Franz Xaver Mitterer (1824-1899) and the foundation of the bobbin lace school in Proveis
Franz Xaver Mitterer (1824-1899) was a native of Laurein on the Nonsberg. He studied in Meran and Trento and became a priest. From 1850, he worked as a pastor in Proveis, where he saw the great need of the population. Mitterer saw a way out in increased education and in the promotion of artisan trades, which were supposed to create additional income for the farming families. Mitterer therefore arranged for a new school to be built in Proveis and in 1873 founded a bobbin lace school and a basket weaving school. The bobbin lace school in particular achieved great prestige and similar bobbin lace schools were soon established in many other places in the region.
