David Carnegie the Younger, D. Carnegie & Co
The obverse (front) of the medal shows David Carnegie the Younger in profile and the reverse (back) shows the Carnegie Mill at Klippan. The medal was issued to commemorate 50 years of ownership of the mill by D. Carnegie & Co. The inscription (text) on the reverse reads: ‘FROM THE COMPANY D.CARNEGIE & CO: HALF CENTURY MEMORIAL 1836-1886: TO THE MEN AND WORKERS’. The medal, which is in silver, is engraved by Lea Ahlborn.
David Carnegie the Younger (1813-1890) moved to Gothenburg from Scotland in 1830 to work in the trading house of his uncle, David Carnegie the Elder (1772-1837), D. Carnegie & Co. He became a partner in 1835.
The trading house was one of Gothenburg's largest and its activities included the export of herring, tar and wood products and the import of salt and wine. The business also included shipping, ironworks and sawmills. In 1836, David Carnegie the Younger bought the Lorentz porter and sugar mills at Klippan at a bankruptcy auction. In 1850, the mills accounted for 30 per cent of Gothenburg's industrial production and a third of all sugar and syrup produced in Sweden.
In 1841, David Carnegie the Younger returned to the UK and did not participate operationally in the day-to-day business, but still made the strategic decisions.
A community of housing for employees grew up around the mills. The mill had a school, co-operative store, bank and chapel. Around 1850, about 300 people were employed at the mills. In 1907, the sugar mill was incorporated into Svenska Sockerfabriks AB. The porter brewery was sold to the state-owned Vin & Spritcentralen in 1920.
