18 January 1871The third and final act of German unification was the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71, orchestrated by Bismarck to draw the western German states into alliance with the North GermanConfederation. With the French defeat, the German Empire was proclaimed in January 1871 in the Palace at Versailles, France. From this point forward, foreign policy of the German Empire was madein Berlin, with the German Kaiser (who was also the King of Prussia) accrediting ambassadors of foreign nations.The effect on the economy through a new political constitution and administration is hardly ever more evident with the emergence of the Empire. As an example of the dimension of the profits to beobtained at a conversion of the merchant called Hermann Geber, the sewing machine factory, formerly Frister & Rossmann, bought it for about 70.000 Thaler and a little later it brought tothe stock exchange for 865.000 Thaler. June 1874From a German newspaper say: fabricated for family use and commercial purposes with the principal U.S. Aid machine, stand in their performance and duration as unmatched. Of these machines forover 10,000 units have been proven to the complete satisfaction of the Imperial General Post Office, several Royals, Ministries and governments and most of the German Railways direction relativeto their officials, after the various experts they are 'excellent in every respect' after careful consideration for recognition.
Every genuine Frister & Rossmann machine bears the fullcompany name on the badge and the F & R in the frame. 10 February 1875On the 10th of February, 1875, Mr writes to Frister & Rossmann at Berlin asking to be considered astheir agent for England. On the following day Frister & Rossmann replied that they had not intention of sending a traveller to London, and must leave him to make the best use he could of hisactivity, adding, ' We had certainly not hitherto given you our representation for England. Should you wish to sell our machines on commission during your stay in England, we await your visitwith a view to further conversation on the subject.' The new agent for the company.It is possible Frister & Rossmann approached Mr. Hermann Loog because not entirely satisfied of Mr.
Isidor Nasch, but for sure Mr. Loog induced Frister & Rossmann to confide to him thesole sale of their machines for England and the Colonies and he insisted on their trade mark being attached to every one of their machines. Hermann Loog, who was a considerable retailer andhave been in Gresham Street of the City of London for thirteen year, moved his retail business as agent for the German company to 128 London Wall. Few year later at 127-128London Wall and in 1885 the premises of Hermann Loog Ltd. Occupying three newly-built warehouses at. According to a letter from Mr Hermann Loog as a reply to Mr Isidor Nasch, the Frister & Rossmann in 1876 approached him, to take up their agency, which had then beenunsuccessfully held in succession by two London firms. Mr. Berlin Industrial ExpositionIn 1879 a large exhibition was set in an exhibition park created near the Lehrte Station.
The exhibition was not only a show of technological advancements but it was also created as anamusement park.One of the main attractions of the event was the first electric locomotive from Siemens & Halske. Originally built for use in a coal mine, it pulled three small cars fitted with woodenbenches, each car being capable of carrying six passengers for a ride along a 300-meter circular track. Electrical power was supplied to a third rail from a nearby generating station. During thefour months of the exhibition, it carried 90,000 passengers. The original locomotive is now displayed at the Deutsches Museum in Munich and a replica is shown at the German Museumof Technology (Berlin).
June 1879Hermann Loog who was acting as an agent for the Sewing Machine Company, later Frister & Rossmann, since 1876, in a letter sent to F&R dated June 1879, he announcing the transference ofhis private business to the company Hermann Loog Limited.This letter was read, and in it Mr. Loog mentioned that owing to the dispute with the Singer Company and impending dispute with his former capitalist, he thoughtit advisable to turn his business into a company, because in the event of non-success in these actions all his opponents would have to go against for costs or damages would be ' Hermann Loog, hisbones and skin.' Frister & Rossmann REPORTThe report of the Nahmaschienen Fabrik (formerly Frister & Rossmann) Actien Gesellschaft, for 1883, records a steady increase in sales and gratifying extensionof agencies in various parts of the world. Owing, however, to certain new buildings and plant not having yet been completed, the manufacture of machines has been somewhat restricted, and a temporary decline of the dividend from 6 per cent, in 1882, to 4 per cent, in 1883, has been the result.Also F&R opened a number of retail branch establishments in London and in the country.
All those branches were supplied with machines by Hermann Loog from F&R stock held by him. 1884 3 AprilHOW STRIKES ARE MANAGED IN GERMANYThe well-known Sewing Machine Manufactory of Frister & Rossmann was closed for a number of weeks in consequence of a strike, which deserves to be commented upon from more than one point ofview. We have obtained from Mr.
Herman Loog, of 127 and 128, London Wall, their sole agent for Great Britain and the Colonies, the following particulars, which we think will interest ourreaders, and especially the numerous customers of the firm.It was generally believed that the people employed in this large factory were well paid and well treated; and from the periodical excursions arranged by Directors, not only for the 1,400 handsactually employed, but also for their families, as well as from general appearances it was thought that the relations between employer and employed were exceptionally happy. It was therefore amatter of great surprise, when, on the third of April, it became known that a strike had broken out among the workpeople of this factory, which through its agency at 127 and 128, London Wall, iswell known not only to the English trade, but also in many thousand English homes where the F. Machine has become a household word.
On the third of April, a couple of hundred men, mostlySocialists, on being refused compliance with the ridiculous claims they had put forward, stormed the spacious workshop, and, armed with bludgeons, called upon the workpeople generally to take upthe strike; those who refused were literally driven out by force. For the next week or so, a few honest men who were anxious to continue their work were waylaid in the streets, and broken headsand bones soon reduced so considerably the number of those willing and anxious to continue their work, that at last the Directors closed the factory entirely, especially as they were unable toobtain from the German Government any protection for the safety of their honest workpeople.
Brute force reigned supreme, under the very eyes of the police; the streets in the neighbourhood ofthe factory were the scenes of daily and bloody battles. The rebels, thus positively winked at by the police, managed moreover to spread about the false report that the average wages amounted toless than twelve shillings per week, and were intended to be still further reduced by twenty per cent. The publication of these falsehoods and the connivance of the police soon brought together acommittee for the collection of funds, to assist those on strike.
In vain did the directors apply for the police protection. The German parliament was about to be asked to renew the socialisticlaws; so, in high quarters it was evidently deemed desirable to nurse these dreadful disturbances for the purpose of being able to point them out, as the best proof for the necessity of theselaws.For when that object had been obtained it was shown to be the easiest possible thing for the Berlin police to put down instantly the disgraceful uproars of the past weeks. In the meantime theDirectors of Frister & Rossmann had invited the strike committee to inspect their wages accounts, when it was ascertained that the average wages for the last three years amounted totwenty-four shillings per week (of under sixty hours) per head; and let it be well understood, that this average includes several hundreds of labourers, boys and girls, at moderate wages, whilstit does not include the foremen. It was also conclusively shown that the intended reduction of wages was a mere myth.The strike committee, therefore, could not but admit that the strike itself was frivolous in the extreme, and they withdrew their assistance. Thus ended a most disastrous misunderstanding betweenemployer and employed; a misunderstanding which, but for the unprincipled conduct of the German police authorities, would never have existed at all. By sending the ringleaders of this mostmischievous affair to prison for three months, the German police cannot repair the wrong they have done to the families of some hundreds who would have worked, but for the reign pro tern of bruteforce.
The factory is now again in full work, doing their best to dispose, as quickly as possible, of an accumulation of orders. 1st MARCH 1885Frister & Rossmann, not being satisfied with the nature of the retail businesses as carried on by Hermann Loog, anarrangement was entered into by which the Limited Company took upon itself the whole of the liabilities of management and assets of the various retail businesses, and by an agreement, dated 1stMarch, 1885, between H. Loog & Co., Limited, and Frister & Rossmann, all these businesses, stock, assets, and liabilities were transferred to H. Loog & Co., payment being given forthe stock and interest which Frister & Rossmann had in these businesses by debenture in H. Loog & Co., Limited, to the amount of about £23,000, and the arrangement was that Loog & Co.were to be supplied with 500 machines and other goods from month to month.
All machines to be sold or let out on hire; when sold, were then charged against H. Loog & Co., Limited, in thebooks, and from time to time bills were drawn by Frister & Rossmann upon H.
Loog & Co., Limited, to be renewed at six days' date, and in addition fresh debentures were to be given by H.Loog & Co. To cover these bills. As a matter of fact some £6,000 or £7,000 of the original debentures have been paid off since 1885, but a very large additional debt has been incurred forwhich either debentures or acceptances have been given by H. Loog & Co., Limited. The amount of the original indebtedness now stands increased to some £33,000 or £34,000. On 1st March, 1885,and the same date as the agreement between Frister & Rossmann and H. Loog & Co., Limited, an agreement was entered into between Frister & Rossmann and H.
Loog himself. By thisagreement it was provided. Americans can judge of the extent to which sewing machine manufacture is pushed in Europe by the recent celebrations in the factories upon the completion of a certain number ofmachines. Frister & Rossmann recently had a jolly time over their 500,000th machine, and now the sewing machine factory of Rezler and Komarek, atVienna, has celebrated the making of the 10,000th machine. These occasions may seem to warrant rapturous outbursts of enthusiasm to our European friends, but with us, millions ofsewing machines have been made and sold without our feeling the need of any particular demonstration.
The Yankee temperament does not grow enthusiastic over small matters.Sewing Machine News. MAY 1887 Frister & Rossmann general assemblyOn the afternoon of the 17 th May 1887, an ordinary general assembly of the shareholders of the Frister & RossmannCompany was held.The President of the Council of Supervision, Mr. Sigismund Born, informed the assembly that the Board of directors had tendered their admission to the council and the members ofthe said council equally intended to tender their resignations in the case of the majority of the shareholders supposing this action to be serving the interests of the business.see more.
4 August 1914, United Kingdom declared war on the German EmpireOn August 20, 1914 the Allied Powers began an embargo on important items that were normally shipped to and from Germany.At first, the U.S. Pursued a policy which, although formally neutral,penalized Germany and aided its British and French foes.
Britain imposed a trade embargo on Germany which, with very little U.S. Protest at its infringements of neutral rights, ended up chokingoff American exports of food, cotton, and other resources to Germany. Meanwhile, the U.S. Permitted all belligerents – which, in practice, meant Britain and France – to purchase munitions fromthe U.S.
And, later, to borrow significant sums of money from New York banks. When Germany, in response to the British embargo, began to use submarines to attack British merchant vessels on whichAmericans might be sailing, the U.S. Vigorously objected that submarine warfare of this sort was a flagrant “violation of many sacred principles of justice and humanity.” Protests (including bythe secretary of state) that these and other measures were one-sided were met with with accusations of disloyalty and anti-Americanism. Over the next year, the U.S. Tightened the screws, issuingan ultimatum to Germany in 1916 to restrict submarine warfare or face the severance of diplomatic relations.
A year later, when Wilson was safely reelected and antiwar voices hadbeen further stilled or intimidated, the trap snapped shut: the Germans, now foreseeing that the U.S. Would enter the war, decided to resume unrestricted submarine warfare. Wilson, outraged atwhat he considered the breaking of a promise, broke diplomatic relations, armed U.S. Merchant ships, and, after several of the latter were then sunk, called on Congress to declare war. Whatfollowed was a comprehensive mobilization of American resources, with an eye toward large-scale combat operations against Germany. After World War I, Germany was forced to pay all of the war reparations after the Treaty of Versailles(France), signed on 28 June1919, came into force on 10 January 1920.Reparations were the payments and transfers of property and equipment that Germany was forced to make following its defeat.
Article 231 of the Treaty (the 'warguilt' clause) declared Germany and its allies responsible for all 'loss and damage' suffered by the Allies during the war and provided the basis for reparations.Britain had suffered little land devastation during the war and Prime Minister David Lloyd George supported reparations to a lesser extent than the French. Britain began to look on a restoredGermany as an important trading partner and worried about the effect of reparations on the British economy. In January 1921, the total sum due was decided by an Inter-Allied Reparations Commission and was set at 269 billion gold marks (the equivalent of around 100,000 tonnes of pure gold). This100,000 tonnes of gold is equivalent to more than 50% of all the gold ever mined in history (est. 165000 tonnes) which was clearly not within the means of the Germans to pay.The war and the treaty were followed by the Hyper-inflation of the early 1920s that wreaked havoc on Germany's social structure and political stability. During that inflation, the value ofthe nation's currency, the Papiermark, collapsed from 8.9 per US$1 in 1918 to 4.2 trillion per US$1 by November 1923. Prosperity reigned 1923–29, supported by large bank loans from New York.
Frister Rossmann Cub 4 Manual
Homeof the Sewalot SiteByAlex I AskaroffForantique and vintage sewing machines!Frister & RossmannSewingMachinesMost of us know the name Singer but few are aware ofhis amazing life story, his rags to riches journey from a little runawayto one of the richest men of his age. The story of Isaac Merritt Singerwill blow your mind, his wives and lovers his castles and palaces allbuilt on the back of one of the greatest inventions of the 19th century.For the first time the most complete story of a forgotten giant isbrought to you by Alex Askaroff.Alex has spent a lifetime in the sewing industryand is considered one of the foremost experts of pioneering machines andtheir inventors.
He has written extensively for trade magazines, radio,television, books and publications worldwide. See Alex Askaroff on YoutubeFrister & Rossmann SewingMachinesSoldThroughout Great Britain& HerColonies1888 AdvertF rister & Rossmann started life near Berlin, Germany, in 1864but by1865 Gustav Rossmann had moved his workshops from Markgrafenstrasse inBerlin to Adalbertstrasse and then in 1868 to Skalitzerstrasse.Luckilythey stayed for many years as all thathardspelling takes an age to type. Now let me take you on atangled journey of one of the most famous names in the British Sewing Industry.The two business partners, Gustav Rossmann and Robert Frister had started their sewing machine business bycopying existing machines such as the American Wheeler & Wilson and Willcox & Gibbsunder license from the original manufacturers inAmerica.Frister & Rossmann Model A or No1 Circa 1865 madeunder licence from Wheeler & Wilson in the USA this machine ranright un until 1909 without hardly a change from F&R.Their first sewing machine, the A1 or No1. It was simply a Wheeler & Wilsonclone machine, boy would I love one of those. However its success was unsurpassed, hardly chang ingfor around 50 years of production.Frister & Rossmann model A No1 needleplate info.Actien Gesellschaft apparently that means Public Company, (thanksBetty).The potential for European sewing machines was huge andthe wealth of entrepreneurs likeand were well known. Theywere the Bill Gates of the Victorian age. The only problem with theAmerican machines were that they were across the other side of the worldand shipping was time consuming and expensive.
European manufacturershad a clear advantage in price.The Frister & Rossmann business grew at an outstanding rate and within a fewyears, they had produced tens of thousands ofhand-built machines. Eventually withthe success of their venture, a n immense factory grew at Skalitzerstrasse.The factory chimneys darkened theBerlin sky with thefurnaces melting pig iron 24hrs a day, seven days a week.Frister & Rossmann1,000,000 machines made!Early Frister & Rossmann machines came with abeautiful ornate cast base, quite rare today. This transverse fiddlebasemodel is from Skalitzerstrasse circa1879 andis based on the 1865For decades Frister & Rossmann were the largest producers of sewing machines inGermany. By the early 1880's they had made a staggering quarter ofa million machines and by 1903 the great Frister &Rossmann factory company had produced over onemillion machines.One million machines!A landmark inF&R history in 1903Now we have to slow downbecause Gustav & Bob were business men as well as manufacturers.They did not stop at sewing machines, they turned their expertise totypewriters and even bicycles,however it would be their sewing machines that last ed thelongest.Frister & Rossmann settled down to manufacture high qualitysewing machines for many decades. Winning medals in Sydney in 1879,Altona and Crystal Palace, England 1881, Amsterdam, 1883, Teplitz andLondon again in 1884, Edinburgh, 1886, Adelaide, Australia, 1887, againin Melbourne Australia the following year and the most prized award intheir home town of Berlin in 1889.A transverse shuttle F&Rcirca 1890 based on the Singer 12 and Singer 48kA few of the early Victorian models that were heavily inlaid withmother of pearl and lavish gold work have become very collectiblemachines. Their most popular late Victorian model was based on themachine model 12k also fondly referred to as the Fiddle base dueto its curved casting. They made their fist copy of Singers model aroundthe early part of the 1870's.
How they got around the patent infringementsI can only guess unless they, as before, paid a licence fee! They evenadvertised their machines as the Improved Singer! Cheeky.TheCloneByFRISTER & ROSSMANNA rare Frister & Rossmann chain stitchclick on the image for a better view.Clickhere for a betterThe undisputed best selling chainstitch in the world was the. Now Gustav & Bob, right fromthe beginning, copied the best machines on the market andthey soon turned their gaze toward the pretty bestseller by W&G.
Littleis known about these rare beauties made by F&R (only for a very shortperiod ). Frank Godfrey even surmised that F&R hadused some of the firstcastings made by Clemens Muller of Dresden.Hughes Brothers & CoAgents forFrister & RossmannChainstitch machinesDublinIrelandThe F&R.W&G's chainstitch clones are scarce machines andonly a handful have come to light.
Because all the models I have seen all have the W&G automatic tensioner brought in inaround 1875 we know that the models are post that date. Howeverto add more confusion, all the models that I have seen have very low serialnumbers.
I can guess that all the Chainstitch F&R machines must havestarted their production run at zero and not just joined in on the othermachine numbering. If they had they would have been much higher numbers.Frister & Rossmann chainstitch machines are as rare as hens teethtoday and often confused with W&G's machines.Spotting a F&RChainstitchThe very earliest imported F&R Chain stitch do not even have the F&R logo on them.Howeverthere are manufacturing details that are obvious to a specialist.
Ishall name a few. Nickel plated fine casthand wheel assembly, nickel plated lower pulley wheel. Porcelainhand knob. Brass auto tension assembly (not steel) with a centrescrew, brass cotton peg, not steel.
All the attachments are also brass.The gold work is slightly cruder with different scroll work. The needlebar and presser bar have pear shaped tops rather than round knobs.Smaller base wing nut, larger needle bar clamp nut. You get the idea, lots ofminor alterations to fit in with their manufacturing and tools andpossibly to avoid possible patent restrictions.And so you have it, a little marvel, rare and sweet.The F&R chainstitch had a short life and quickly disappeared. Theodd super-rare machine now turn up in collectors collections.Frister & Rossmann 128 London Wall. Hermann Loog Ltd.(At 43 London Wallwere the importers C Lohmann who sold the Original Elsa lockstitch in1888).Back to business. The first importers into Britain, that I am awareabout, was I. Nasch ofwhom I know absolutely nothing!
German production, while hewas importer, rose to over 100,000 machines so he must have sold a few inBritain. He disappears quite quickly and I know F&R were havingcommunication problems with their British importers and agents.Frister & Rossmann serialnumbersF&R 1869-1875Serial numbers 1 - 105923Hermann LoogSo now let's skip to thenext fascinating name in our long saga.It was not until Hermann Loog ltd, around 1876, that sales reallystarted toboomin Britain. They traded from126-128 London Wall, London. I have only seen a couple Loog badged F&Rand neither of them had Hermann's name on them just his trading address.Hermann had a troubled personal life.
His wife died in anasylum, one son died very young and the other emigrated. He seemed to beplagued with lawsuits, including the giant Singer Corporation. Even F&Rhad to act against him to protect their interests. Although a workaholicand full of ideas he had a fiery temperament which his family politelycalled 'difficult' that was not successful inbusiness. When not going bankrupt he seemed to be in court suing orbeing sued bysomeone!Hermann allegedly had severalsets of books, one special set kept by his son, Robert, for unknownreasons. It all came to a head on the 4th of January 1887 when ScotlandYard tracked Hermann down to a house in Croydon and arrested him. Theyhad been after him for weeks after the German company informed thepolice that £5,899 had gone astray from the accounts.
A massive sum in1887. They had already caught his son Robert who was banged up inHolloway Prison.The court case was a huge affair lasting days withHermann Loog being kept out of the witness box as it was thought that ifhe was cross examined he would end up with a long jail sentence.F&R No1 circa 1870 braiding.Reading from court statements at one point the court burst into laughter when itheard that Hermann had set up another business to transfer sewingmachines to his family. The court was read a list of directorswhich were his children, Robert Loog, Hermann Loog Jr, Otto Loog, EllaLoog and Catherine Loog. The oldest was only 15 at the time of the setup and the youngest was just one!
Well, your never too young tobecome a director! When the court asked what directors fees werebeing paid they were informed that no directors were receiving paymentbut they had a nice home by the seain Brighton to live in! The court burst into laughter again.On a more serious note the sums involved wereenormous and the way Hermann ran his business caused a huge rift with theGerman company who took a long time trusting another importer afterreplacing Loog.After his split with F&R Hermann worked for a shortwhile with Seidel & Naumann, another German sewing machine manufacturer.However that did not last and he ended up in court.again!Shadowed by constant illness and money problems inlater life Hermann took a final step.Hermann wound up his personalaffairs wrote a letter leaving his body to science. He dressed smartlyas if going to church and walked to thecemetery in Croydon where his wife was buried.
Unfortunately due to theridiculous laws of the time his son who had died so young was not allowedto be buried with her as he had not been christened before his suddendeath.Hermann chatted to the cemetery gardener, went tohis wife's grave, sat on the grass by her side took of his hat and shot himself through the head. He was 59.And so ended a fascinating chapter in the earlyhistory of Frister & Rossmann.This is a great little extra sent in by thegreat-great-grandson of Hermann Loog, Tom Vogel.In the Singer lawsuit, whichis a significant precedent in British trademark law, Loog was notassessed any damages for advertising his machine as the 'SingerImproved.'
Second, in the criminal case, Hermann Loog wasacquitted as'agent converting property to own use' anddischarged; Robert Loog was acquitted of 'omitting material partnersfrom book of masters' and discharged.The rest of the story - my grandfather migrated to NewYork. After Hermann's suicide, RobertLoog migrated to New Orleans. One of his sons,Andrew Loog, was a U.S. Bomber pilot,and was killed in action in WWII. I believethat his son is Andrew Loog Oldham. Thanks for that Tom.Now let's followon with our journey.
I told you it was long and complicated!Frister & Rossmann treadle sewing machines werebeautifully cast1875-1896Serial numbers 105923 - 715233Frister & Rossmann tried handling the machinesthemselves directly for a while, appointing their own German directors,but that was not as successful or very easy. Basically they weremanufacturers not salesmen and after a period they decided to once moretrust an agent and to export their sewing machines to them.
I expect with muchtighter procedures.Later importer’s were S.Lowe & Son of 49 Fore Street London, who had the rightsfrom around 1886 onward. Lowe may have been in business with O Quitmanwho we shall get to a little later on in our story. If you look back atthe top of our page you will see a large F&R advert from Sewing Machineand Cycle News. The year of the magazine was early 1888 and clearlyshows S. Lowe of 49 Fore Street as the Sole Agent fro F&R. Also theywere selling their machines as Improved Singer and Wheeler & Wilsonmachines, cheeky!Frister & RossmannSales throughout Great Britain andher coloniesIt was not only the colonies where F&R sold theremachines. Here is an advert kindly sent to me from Latvia showing theMoeller Brothers in 1897 selling F&R sewing machines and bicycles inRiga.
Interestingly Riga and many Baltic provinces spoke mainly Germanuntil Russia was made the official language in 1891.Now there is some dispute about this next date. Iassume that Lowe & Son sold out to the importersand dealers W.
Pierssene & Co, the same year as Queen Victoria diedin 1901 but some say it was earlier around 1896. They also imported to 49 Fore Street justEast of the centre of London but thenmoved down the road to larger premises at25 ForeStreet and held the rights up until the outbreak of WW1. Of courseproduction of sewing machines stopped during the war.We have to wonder what they madeinstead! You can bet it wasn't anything pleasant.
Seewhat I foundbelow.1910Wholesalers for Frister & Rossmann sewing machinesMartin & FitGrantham1896-1914S erial numbers 715233- 1500000Coincidentally up until the outbreak of the Great War, most Frister& Rossmann machines were proudly marked MADE IN BERLIN, however,after the war, all mention of their manufacturing base was removed.At this time it was normal for a shop to remove theF&R badge to avoid upsetting customers. During this period their machine was know as theSilentCam Action Improved Lockstitch and took the same needle as the Singer 12, needle 339.Goward Bros, OakhamAgents forFrister & RossmannAgents such as HeelasSons of Reading and Goward Brothers in Oakham sold the pre-war German machines but soon switchedsuppliers to British manufacturers such as Vickers and Jones after the outbreak of warin 1914.If you have a F&R'looking' machine with no mention as to where it was made and no badge youprobably have one of the post-war models. If you have one with no badgejust the holes you can almost guarantee it was surplus unsold war stockfrom Germany.1914-1920S erial numbers 1500000- 1620000It has recently come to light that Frister & Rossmann changed fromSewing machine manufacturing to weapons! No wonder nobody in Britainbought a Frister &Rossmann machines after 1914! In the following six years production of sewing machines felldramatically to less than 20,000 a year.A rare WWI bayonet made by F&R.The Berlin Trademark was removed afterthe out break of war with Germany in 1914Poor old Frister's were in big trouble andfrom 1914 the following years were hard, laying off staff and cutting production. The1920's were atime of terrible hardships imposed on Germany by her victors andsuppressors. The crippling reparations imposed by foreign powersled to the rise of Hitler in Germany and eventually another World War.By late 1924 the great factory that hadonce been the pride of German manufacturing closed its doors.
The last manlocked the gates and a period of pioneering history was over.In 1925 Gritzner & Kayserbought the rights to make Frister & Rossmann machines. For a long period all Frister &Rossmann machines were in name only and from the Gritzner factory.& Frister'sBut we must go back a step.Now funny things happen with history. Just before the outbreak of WWI,the agent for Frister & Rossmann machines, Pierssene,must have known that importing from Germany, if they went to war, wouldbe difficult if not impossible. Pierssene must have looked aroundBritain to find another manufacturer to supplement his supplies and keephis market going.
During periods of war and the shortages they bring,sewing machines are in high demand. His eye fell upon one of Britain's foremostmanufacturers, Vickers.Vickers made loads of stuff from planes to machine guns,ships to bombers. In the Second World War they helpedto produced the amazing Supermarine Spitfire, which along with its Merlin Rolls Royce enginehelped save England in its darkest hour.Athandling a sewing machine would be easy andthey could see huge potential, (not only during the war but after it aswell ).
By 1916 they were well underway with a copy of Singers model 28 VSmachine. A sturdy simple machine basically identical to Frister &Rossmann's own copy of Singers best seller.
By 1917 the machines werebeing supplied instead of F&R machines to shops up and down thecountry.Frister & Rossmann could not do much about the newcompetition andtook away a precious market, putting another nailin the coffin of poor old Frister & Rossmann.Now Pierssene, funnily enough, hadleft F&R at the outbreak of war. An image of industrial espionagejumps to mind of the former importer running off with the plansofF&R's new machine to Vickers. Either way Vickers was here to stayand Pierssene was their sole agent. Note theaddress on the picture below right, Fore Street London.During the 1920's and 30'sflourished but by the late 1930's demand was so high for armaments theyshelved the poor old domestic sewing machine. So that was the end ofVickers from our little saga.Cleopatra smelling a lotus blossom picked from the banks of the Nileappeared firstly on the1920's model E, thenthe model 50R and lastly on the model 61V in 1954. The 61V, based onSingers 15k had a round bobbin and reverse and cost a whopping £31, sixweeks wages!
Around £1800 today.Edward Miller Ltd of WokingAgents & Suppliers ofFrister & RossmannThe Model E was one of the mostpopular F&R machines. It's stunning looks and superb performance andquality couldnot be surpassed. Suppliers and agents like Edward Miller Ltd of Woking, placed ordersfor the model E in the hundreds each year. Between the wars Frister &Rossmann's most popular machine was the cam action vibrating shuttle. One point of interest is that Frister& Rossmann were one of the first sewing machines that came supplied aselectric from new with a Siemens-Schuckert motor and foot control.Strange goings on.Now a funny thing with research isthat spanners are always being tossed into the mix.
I was told that thenext importers of F&R machines, after the Great War ended, wasOliver Quitman, around 1919 then along comes this leaflet.It clearly states that they wereimporters from 1884, 30 years before they were supposed to be importingthe F&R machines. So what is the answer? Maybe they imported otherthings besides sewing machines. They did sell sewing machine accessoriesand furniturebefore the sewing machines. We shall probably never know when theyreally took over the machine business. Still they do say.' Never say never'.More information may turn up.
We know for a fact in 1888, S. Lowe wasthe sole agent for F&R so what's going on? I assume it is simply statingthe start of their business not what they started with!Fascinating mixWhat I do know is that some of theF&R machines sold during the take-over period from Pierssene to Quitmannhad a bit of both in them. For example the machines came clearly markedW. Pierssene Sole Agent 49 Fore Street, London. But the needles andaccessories in the same machine came packaged from O. Quitmann, SoleAgent 18 City Road, London!
So was there a slow hand-over or acollaboration? I am stretchingagain.Back to more positive information. The longest runningof all the importers were definitely O. Quitman & Co of 35 0- 356 Old Street London, EC1. And 18City Road, Finsbury Sq. You will notethat up until 1937 many of the badges had the City Road mark but afterthat period marked '23-24, Little Britain'.Frister & Rossmann 23-24 Little Britain, London post1937.Quitman 's heldthe franchise right up until the 1990’s. I should know I used to goand collect my Frister & Rossmann machinespersonally from Michael Quitman whohad a factory in my area in Ghyll Road, Heathfield, East Sussex.At the factory Ben and his assistant would repairmachines sent in from all over Britain and Michael would run the office.I use to love it when Ben would ask me for help.
One night he arrived onmy doorstep with a new model that had a serious design problem. In myworkshop Ben came up with a solution and all further F&R models werequickly modified.Several of theirmore modern machines were design influenced in the1980's by British designer, KenGrange RDI FSI.Back in the earlydays Quitman's also had a depot at 4 -7 Chiswell Street, Finsbury Square,London EC1. At the depot they had a team of skilled mechanics that couldrepair any machines returned under guarantee. Also they had premisesjust around the corner at 23/24 Little Britain in Newgate Street London,EC1.After WWII the badly damaged German factories,became part of the Eastern Block in Eastern Germany.They were unable to produce sewing machines for Quitman's. It was theend of another era.
Germany, once the largest manufacturers of sewingmachines in the world, had all but ground to a halt.