Fiskars products

During the 17th century a number of smithies were founded in Finland. The vast expanses of forest in the Pohja region, together with its wasted hydraulic power and excellent water routes, made it the perfect hub for the Finnish iron industry. Antskog smithies were founded in 1630, followed in 1641 by Billnäs.

Fiskars began life in 1649 and today it is one of the oldest companies in the Western world.

Fiskars smithies were founded in 1649

When the smithies were founded in Fiskars, Finland was under Swedish rule and, in the 17th century, Sweden was one of the largest iron producers in Europe. In 1649 Peter Thorwöste was granted the privilege of establishing a blast furnace and a bar hammer at Fiskars for the purpose of manufacturing cast iron and wrought iron products. The iron ore used at Fiskars came mainly from the Utö mine in Stockholm's outer archipelago, and most of the bar iron made in the smithies was shipped to Sweden for sale at the Iron Market. from the old town of Stockholm. At Fiskars, iron was also used to make nails, threads, knives, hoes, iron wheels, and other items.

18th century: from forge work to copper work

In 1783, the Björkman family took over the smithies and production focused on the processing of copper ore from the copper mine near Orijärvi. By the 19th century, there was very little copper left to be extracted at the Orijärvi mine, so in 1802 the blast furnaces were closed. Since then no basic iron work has been carried out in the village of Fiskars.

In 1822 the era of the Julin family begins in Fiskars

In 1822, the pharmacist Johan Jacob Julin (later von Julin) from Turku bought the smithies and village of Fiskars. In his time, blacksmiths were actively developed and production focused on the processing of iron. In 1832, the first Finnish cutlery shop was founded in the town of Fiskars, so the range of production was expanded from knives to forks and scissors. In 1837, Fiskars again set precedents in Finland when he founded his first machine shop in the village. In the 1830s, the first Finnish steam engine was manufactured in this workshop. The Fiskars tradition of implementing reforms and innovations has its roots in this period. As Julin owner, many social reforms also took place, and a school and a hospital were built in the village of the smithies. The agriculture of the town underwent a remarkable improvement. Fiskars had a significant influence on the development of Finnish agriculture, and the Fiskars plow shop produced over a million machines in its day. Under Julin's leadership, Fiskars became famous for his farm and household instruments; the Fiskars name also became synonymous with high quality.