Once upon a time, rags were gold. This is especially true for Kämmerer Papierfabrik. Today, we stand before a testament to Osnabrück’s industrial history. It’s Kämmerer Papierfabrik.
Back in 1808, Gustav Wilhelm Quirll had an idea. He was a resourceful papermaker. He chose this very spot on the Hase River for his mill. The Hase River is a tributary of the Ems.
Quirll used water power. It helped convert rags into pulp. Then, workers turned the pulp into paper by hand. Imagine the scene. It was a totally manual process back then.
The Industrial Revolution changed everything. There were wars plus economic crises and ownership changes. But paper production never stopped at Kämmerer Papierfabrik.
In 1849, Quirll invested in a modern paper machine. He also partly streamlined the manual rag preparation. Half-mechanical rag cutters helped.
In 1869, Quirll sold the Hasemühle. He was getting old. Wilhelm Westerkamp bought it. Quirll insisted Westerkamp involve Justus Eggemann. The mill then became Westerkamp & Eggemann.
The Kämmerer name appeared in 1908. Brothers Gustav and Rudolf Kämmerer bought the company. Gustav was an engineer. Rudolf was a businessman. They transformed it. Kämmerer Papierfabrik became a producer of electrical papers. These papers insulated electrical cables. The company was then named Papierfabrik Brüder Kämmerer.
After World War I, AEG and Felten & Guilleaume joined as partners. But the Kämmerer brothers remained managers. The name changed to Papierfabrik GmbH vormals Brüder Kämmerer. A third paper machine started. The growing energy demand required a power plant. A backup turbine was built in 1939 for continuous production. In 1940, a ship landing was made. It was on the Stichkanal Osnabrück.
During World War II, forced laborers worked here. They came from Ukraine. The factory suffered little damage. Production restarted fully in 1945.
In 1976, the Finnish company Ahlstrom took over. In 2012, Ahlstrom decided to sell the specialty paper division. It merged with the Swedish company Munksjö. But regulators only allowed part of the deal. The German investor Perusa bought two paper machines. In 2014, a new company emerged. It revived the old name, Kämmerer GmbH.
In 2017, another paper machine came from Ahlstrom. It went into a separate company. It was called Kämmerer Paper GmbH. The original became Kämmerer Spezialpapiere GmbH.
Through shortages and crises, Kämmerer Papierfabrik endured. Team spirit and dedication mattered most. Today, Kämmerer remains a symbol. It shows Osnabrück’s ability to adapt and innovate. The story of Kämmerer Papierfabrik reminds us. It links rags to riches and history to the future.