of German castles in the

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. The grounds were designed by the French immigrant landscape architect, Carlos Thays. He maintained a close friendship with Argentine presidents Julio A. Roca and Carlos Pellegrini and tenaciously opposed the militaristic plans of the War Minister Estanislao Zeballos during the presidency of

José Figueroa Alcorta José María Cornelio Figueroa Alcorta (November 20, 1860 – December 27, 1931) was an Argentine lawyer and politician, who managed to be the only person to head the three powers of the State: Vice President of the Nation (President of the ...

(1906-1910). In 1909 he built the

Plaza Hotel The Plaza Hotel (also known as The Plaza) is a luxury hotel and condominium apartment building in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is located on the western side of Grand Army Plaza, after which it is named, just west of Fifth Avenue, a ...

(today called the Marriott Plaza Hotel), designed by the German architect Alfredo Zucker, in Florida street, overlooking Plaza San Martin in Buenos Aires. He died in 1908 in Buenos Aires and since 1980 his remains are buried in the local church in the town of Tornquist.

References

* ''Ernesto Tornquist'', por Fernando M. Madero, en Gustavo Ferrari y Ezequiel Gallo, (comp.), La Argentina del Ochenta al Centenario, Buenos Aires, Sudamericana, 1980, pp. 628–631 y 634–637. * Scandizzo, Delfor Reinaldo: ''El gringo Pellegrini'', Ed. Corregiodor, Buenos Aires. Agosto 1997. * Altgelt, Carlos A. y Acuña, María Florencia . "El ancho camino se bifurca" La descendencia de Adam Altgelt y Laura Tornquist a 150 años de su casamiento - Edición Privada 2003 - Volumen en la Biblioteca Ernesto Tornquist del Banco Central de RA. * Del Solar. Alberto - "Don Ernesto Tornquist y Los Pactos con Chile" (Datos para la Historia) -Diario La Nacion, 20 de junio de 1908. * Floria, Carlos A. y García Belsunce, César A. - "Historia política de la Argentina contemporánea 1880-1983 - Alianza Universidad - 1992. * Yuyú Guzmáúún, ''Un castillo gótico alemán en medio del pasaje serrano'', Diario La Nación, 23 July 2005.

External links

*
''La pugna Tornquist-Zeballos'', Historia General de las Relaciones Exteriores de Argentina, CEMA, 2000

''Ernesto Tornquist: Making a Fortune on the Pampas'', Harvard Business Publishing, May 1, 2007
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tornquist, Ernesto Argentine businesspeople 1842 births 1908 deaths Argentine people of German descent Argentine people of Swedish descent Burials at La Recoleta Cemetery