Franz Mack (7 March 1921 – 3 October 2010) was a German

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value in ways that generally entail beyond the minimal amount of risk (assumed by a traditional business), and potentially involving values besides simply economic ones. An entreprene ...

. He is the founder of

Europa-Park Europa-Park is a theme park in Rust, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Covering a total area of 95 hectares, twenty themed areas offer around a hundred attractions, including shows and fourteen roller coasters. The park also includes six hotels, a c ...

Personal life

Franz Mack was born in 1921 as the fourth son of Heinrich and Theresia Mack in

Waldkirch Waldkirch () is a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, located 15 kilometers northeast of Freiburg im Breisgau. While the English translation of its name is ''Forest Church'', it is known as the "town of mechanical organs", where fairground org ...

Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic, officially known as the German Reich, was the German Reich, German state from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional republic for the first time in history; hence it is also referred to, and unofficially proclai ...

. Franz Mack was married to Liesel Mack from 1948 until her death in 2004 and has two sons, Roland and Jürgen.Bayer, Lukas (2010-12-03). "Wer war Franz Mack?" ''

Badische Zeitung The ''Badische Zeitung'' (''Baden Newspaper'') is a German newspaper based in Freiburg im Breisgau, covering the South Western part of Germany and the Black Forest region. It has a circulation of 145,825 and a readership of 409,000. The paper was ...

'' (in German). Retrieved 2023-04-24. He died in the night of October 3, 2010 in

Rust Rust is an iron oxide, a usually reddish-brown oxide formed by the reaction of iron and oxygen in the catalytic presence of water or air moisture. Rust consists of hydrous iron(III) oxides (Fe2O3·nH2O) and iron(III) oxide-hydroxide (FeO(OH) ...

at the age of 89.

Career

After completing his compulsory education (

Volksschule The German term ''Volksschule'' () generally refers to compulsory education, denoting an educational institution every person (i.e. the people, ''Volk'') is required to attend. In Germany and Switzerland it is equivalent to a combined primar ...

), Mack learned the profession of

coachbuilding A coachbuilder manufactures bodies for passenger-carrying vehicles. The trade of producing coachwork began with bodies for horse-drawn vehicles. Today it includes custom automobiles, buses, motor coaches, and railway carriages. The word ...

and later qualified as a certified

master craftsman Historically, a master craftsman or master tradesman (sometimes called only master or grandmaster) was a member of a guild. The title survives as the highest professional qualification in craft industries. In the European guild#organization, gui ...

. At the age of 16, he started working as a

design engineer A design engineer is an engineer focused on the engineering design process in any of the various engineering disciplines (including civil, mechanical, electrical, chemical, textiles, aerospace, nuclear, manufacturing, systems, and struct ...

in his parents' carriage and carousel factory in Waldkirch,

Mack Rides Mack Rides GmbH & Co KG, also known simply as Mack Rides, is a German company that designs and constructs amusement rides, based in Waldkirch, Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Ge ...

, formerly known as ''Heinrich Mack GmbH & Co. KG.''Schenk, Peter (2010-10-09). "Karussellfachmann und gefeierter Unternehmer. Franz Mack, mit 89 Jahren verstorbener Gründer des Europaparks, baute noch im hohen Alter Achterbahnen." ''

Basler Zeitung ''Basler Zeitung'' (literally: "Basler Newspaper"), or ''BaZ'', is a Switzerland, Swiss German language, German-language regional daily newspaper, published in Basel. History and profile ''Basler Zeitung'' was created in 1977 through the merg ...

'' (in German). Retrieved 2023-04-24. The origins of the factory date back to 1780. His professional career was interrupted by the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Franz Mack spent several years as a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

. In August 1947, he and his brother fled from a camp in

Alsace Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. After his father had hidden him for a year with a showman in the

American Zone The American occupation zone in Germany (German language, German: ), also known as the US-Zone, and the Southwest zone, was one of the four Allied-occupied Germany, occupation zones established by the Allies of World War II in Germany west of t ...

Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

, he returned to Germany. In Frankfurt, he returned to his native town of Waldkirch after the German

currency reform Monetary reform is any movement or theory that proposes a system of supplying money and financing the economy that is different from the current system. Monetary reformers may advocate any of the following, among other proposals: * A return to ...

in 1948. In 1958, Mack and his brothers Hermann and Willi took over the carriage and carousel factory from his father.Preuß, Susanne (2010-10-05). "Franz Mack". ''

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung The (; ''FAZ''; "Frankfurt General Newspaper") is a German newspaper founded in 1949. It is published daily in Frankfurt and is considered a newspaper of record for Germany. Its Sunday edition is the ''Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung'' ( ...

'' (in German). Retrieved 2023-04-25.

Europa-Park

In July 1975, Mack opened

with his son Roland. Originally, the purpose of the park was to showcase the products of the carousel factory. Mack developed several roller coasters, like Eurosat, built in 1989, as well as the high-speed roller coaster from 1997,

Euro-Mir Euro-Mir is a space-themed spinning roller coaster located at Europa-Park in Rust, Germany, Rust, Germany. Unlike most spinning coasters, however, the cars do not spin freely, but are rotated by motors at set points during the ride. It was desig ...

Memberships and awards

Mack was a member of the DIN 4112 standards committee, responsible for the construction and operation of amusement rides. He also had a seat on the supervisory board of Volksbank Waldkirch and was involved in various honorary offices. Mack received the following awards: * 1984:

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (, or , BVO) is the highest state decoration, federal decoration of the Federal Republic of Germany. It may be awarded for any field of endeavor. It was created by the first List of president ...

(Bundesverdientkreuz).Fackler, Bernd (2010-10-09). "Gott hatte Franz Mack mit vielen Talenten ausgestattet". ''

'' (in German). Retrieved 2023-04-24. * 1991:

Lorenz Werthmann Lorenz Werthmann (1 October 1858 – 10 April 1921) was a German Roman Catholic priest and social worker. He was the founder and first president of the German Caritas Germany. Life Werthmann was born in Geisenheim and attended high school in ...

Medal of Caritas. * 1997: Grand Cross 1st class (

). * 2001: Honorary Citizen of the Municipality of

. * 2006: Medal of Merit in Gold of the town of Waldkirch. * 2006: Hall of Fame of the

IAAPA The International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) represents over 6,000 amusement-industry members in more than 100 countries worldwide and operates several global attractions-industry trade shows. Its annual IAAPA Expo in ...

References

External links

Franz Mack Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mack, Franz 1921 births 2010 deaths Businesspeople from Freiburg im Breisgau Europa-Park Amusement parks in Germany German businesspeople