Nokia's First Century; 1865 - 1967

The first Nokia century began with Fredrik Idestam's paper mill on the banks of the Nokianvirta river. Between 1865 and 1967, the company would become a major industrial force; but it took a merger with a cable company and a rubber firm to set the new Nokia Corporation on the path to electronics...

How It All Began...

Nokia started by making paper – the original communications technology
The history of Nokia goes back to 1865. That was when Fredrik Idestam built a wood pulp mill on the banks of the Tammerkoski rapids, in southern Finland. A few years later, he built a second mill by the Nokianvirta river – the place that gave Nokia its name.

Who was Fredrik Idestam?
A mining engineer by trade, Idestam brought a new, cheaper paper manufacturing process to Finland from Germany.
It was a great success. Idestam’s invention won a bronze medal at the Paris World Exposition in 1867, and he is considered to be the father of Finland’s paper industry.
Idestam named his company Nokia Ab in 1871
Nokia Ab added electricity generation to its business activities in 1902

Did you know?
The Nokianvirta river is named after a dark, furry animal that was locally known as the nokia – a type of marten.

1898: Finnish Rubber Works founded
Arvid Wickström founds Finnish Rubber Works, which will later become Nokia's rubber business.

1912: Finnish Cable Works founded
Eduard Polón starts Finnish Cable Works, the foundation of Nokia's cable and electronics businesses.

Verner Weckman,industry heavyweight

Company president was Finland’s first Olympic champion
In 1937, Verner Weckman became President of one of Nokia Corporation’s founding companies, Finnish Cable Works, after 16 years as its Technical Director.

Russian connection
Weckman had worked as a mining engineer in Russia from 1909 to 1921.
His knowledge of the Russian language and culture, as well as his industry connections, proved crucial when Finnish Cable Works started exporting products to the Soviet Union after the Second World War.

Award-winning athlete
Weckman was also a world-class light-heavyweight wrestler and Finland’s first Olympic Gold medalist.
He won the wrestling World Championship in 1905
He won Olympic gold medals in wrestling at the 1906 Games in Athens and the 1908 Games in London

Did you know?
Finnish Cable Works supplied cables to the Soviet Union as part of Finland’s war reparations after WWII. This gave the company a good foothold for later trade.