Electrical engineer and tourist association chairman
Carl Schulz was a politician, a hydroelectric power developer, and a pioneer in the field of electronics. But he was also the first chairman of the Trondhjem Tourist Association.
Electrical engineer and tourist association chairman
From the grave in the Cathedral Cemetery where Carl Schulz was buried in 1945, it is only a short distance to the River Nidelva, which became the city’s source of hydroelectric power after Schulz, acting on behalf of the municipality, purchased the Upper and Lower Leirfoss waterfalls for the development of electric power. The power station at Upper Leirfoss was completed in 1901, with Schulz overseeing the project. He was one of the leading electrical engineers of his time, as well as a politically active citizen who represented the Liberal Party on the city council.
Schulz was well acquainted with the Leirfoss waterfalls, which were among the city’s major tourist attractions. From its establishment in 1887, the Trondheim Tourist Association made the waterfalls more accessible to visitors, with Carl Schulz serving as the association’s first chairman. He published a travel guide to Trondheim and Trøndelag and expanded the association’s activities into Bymarka and Gråkallen, as well as Trollheimen and Sylan. He was a driving force behind the development of hiking trails and the construction of mountain lodges.
Carl Schulz was born in Trondheim in 1851 and attended Trondheim Cathedral School. After studying at the University of Kristiania, he returned to Trondheim in 1878 to teach at the Cathedral School. That same year, he also became curator of the mineral collection at the Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters, a position he held for no fewer than 58 years. At the same time, Schulz taught physics, electrical engineering and geology at Trondhjem Technical College, becoming a full-time member of staff in 1894. When the Norwegian Institute of Technology was established in 1910, the college was renamed Trondhjem Technical Intermediate School, with Schulz serving as its director until his retirement in 1926. The previous year, he had been awarded the King’s Medal of Merit in gold.
Schulz was a pioneer in his field and published the book Grundtræk af Elektroniken (Fundamentals of Electrical Engineering) in 1909. He was a member of the Trondhjem Polytechnic Society for almost 70 years, regularly delivered lectures there and was made an honorary member of the society. He was also an honorary member of the Trondheim Tourist Association. Schulzhytta, a mountain lodge in Selbu, was built in his memory. The lodge was partly financed by a donation Schulz made to the association on its 50th anniversary in 1937. It was completed in 1948, four years after Carl Schulz’s death.