Loading
BARIGO Barometerfabrik is a German manufacturer of high-quality mechanical meteorological instruments (barometers, thermometers, hygrometers, altimeters, etc.) founded in the first half of the 20th century. The company’s roots go back to 1925–1926, when Richard Goes opened his own barometer works in Esslingen; over the following decades it grew into a recognized name in the field. The name BARIGO is formed from the initials of BArometerfabrik RIchard GOes.
Richard Goes, the founder of what became Barigo-Barometerfabrik, remains a somewhat enigmatic figure in the historical record, with only limited personal biographical detail available in public sources. Nevertheless, on the basis of the few documents that have surfaced, it is possible to reconstruct his life story.
Richard Goes was born on 3 January 1878 in Adozhausen–Mergentheim (Württemberg), the son of Georg Goes and his wife Eugenie, née Riecke. His father Georg came from Metzingen, where he had been born in 1846, and lived a life closely tied to the traditions of craft and trade. Georg died in February 1919 in Tübingen, leaving a large family. Eugenie, Richard’s mother, kept a warm and orderly household in which several children grew up together.
Richard was raised in a large family; he had six brothers and sisters — Eberhardt, Reinhold, Thusnelde, Elisabeth, Johanna, Martin, and Walther. That large family created an atmosphere of mutual support that helped him later in life. As a child and young man Richard learned the value of work and carefulness in business — qualities essential to a future man of commerce.
By profession he was a Kaufmann — a merchant, a man of business. His path first led him into the watch industry, where he gained experience in trading precision instruments. Gradually, his accumulated experience and innate entrepreneurship enabled him to build his own enterprise devoted to the manufacture and sale of barometers — something that would secure his name in the history of German precision mechanics.
Richard’s private life was not without its turns, yet family always had a place in it. His first wife was Luise, née Glock; later he married Gertrud, née Roth. It is also known that he had a son, Karl Goes, who continued the family line.
Richard’s long life came to a close on 21 November 1956 in Esslingen, a city where he left a notable mark as an entrepreneur and master of his trade. His life mirrors that of an entire generation of South-German craftsmen and merchants whose years fell in the pivotal era straddling the nineteenth and twentieth centuries — with its wars, economic upheavals, and new opportunities for those with resolve and a willingness to work.
The story of Richard Goes is inseparable from the founding and evolution of his barometer factory, reflecting the broader industrial and economic landscape of Germany from the Weimar Republic through the post-World-War-II reconstruction.
In the early 1900s Germany was a center of mechanical engineering and precision manufacturing, especially in regions such as Baden-Württemberg. Esslingen am Neckar, a city with medieval roots known for its industrial growth, provided fertile ground for entrepreneurs like Goes.
Trade-press reports attest that Goes worked as a commercial traveler (Reisender) for Schlenker & Kienzle, a firm founded in 1822 in Schwenningen (Württemberg) and counted among the largest German clock factories at the turn of the nineteenth to the twentieth century.
Issue 36 of Die Uhrmacher-Woche (Leipziger Uhrmacher-Zeitung) reports: “The watch wholesale business of the late Rudolf Seifert in Villingen has been purchased by Mr. Richard Goes and, with all assets and liabilities, was taken over by him on 15 August. The firm is now called: Richard Goes vormals Rudolf Seifert, Uhren en gros und Export (‘Richard Goes, formerly Rudolf Seifert, wholesale and export of watches’). Mr. Goes, as a long-standing commercial traveler of Schlenker & Kienzle, is thoroughly familiar with the trade.”
Issue 37 of the Deutsche Uhrmacher-Zeitung dated 11 September 1919 states: “Mr. Richard Goes, formerly a commercial representative of Schlenker & Kienzle, has taken over the watch wholesale trade of Rudolf Seifert in Villingen and continues it under the name Firma Richard Goes vormals Rudolf Seifert.”
Thus the evidence shows that in 1919 Richard Goes acquired a wholesale watch business in Villingen from the estate of the deceased Rudolf Seifert — an early entry into the watch trade years before the founding of Barometerfabrik Richard Goes.
From these notices we may conclude that Goes had served “for many years” as a commercial agent of the company; although precise start and end dates are not given, the wording points to a long-standing association with Kienzle at least up to 1919. The same report notes that after the owner’s death Goes bought the substantial Villingen firm, “taking over all assets and liabilities,” i.e., leaving his previous positions — a clear indication of his long connection to Schlenker & Kienzle.
The Deutsche Uhrmacher-Zeitung (DUZ) was the oldest German professional newspaper/journal for watchmakers, published in Berlin from 1877 to 1943 and serving as the official organ of the Central Association of German Watchmakers.
Die Uhrmacher-Woche was a separate Leipzig-based periodical (also appearing as Leipziger Uhrmacher-Zeitung), published from the early twentieth century and very active in the 1920s–30s. Uhrmacher-Woche (Watchmakers’ Week) was a well-known German trade journal focused on the watch and precision-engineering sectors, a platform for industry news including business changes, acquisitions, and advertising.
The acquisition of a wholesale watch business underscores Goes’s immersion in the clock and precision-instrument trade during Germany’s post-World-War-I recovery — a time when the Black Forest watchmaking heritage was being rebuilt amid economic instability. While primary sources such as the trade journals provide a snapshot of the transaction, deeper details — the business’s exact origins, operational development, key partners, or specific product lines — remain elusive, likely due to fragmentary record-keeping of the era and the limited digitization of local archives.
Villingen (today part of Villingen-Schwenningen, Baden-Württemberg) was strategically situated in the Black Forest, cradle of German horology since the seventeenth century, known for cuckoo clocks, mechanical chronometers, and wholesale distribution networks. Goes likely used this acquisition to build experience in distributing timekeepers — experience that informed his later move into barometer and instrument manufacture in Esslingen around 1925–1926. Available evidence suggests modest expansion: Goes probably extended supplier networks within the Black Forest, leveraging post-war demand for affordable clocks.
By 1934 Villingen/Schwenningen registers show trademarks connected with Goes, pointing to a shift toward manufacturing. This sheds light on his career: by 1926 he was no novice but a seasoned merchant with Black Forest roots. The location of the 1919 firm close to Barigo’s later base hints at strategic foresight. In the Mikrolisk trademark archive (watch industry), the mark “Neuland” is listed as registered 24 April 1934 for Richard Goes (+Nachfahren) / Barigo-Barometerfabrik, Schwenningen, Germany, covering goods such as Wecker (alarm clocks) — class 14 (jewelry, clocks, and time-measuring instruments).
These records highlight how Goes integrated horological know-how with barometer and alarm-clock manufacture, laying the groundwork for the Barigo brand. In the 1930s Germany strengthened IP protection via the DPMA, prompting registrations across watchmaking and precision-instrument sectors. Schwenningen, as a Baden-Württemberg watchmaking hub, hosted workshops producing mechanical devices — including alarm clocks, barometers, and altimeters. The 1934 registration reflects his strategic expansion from distribution (1919) to proprietary manufacture, likely spurred by Depression-era economics and rising demand for affordable alarm clocks for home and industry. Sources such as Mikrolisk compile data from original bulletins and journals like Uhrmacher-Woche, where such notices were published to guard against counterfeits.
The principal entry concerns the trademark “Neuland.” According to Mikrolisk it was registered on 24 April 1934 for Richard Goes (+ Nachfahren) — i.e., Richard Goes and successors — in partnership with Barigo-Barometerfabrik, based in Schwenningen. The mark is associated with Wecker (alarm clocks), tying directly to timekeepers and, more broadly, to mechanical instruments including meteorological devices. This points to an evolution: Goes, formerly a wholesaler, now labeling his own factory output. The registration also signals a transition to full-scale production.
Other Mikrolisk mentions link “Neuland” to Christian Jauch (Schwenningen), likely a cooperation or parallel filing. It also appears likely that the core BARIGO mark (with circle and half-rectangle) was registered on 5 December 1930 by Richard Goes via Barigo-Barometerfabrik, covering goods such as alarm clocks and instruments. References to Barigo trademarks in the 1930s probably relate to Goes’s expansion from wholesale to manufacturing precision products.
As the company gathered momentum, it experienced internal growth. Historical trade notes indicate a relocation within Esslingen to Blumenstraße. This move — documented in Uhrmacher-Woche — suggests increased capacity and possibly new instrument lines. The primary source is accessible via the digital collections of SLUB Dresden, where a page under “Geschäftsveränderungen” (business changes) records the shift. Specifically, issue 24 of Uhrmacher-Woche, 1939 states: “The barometer factory of Richard Goes has moved its works to Blumenstraße.”
In 1949 the business was acquired by three entrepreneurs — Mehne, Hayer, and Müller — and the headquarters was permanently established in Schwenningen, then a center of watchmaking in the Black Forest with a skilled labor pool suitable for assembling barometers and hygrometers.
In 1953 BARIGO moved to new premises at Turmstraße 26, and in 1955 to Eichendorffstraße 28. During the 1950s–60s production and exports boomed; by 1972 a large “South Wing” was added to the main building. The product range expanded substantially to include barometers, thermometers, hygrometers, altimeters, compasses, and ship’s watches. Mechanisms were produced with a high proportion of in-house components and assembled by skilled staff. Thanks to workmanship, BARIGO instruments enjoyed steady demand both domestically and abroad.
In the 1980s the electronics era arrived, and the company adapted. In 1986 BARIGO launched its first electronic thermometer, and in 1991 an electronic altimeter. Despite adopting modern technology, the firm remained faithful to traditional mechanics, continuing to produce classic instruments valued for accuracy, longevity, and elegant design.
In 1996 a new generation of the owning family took the helm. In 1998 the company opened its own French branch, an important step in gaining European market share and expanding its international presence.
In the 21st century BARIGO continued to produce both mechanical and electronic devices, remaining a well-known brand in the premium segment. The head office was at Eichendorffstraße 28, Villingen-Schwenningen, and later the firm moved production to nearby Dauchingen on Daimlerstraße.
In 2024 BARIGO was acquired by the major German meteorological-instrument maker FISCHER. From that point, products under the BARIGO brand have been manufactured in FISCHER’s workshops, giving the marque a new lease of life within a larger enterprise.
In sum, the history of BARIGO runs from Richard Goes’s small Esslingen factory to an internationally known brand whose products married the Black Forest’s hand-craft tradition with modern technology — and ultimately became part of a leading market player, Fischer.
