Johann Starck (fl. 1762-1950)

The company J. Starck in Nuremberg, a family business spanning six successive generations, was Germany's oldest drawing instrument maker. It was founded by Johann Starck in 1762. Initially traditional German pattern drawing instruments were made. In the 1830s Johann Paulus Starck, at the suggestion of Zirkelschmied-meister Johann Georg Rupprecht (*1802;†1883), started fabricating high quality Swiss pattern instruments. Until the 1890s the Starck workshop produced solely Swiss pattern instruments. In 1894 Riefler round pattern instruments were added to the production line, followed by flat pattern instruments in the early 1900s. In the 1920s flat, round and Swiss pattern were produced. During the 1920s 60% of production was exported abroad. The company J. Starck was active until about 1950 and dissolved in 1970 [9].

Reisszeugfabrik Meisel & Sohn (founded in 1882 by Johann Georg Meisel) acquired Starck in 1931. The company was registered by the founder's son Johann Christian Meisel as Meisel & Sohn in 1908. Unclear when Meisel & Sohn went out of business, possibly during the 1970s. Their last known recorded listing is in the 1976 edition of Einwohnerbuch der Stadt Nürnberg.

Fig. 1. Großes Adreßbuch des Handels-, Fabrik-, und Gewerbestandes des Königreichs Bayern 1870 [GoogleBooks]

Fig. 2. Starck's listing in the Adressbuch Nuremberg of 1934 [Stadtarchiv Nürnberg]. 

Fig. 3. The Sinwell Tower, long time symbol of Nuremberg, was incorporated into Starck's company logo design.

Fig. 4. After Meisel & Sohn acquired Starck in 1931, they adopted and modified Starck's logo. However, both companies continued to have separate listings (with the same address Sturmstrasse 8) in the directories until at least 1950 and therefore seems likely that Starck formed a separate entity within the Meisel company. It is unknown when the Meisel logo illustrated above went into effect, and it is probable that the Starck logo continued to be used on cases and instruments well after 1931. Starck is last listed in the Bayern Handelsadressbuch of 1950/51 [Genwiki].

Generations:

1. Johann Starck I, registered Zirkelschmiedmeister 18.02.1762.

2. Johann Starck II, registered Zirkelschmiedmeister 21.11.1789. He married Margaretha Philippina Maurer  (*1757;†1819) sometime around 1790. He died before the birth of his son Johann Paulus. Sometime before 1797 his widow married Zirkelschmied Georg Paul Herold (*1766;†1813).

3. Johann Paulus Starck (*1794;†1843), registered Zirkelschmiedmeister 16.06.1819 [8]. He married Maria Magdalena Lehner 05.09.1819. In 1829 he lived at S.1600 (Stelzengasse 12), a house that at the time belonged to Zirkelschmiedmeister Johann Karl Grünberger (*1799). The Nuremberg Adressbuch of 1842 has him living at S.1594 (Rosenthal 24), a house that remained the location of the Starck workshop until 1891. After his death in 1843, his widow took charge of the workshop until 1848. 

4. Johann Jacob Starck (*1823;†1905), his father apprenticed him to Johann Georg Rupprecht, who at the time was Nuremberg's most distinguished Zirkelschmiedmeister. During the mid 1840s he is apprenticed to Johann Löffler in Vienna. He took control over his father's workshop in 1848.

5. Christian Starck (*1865;†1932), joined his father in 1897, and became sole proprietor after his father's death in 1905.

6. Georg Starck, (*1902). Author of Die Entwicklung der Deutschen Reißzeugindustrie. 

Above pages are from the c. 1910 Spitta & Leutz mail-order catalogue showing Starck flat pattern drawing instruments. The flip up blade on the ruling pen to facilitate easy cleaning, Starck's DRGM patent 185110. [Der Mechaniker 1902, p. 252, Internet Archive]

Below: J. Starck XI.P. drawing set c. 1910.

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REFERENCES / NOTES

[1] Stadtarchiv Nürnberg. Online-Recherche Bestände.

[2] STARCK, Georg; Die Entwicklung der Deutschen Reißzeugindustrie, Universitätsverlag von Robert Noske in Borna-Leipzig, 1925.

[3] DR. AUGUST JEGEL; Die Wirtschaftliche Entwicklung von Nürnberg-Fürth, Stein und des Nürnberger Raumes seit 1806. Verlag Lorenz Spindler 1952 Nürnberg.

[4] Zirkelschmiedmeister=master (drawing) compass maker.

[5] Allgemeines Intelligenz-Blatt der Stadt Nürnberg: 1827, p.1860-1861.

[6] Nürnberg Adreßbucher [Stadtarchiv Nürnberg]

[7] Nürnberger Künstlerlexikon, Manfred H. Grieb München,K. G. Saur 2007.

[8] Stadtarchiv Nürnberg C 7/II Nr. 4046 Bestandssignatur: C 7/II - Hauptregistratur / Niederlassungsakten C 7 

[9] District Court of Nuremberg HRA 611, Northdata.com.