Saint-Martin. The Lehmanns: a generation of edge-cutters from father to son

The eco-fun L'Échappée link between Saint-Martin and La Chaume des Veaux will be presented on Sunday, September 14. The Lehmann cutting workshop in Saint-Martin is part of this route.

A brief historical reminder. The Lehmann brothers, originally from Saint-Martin, opened their workshop in 1954, taking over from their father Alphonse, who founded the factory in 1925.

In their blacksmith shop, they made garden tools. Starting with an iron ingot, they machined shovels, spades, scythes, axes, hatchets, and forks. More than thirty different tools were in their catalog. The Lehmann brothers had a reputation for quality and reliability.

These tools had made this brotherhood exceptional suppliers to merchants, wholesalers, and resellers. Traveling the region's markets, the two brothers also had a private clientele they met in all corners of Alsace and as far away as the Vosges.

Their "martinet" was a workshop below Liberation Street, near the river. As you passed, you could hear the steady sound of heavy hammers striking the red-hot scrap metal.

The ground floor served as a storage area. In 1977, a fire destroyed the upper part of the building. Florent, having lost his brother Lucien in 1984, rebuilt his business and ran it until 1991. He did not find a buyer, and the workshop remains as it is today.

The municipality, interested in the workshop to turn it into a small museum, has purchased the premises and aims to acquire it permanently and operate it.

Sunday, September 14, discovery day of the Saint-Martin – Breitenbach – Champ du Feu eco-fun link from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Information: https://breitenbach.fr/echappee.