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History of the company/bank and archive description for Georg Westermann Verlag, Druckerei und Kartographische Anstalt GmbH & Co.
History of the
company/bank:		 On May 21st 1838 the bookseller Georg Westermann (1810 - 1879) founded in Braunschweig a publishing trade business. He looked for authors which stood up for freedom of thought, civil rights and were in opposition to the German particularism of those days. A number of English authors as Charles Dickens and Thomas B. Macauley stood at the beginning of the belletristic, political and and philosophical schedule of publications of the business. By the publication of dictionaries, books on history, books on travels and scientific dissertations the new company was able to set up itself. In 1856 Georg Westermann founded the "Westermanns illustrierten deutschen Monatshefte" and thereby could gain prominent German authors as Wilhelm Raabe, Theodor Storm or Theodor Fontane. In 1845 Westermann was able to attach a printing-office to his company, which made it possible for him to build up a remarkable cartographical business and to produce atlasses like the "Diercke Weltatlas" (since 1883). In 1914 the publishing house was able to achieve its first great success in the non-cartographical school-book business with the publication of a number of primers. The 1920s and 1930s were marked by the enlargement of the school-book and teaching aids sector, which was complemented by youth- and child-literature of the pedagogical reform movement.
After the Second World War the publishing house focussed itself on both school and non-school education and further education, so that today books, working materials and new media for nearly all school subjects and classes are a part of the production schedule. Included is also the large amount of materials for children under the age of three, which - in addition to school attendance - can be used up to the "Sekundarstufe". Since 1946, specialist books and textbooks for vocational training are being published.
Since the post-war period as well a broad spectrum of pedagogical specialist periodicals is published. To date, specialized books on the sectors of geography and history as well as atlasses are published.
Since 1986, the company is a part of the "Medien Union GmbH", Ludwigshafen. As Westermann printing and publishing group it today includes the corporations "Westermann Schulbuchverlag", "Georg Westermann Verlag", "Westermann Lernspielverlag", the publishing house "Arena" (child- and youth-books) and "Aurum" (esoteric), "westermann druck", "Westermann Druck Zwickau" and "VSB - Verlagsservice Braunschweig".
Archive description Records of the Georg Westermann company archive:

Approximately 1,000 shelf metres

Finding aids: index-cards (persons, catchword, chronicles of the company), inventory, computer database (so far for the collections).

  • Westermanns monthly periodicals 1856 - 1986: copying-book of the editorial staff, correspondence with the authors
  • management / proprietor since 1838: copying-books of the publishing trade business, documents
  • personnel- and social division, since approximately 1870. Focal point on the technical division
  • technical division / distribution
  • school-book / teaching aids / vocational training since 1843
  • geography / kartography since 1842
  • scientific publishing house (nature, language, history) since 1840
  • specialized books since 1838
  • publishing house for belletristic / youth books since 1838 to 1968
  • periodicals (without monthly publications) since 1849
Collection of products:
Books since 1838 (including stock of the Alfred Janssen publishing house, Hamburg), periodicals since 1849, maps since approximately 1880 (including maps of the Carl Flemming company, Glogau), atlasses since 1853, teaching aids (films, charts, slides), printing orders since approximately 1880.
Other collections:
  • collection of contracts
  • collection of illustrations (original drawings, wood-engravings, title drafts)
  • collection of photographs (staff members, proprietor, facilities, rooms, events, products)
  • marks of distinction (diplomas, medals)
  • collection of advertising materials since approximately 1840
  • construction plans, floor plans, drawings of machines
  • school-book authorization process
  • manuscripts
Publications
  • Fünfundsiebzig Jahre George Westermann Braunschweig. Braunschweig 1913.
  • Westermann. Profil eines Verlages, 1838 - 1963. Ein Jubiläumsbericht von Volker Hohenberg. Braunschweig 1963.
  • Westermanns Monatshefte: 125 Jahre. Braunschweig 1981.
  • "... und beehre mich Ihnen anzuzeigen ..." , Festschrift zum 150 - jährigen Bestehen des Unternehmens Westermann 1838 - 1988. Text- und Bildauswahl Günther Bouche. Braunschweig 1988.
  • Bouche , Günther : Die Westermann - Archive in Braunschweig, in: Archiv und Wirtschaft 4 / 1988, S. 147 - 153.
  • Die Erde darstellen. 150 Jahre Schulatlas und Geographie. Ausgewählt und bearbeitet von Verena Kleinschmidt und Ulf Zahn. Braunschweig 1992.
  • Kleinschmidt , Verena : Ein Fibelwerk unterm Hakenkreuz, in: Internationale Schulbuchforschung, 19. Jahrgang 1997, Heft 3, S. 319 - 330.
Conditions of use The archive is accessible to researchers. Previous inquiry in writing or by phone is requested.

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