Imagine a Prague neighborhood once bustling with industry, its air thick with the smell of metal and the hum of machinery. It stood in stark contrast to the city’s elegant, historical center, a monument to a different Prague, a Prague of innovation and growth. This is Vysočany, and right in the heart of it, on Náměstí OSN, stands the Emil Kolben Plaque.
Emil Kolben, the man commemorated here, was a visionary engineer and entrepreneur. Born in 1862, he was driven by a passion for invention and the potential of electricity. He studied at the Technical University in Prague and went on to work for Thomas Edison’s General Electric Company, learning from the very best.
His return to Prague in 1896 ignited a revolution in Czech industry. It was the beginning of the famous ČKD – Českomoravská Kolben Daněk – one of the largest industrial firms in the former Czechoslovakia. Kolben was a pioneer, spearheading the development of electric motors and generators. His company built trams, locomotives, and other industrial machinery that changed the Czech Republic and the world. He was a major player in the electrification of Prague, building a network of trams and power plants that brought electricity to the city.
Did you know that the legacy of Emil Kolben extends far beyond the plaque? His name is carried on by a metro station, a street, and even the logo on every tram in Prague. However, his life ended tragically. In 1939, he was transported to the concentration camp at Terezín with his family, where he died.
The Emil Kolben Plaque, while small and simple, stands as a poignant reminder of a man who left an indelible mark on the Czech Republic. Though tragedy cut his life short, his achievements continue to resonate, a testament to his talent and dedication to the advancement of technology and his belief in a future powered by electricity.