Large Scale Manufacturing Businesses in Nagykanizsa at the Turn of the 20th Century

Abstract

This study deals with the industrialisation of the largest market centre of the Southwest Transdanubian Region of Hungary. Nagykanizsa was an agrarian town for a long time; however, a quick increase in trade began from the 1830s. The industry showed small plant traits. The industrialisation started in the 1880s in this region too. Newness was the mass-producing mechanised manufacturing. The manufacturing came into existence in three ways. The first case was when the already existing small plants were developed into factories due to the good trading opportunities. In the second case traders and craftsmen established businesses based on local innovations; therefore, new industries were acclimatised. And the third case was the creation of corporations which presumed large amount of capital. The capital of the large-scale industrial businesses mostly came from previous merchant activity and most of the business founders were merchants before. The evolution of the manufacturing industry was perceptible on every level of contemporary economic and social life. More and more labour migrated from agriculture to industries. Financing the local businesses gave a stable future for the local banks. The increasing number of factories aided local construction industry. Due to the development, industry became the most important sector in the structure of the economy of the town before World War I.