Edward Fischer
1828 - 1911
Edward Fischer was not a rower, but a silversmith. The reason for his inclusion in this website is that he made many historic rowing trophies.
Edward Francis Gunther Fischer (1828-1911) was born in Vienna and arrived in Australia in 1853. He was drawn to the colony during the gold rush and presumably thought that business would be brisk in the wool and gold booms. He set up business in Geelong which at that time was a thriving commercial centre, being the hub of the wool industry.
By 1857 he had established a gold and silversmith business in Geelong, which expanded to employing some 17 workers by the mid 1870s. His reputation as a craftsman was excellent, and his workshop was responsible for most of the gold and silver sporting trophies of the late 19th Century in Victoria.
In 1891, Fischer sold the business and moved to Melbourne where, by 1895 he was in partnership with his son Harry Caspar Fischer. He retired in 1911 remaining in Melbourne until his death in 1911.
Andrew Guerin and Brian Smith
December 2020