Faïence de Sarreguemines

Sarreguemines earthenware factory was set up in 1790 by two brothers, Nicolas and Augustin Jacoby, associated with Joseph Fabry, in the Blies watermill. Their economic situation was so difficult that the Jacoby brothers had to sell their shares in 1800 to Joseph Fabry and Paul Utzschneider, a talented young Bavarian living in Strasbourg. Paul Utzschneider ingeniously introduced new techniques he had learned during his travels, particularly from England. The factory reputation picked up, partly because of its stoneware mimicking stone. In 1812 the company was noticed by Napoleon who placed several orders. In 1836 Paul Utzschneider stepped down in favor of his son-in-law Alexandre de Geiger. He carried on his predecessor’s work and cooperated with Villeroy & Boch factory in 1838, sharing the market rather than compete with it. The factory became industrialized, built new premises and increased its production. When the Moselle region was annexed by Germany, Alexandre had to flee and took refuge in Paris, while his son remained to run the now German part of the company. In 1919 the factory was reunited under the authority of the Cazal family.  From 1942 to 1945 it was run by Villery & Boch. In 1978 it moved towards wall and floor tiles production, and closed in 2007.