WERTHEIM, Franz Freiherr von

W. was born in modest merchant family, receiving at that time common commercial education. The desire for professional technical education remained unfulfilled. After completing his schooling and apprenticeship, he travelled to Germany, France and England. Upon his return home, he abandoned his commercial profession and in 1841 opened a factory for the manufacture of tools in Krems. In his workshop he initially used the steel, imported from abroad, to make handles, planers and lathes. These were manufactured from hornbeam, which was available in Austria. At the same time he stimulated new experiments to improve the steel in the Styrian ironworks, so that soon steel did not have to be imported from abroad. In 1842 he took over two forge tools, one in Vienna and one in Neuberg near Scheibbs. In 1845 he was awarded a top prize for his almost 1000 exhibits in the Vienna international trade and product exhibition. A collection of exhibits was later assigned to the Department of Technology at the Vienna Polytechnic Institute. Consequently, this collection of samples was included in the second sample and teaching collection, attending the World's Fairs like Conservatoire des Arts et Métiers in Paris (1855) or South Kensington Museum in London (1867, Science Museum today). For many years he collaborated with his father-in-law Wilhelm Knepper. The joint company produced colored paper, from 1853 onwards the gelatin paper and began with a mass production of cigarette paper in1856. When he and his wife separated, cooperation with Knepper ended. In 1851 he acquired the patent rights for the safe of the Sommermayer company, which was exhibited at the London World Exhibition. A year later the improved version of the safe received an Austrian privilege. He also opened the first workshop for manufacture of fire-proof safes in 1852, in Wie-Erdberg. In February 1853 he organized a public test with fire, which proved their resilience. After the test the National bank, all the tax offices and the number of credit institutions of the Empire ordered his fire-proof safes. In 1857 W. organized another test with fire, this time in Constantinople in front of the Turkish sultan, which led to exportation of the safes to the East. A year later he merged the entire Vienna workshop in one single plant which was located in what was then the Louisengasse street (Mommsengasse today) in the fourth district Wieden. In 1863 he acquired the patent rights for cylinder lock which was invented by an American named Yale, and he equipped all of its safes with keys and locks of this system. After the success in business he in 1869 published "Werkzeugkunde für Holzarbeiter" (Science of tools for the wood processors). The work consisted of textual and pictorial workbook that contained 41 tables of 1081 mostly colour figures, which represented all known tools of that time, a simple devices and machinery made of wood. A growing company from 1872 on worked as a stock company. But when in 1872 during the overall crisis the fall in the exchange rate occurred. W. took the opportunity and transferred the company back to his private property.
He participated in international exhibitions in Kapstadt (1877), as well as in the World Exhibition in Paris (1878) and Sydney (1879). In addition to industrial activities W. was also active as a member in the Lower Austria provincial assembly, as a member of the municipal council in Vienna (1868-1874) a Vice-president of the Vienna chamber of commerce and trade (1858-1866),
president of the Lower Austria associations of craftsmen (1871-1874) and as a curator of the Austrian Museum of Art and Industry.