Jørgen von Ansbach (c. 1510 – c. 1590) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

- Norwegian

timber Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes (dimensional lumber), including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, window frames). ...

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in goods produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Merchants have been known for as long as humans have engaged in trade and commerce. Merchants and merchant networks operated i ...

and

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

Skien Skien () is a municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Grenland, although historically it belonged to Grenmar/Skiensfjorden, while Grenland referred the Norsjø area and Bø. The administrative ...

(southern part of

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

). He immigrated from

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

around 1540. He came as a

mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...

administrator at a time when King

Christian III of Denmark Christian III (12 August 1503 – 1 January 1559) reigned as King of Denmark from 1534 and King of Norway from 1537 until his death in 1559. During his reign, Christian formed close ties between the church and the crown. He established ...

tried without success to establish a mining industry in Bratsberg (now Telemark). He subsequently became a pioneer in the timber industry in the district as an owner of several

sawmills A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimens ...

and a major timber merchant. He organized efforts to make water flows from the Hjellevannet on the lower water basin in the Skien watercourse ('' Skiensvassdraget'') to the Skien River (''Skienselva'') so that water could drive recovery saws. He established sawmills and the timber trade rose sharply in Skien. He was cited as mayor of Skien in 1568, 1570 and 1578. His considerable fortune was largely derived from the number of properties he owned in the city and district. These properties were divided between his five daughters whose descendants dominated the commercial life in Skien into the 17th century as timber merchants and estate owners. Among his descendants were Anne Clausdatter (1659–1713) who owned Borgestad Manor and Christian Cornelius Paus (1800–1879) who was Governor of Bratsberg. Among his more notable descendants was the playwright

Henrik Ibsen Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright, poet and actor. Ibsen is considered the world's pre-eminent dramatist of the 19th century and is often referred to as "the father of modern drama." He pioneered ...

References

Other sources

* Ivar Seierstad (1958) ''Skiens historie'' ''Bind I fra 1184 til ca 1814'' (Skien: Erik St. Nilssens Forlag. page 129-130) *

Øystein Rian Øystein Rian (born 23 February 1945, in Lillehammer) is a Norwegian historian who specializes in the history of Denmark-Norway from 1536 to 1814, particularly its political, social and religious history. He was appointed associate professor at ...

(1997) ''Bratsberg på 1600-tallet. Stat og samfunn i symbiose og konflikt'' (Oslo: Universitetsforl. page 109–110) * S. H. Finne-Grønn (1910) "Jørgen v. Ansbach, Engel Jensen og slegten Klouman" in
Norsk Personalhistorisk Tidsskrift
' Vol. 1 p. 357 1510s births 1590 deaths People from Skien Emigrants from the Holy Roman Empire Merchants from the Holy Roman Empire Immigrants to Norway Mayors of places in Telemark Norwegian businesspeople in timber Norwegian merchants 16th-century Norwegian people 16th-century merchants 16th-century German businesspeople {{norway-bio-stub