Jørgen Meinich

Who was Jørgen Meinich?

Jørgen Henrik Meinich was a Norwegian jurist and industrialist.

He was born in Søndre Land as a son of stipendiary magistrate Jens Christian Meinich and Lisa Berg. He was a brother of Hans Thomas Meinich. In November 1847 in Christiania he married Claudine Birgitte Gulbranson, a daughter of Hans Gulbranson and half sister of Carl August Gulbranson. They adopted Jens Bratlie.

He grew up at the manor Kronviken. He attended school in Skien and took the examen artium in 1839, then studied law to graduate with the cand.jur. degree in 1845. After a period as deputy judge in Ringerike, he worked in the Ministry of Finance until 1853. He settled at the property Bjølsen by the river Akerselva.

He was a pioneer in the development of the Norwegian wood processing industry and the use of hydropower in the industry. He established Norway's second pulp mill, Bjørsheim Træsliiberie, in 1865. He was a co-founder and first chairman of the association Akerselvens Brugseierforening from 1866 to 1891. He was also a joint owner of the companies Bentse Brug and Nydalens Compagnie. In Nydalens Compagnie he was a board member from 1868 to his death 1911, serving as chair since 1896. Outside of the Aker district, he was the first chairman of Ekers og Giethuus Papirfabriker when it was established as a joint stock company in 1873, and served as such until his death.