Compiled by exhibition curator, Kenneth Greep
The Gallets: Louis Simon Gallet and Valerie Auböck Gallet began their life together in Vienna, Austria in 1935. Their marriage formed a union between prominent Viennese families. Louis, a Jewish businessman, was a member of the Altmann family, well known for their high-quality knitted wool goods. The Altmanns had knitting factories throughout Europe and Louis assisted his cousin Bernhard Altmann in managing these enterprises. Louis Gallet was the cousin of Opera singer Fritz Altmann, also well known for his role as the husband of Maria (Bloch Bauer) Altmann, the central figure around which the book and movie, “Women in Gold” is based upon. Valerie Auböck Gallet was the daughter of Karl Auböck, the founder of the Werkstätte Carl Auböck, and a Viennese family who’s legacy now encompasses five generations of artists and architects.
Valerie, a trained and accomplished milliner was a sibling of Carl Auböck II, perhaps most recognized and celebrated for his watercolors and artistic use of brass material in creating unique design objects. Carl Auböck II was a student of Joseph Itten, the highly renowned painter and early member of the Bauhaus who recommended a young Carl Auböck II for a scholarship to this historically important modernist institution. Auböcks time at the Bauhaus, a progressive modernist art commune, helped shape his future design process and set the Werkstätte Carl Auböck on a course of international recognition. Valeries sister, Elisabeth “Lilly” Auböck Streit was an early female pioneer in the graphic design field and had co-founded ESBETA, a graphic design studio with her husband, Adolf Streit, Joseph Binder and others as early as the 1920’s. Lilly produced graphic design for fashion marketing campaigns and was also an accomplished painter. Much like her accomplished siblings, Valerie Auböck Gallet would display her artistic talents through her role as as a knitting mill owner and operator working with some of the biggest names in American fashion in the mid to late 20th century.
Louis Gallet: Louis Simon Gallet (10/22/1904 - 12/17/1955 (51yo)) was the son of Simon Gallet and Sylla Tischler. Simon Gallet and his first cousin, (Chaskel “Karl” Altmann) each married a Tischler sister. The Gallets, Altmanns and Tischlers all had backgrounds in the knitting industry and this common thread brought them together. Their children would carry on their legacy. Simon and Sylla had two children, Louis and Wina Gallet and Karl Altmann and Keile “Karoline” Tischler had several children including Bernhard, Frederich “Fritz”, Max, Julius and Klara. Bernhard Altmann would become a force within the knitting industry with factories in Austria, France and other European nations managed by his first cousin, Louis Gallet.
As society declined in the 1930’s, antisemitism grew and the conditions in Austria made it unsafe for the Jewish Gallet and Altmann families. Louis Gallet, Bernhard Altmann and other family members relocated to Paris to pursue their business ventures in a country where they felt more secure. The feelings of safety would not last long. During the late 1930’s, the Altmann family fell victim to Arianization, the practice of Nazi’s acquiring the businesses of Jews through intimidation and force. Frederich “Fritz" Altmann was sent to the Dachau concentration camp and was only released after his brother Bernhard agreed to sign away ownership of his Knitting mill businesses to secure his brother’s safe release.
Just months before France would declare war on Germany, Louis Gallet and his wife Valerie Auböck Gallet were able to flee Paris and head to the United States aboard the USS DeGasse. Their ship landed at Ellis Island in June of 1939 and they would briefly stay in New York City with Gerhard Herlinger, the son of Louis’s cousin, Klara Altmann Herlinger. After a few months in New York they made their way to Fall River, Massachusettes where Louis would begin working in a knitting factory owned by his cousin Bernhard Altmann. Shortly after the Gallets arrival, Fritz and Maria Altmann would join them in Fall River in 1940. Fritz, an accomplished opera singer and his wife, Maria, a member of the prominent Viennese Bloch-Bauer family would later become the central figures in the book and movie, “Women in Gold” which detailed the challenges Maria faced while regaining paintings of her aunt, Adele, by the famous painter Gustav Klimt. This remarkable work of art known to many as the “Mona Lisa of Austria” had been confiscated by the Nazis during WWII and found it’s way to the Belvedere Museum in Vienna, Austria before finally being returned to Maria.
Fritz and Maria Altmann left Fall River for Los Angeles and the Gallets embarked on a journey to the Quaker community of Penn Craft, outside of Uniontown, PA. The Quaker community was one of tolerance and inclusion and provided a safe haven for the Gallets who had lived in fear of the antisemitic sentiment that had infected segments of Europe. Valerie’s father, Karl Auböck, migrated briefly from Europe to the US around 1890. Although his stay brief, he became a Quaker while in the US. Karl’s conversion while in America could explain why Valerie and Louis felt comfortable in the Quaker community.
Louis and Valerie Gallet began managing the Co-op Redstone Knitting Mill, in Penn Craft, PA around 1941. In 1943 they would assume full ownership. In 1946, the Gallets would expand operations opening the Louis Gallet Knitting Mill in Mentor, OH. The Gallets remained in Penn Craft for approximately 10 years before striking a deal with the Greater Uniontown Industrial Fund to construct a 16,000 sq.ft factory in Uniontown. Members of the Industrial Fund included I.N. Hagen, founder of Hägen Ice cream and owner of the Frank Lloyd Wright designed home “Kentuck Knob” and media mogul, S.W. Caulkin among others. The factory was to be designed by architect Emil Johnson, built with funds from the Uniontown Industrial Fund and leased by the Gallets with the option to purchase. During the grand opening ceremony of Gallet Mills at the Delaware Ave factory in April of 1954, Louis Gallet remarked, “Nobody can go ahead without the assistance of someone else in a moral and financial way. I found this assistance here in this county in this city, more than anywhere else in the world.” By June of 1954, the Gallets had purchased the building, repaying the UIF, thus freeing up funds for them to invest in other regional ventures. At the time, Gallet Mills and Rockwell Meter were two of the largest employers in the area. Gallet Mills employed between 150 and 200 individuals, mostly women, during the 1950’s. Louis Gallet was known as an upstanding member of the local community. Uniontown Mayor J. Watson Sembower was quoted in the Uniontown Herald as saying, “Mr. Gallet is an asset to the Community” and “The acquisition of the plant is fine, but the acquisition of Gallet, the man, is finer.” Gallet’s time at the Delaware Ave factory which he worked so hard to create would be brief. In December of 1955, Louis Gallet would die unexpectedly at the age of 51 leaving his wife, Valerie and young son, Roger, behind.
Valerie Auböck Gallet: Valerie Auböck Gallet was the youngest daughter of Karl & Elisabeth Auböck. Valerie or “Valy” as her family refers to her was a trained milliner. Just as her sister Elisabeth was a pioneer and partner in the graphic design firm ESBETA in the 1920’s, Valerie was a female force within the fashion industry. Her husband Louis, when asked of his success, was quoted in a Uniontown Evening Standard article as saying, “Without Mrs. Gallets assistance, I would never have made it”. He also referred to her as his “right hand” indicating how important Valeries contribution was to the success of the business. Valerie was a constant presence in the workplace but after Louis Gallets passing in 1955, Valerie Auböck Gallet decided to sell Gallet Mills to Forstmann’s. During this period she also sold the home which her nephew, Carl Auböck III designed for the Gallet family. After traveling to Vienna, Valerie returned to the US to raise her son, Roger. In 1959, in a remarkable turn of events, Valerie re-acquired the Gallet Mills factory. Forstmann’s had sold the knitting mill to J.P. Stevens & Co in 1957 and Valerie being a capable business women was able to negotiate a deal with J.P. Stevens & Co, keeping the factory open and providing employment to the region. Valerie Gallet did not re-acquire the Auböck III designed Gallet Residence, instead purchasing a home on Belmont Circle in Uniontown, PA so that Roger could be near his friends. After re-acquiring the factory, Valerie would oversee the day-to-day operations of Gallet Mills for over 40 years. Her son Roger would put aside his successful architecture career to help run the knitting factory. Over it’s many years of operation, Gallet Mills would play a vital role in the fashion industry, producing garments for some of the most iconic brands of the mid to late 20th century such as Catalina, Jantzen, Ralph Lauren, Jos. A. Bank, Izod, Brooks Brothers and more.
The Gallet Residence: In 1952 Architect and designer Carl Auböck III would make a trip to the US which would greatly influence the course of the Werkstätte. While in the US, he attended MIT for a summer and visited the iconic husband-and-wife design duo, Charles and Ray Eames as well as George Nelson and others. These meetings would inspire design and also marketing and collaborative ventures in the future. At some point during this period, Carl Auböck III would embark on his first architectural project, a residential home designed for his Aunt Valerie, Uncle Louis and young cousin, Roger Gallet.
Correspondence letters between the Gallets to their nephew, Carl Auböck III in Vienna reveal a hands-on approach from Louis and Valerie regarding the details of the home. Functionality and aesthetics were of great importance. Material use and construction methods were discussed at length. The letters reveal intimate insight into the challenges of constructing a modernist design during this era. The home was to be built on the former Japanese Garden location in Uniontown, PA. It was completed in January of 1954. The 1950’s home was furnished with midcentury modern classic furniture by Knoll, Charles and Ray Eames, Eero Saarinen, George Nelson and, of course, artwork, furniture and decor by Werkstätte Carl Auböck. The Gallet families time in the Carl Auböck home was brief. Upon Louis Gallets passing in 1955, the home was sold to a prominent local family, known in the region for their ownership of newspapers such as the Herald Standard and other media outlets.
