 This was the first location of the Elg & Persson workshop, previously a prayer house ! My grandfather´s workshopMy own link to Liljendal is my grandfather, Carl August Elg, who was born there in 1888. However, the family moved already in 1889 to another mill at Hagge, just outside Ludvika where I grew up. (Their home in Hagge is shown on the introduction page to this website). For many years, my grandfather worked in a small mechanical workshop in Ludvika, owned by his older brother Axel and a partner. In the early years of the century this was a busy place employing a number of people doing subcontracting as well as their own products. Connected to the workshop was a store selling bicycles and sporting goods. By the time I grew up the bicycle shop was sold, Axel had retired, and my grandfather ran the workshop on his own, doing all sorts of repair work. Since it was close to school I spent many lunch breaks there, and I believe this is the main reason for my fascination with old technology. Although powered by a large electrical motor in a corner, the workshop was still laid out as it would have been in the steam era, with power distributed through an overhead system of pulleys and leather belts to a number of ancient machine tool. As the motor was switched on the whole workshop came alive. The overhead shafting would all start to rotate, and each machine was turned on or off by a log wooden lever, which would transfer the leather belt between an idler pulley and one which was locked to the rotating distribution shaft.
 Last updated 02-10-27, 15.09 |
