In December 2023, the archiving project for the workshop photography of Eisen- und Stahlwerke Oehler & Co. AG was successfully completed. The team at the documentation center digitized, preserved, and cataloged approximately 4,500 photo negatives and prints.
AUTHORS: NIC ENGEL and JEREMIAS BEERLI
In 1970, the photographs of Eisen- und Stahlwerke Oehler & Co. AG from Aarau were transferred to the Swiss Museum of Transport. Previously, in 1968, Georg Fischer AG had acquired a majority stake in Oehler. The Aargau-based company decided to donate its workshop photographs to cultural institutions, with Oehler handing over images related to mobility to the Swiss Museum of Transport. These photographs provide fascinating insights into Switzerland’s transport, economic, and tourism history. Founded in 1881, the company was active in various fields, including steel production, as well as manufacturing cable cars, ski lifts, electric vehicles, and railway accessories. Oehler played a pioneering role, particularly in the fields of electromobility and cableway technology.
Images are publicly accessible
For decades, these valuable objects remained unnoticed and hidden in archival obscurity. Over the past three years, the images have been professionally digitized, preserved, and cataloged. The association Memoriav, dedicated to preserving audiovisual cultural heritage, supported the project. The photographs will not only be accessible online through the collection but also via Memobase, Memoriav’s digital platform. This ensures that the images are now publicly available and their long-term preservation is guaranteed.