Friedrich Peyer im Hof

Alongside Alfred Escher, he is one of the main pioneers of rail transport in Switzerland.

He was an early proponent of steam power in Switzerland, co-founder of Schaffhauser Eisenbahnvereins (1842) and of the Dampfboot-AG steamboat company (1851).

He was co-founder of Waggonfabrik Neuhausen (from 1862 Schweizerische Industrie Gesellschaft) in 1853, and co-director of the Nordostbahn railway company during 1857–1877.

Peyer was significantly affected by the financial crisis that hit Nordostbahn in the early 1870s.

At the same time, his speculative investments in Hungary met with failure, so that he was forced to retire from all offices in 1877.