Karel Domin (1851-1922)

Karel Domin was born on 27 January 1851 in Prague. He studied at the Real School and the Technical School in Prague. He first worked at the teachers' institute in Prague and Kutná Hora. In 1892 he was appointed director of the Příbram Teacher's Institute, where an atmosphere of comfort and cordial kindness prevailed with his arrival. He was a modest, prudent and forgiving man of excellent spirit, who made important decisions with the approval of the teaching staff. After only two years of his tenure, the school building was renovated. In October 1898, he convened the constituent general meeting of the association "For the support of the poor inmates of the teachers' institute in Pribram". In addition to the dean of Pribram A. Vojáček, the mayor of Pribram Blazej Mixa and the professor of the Mining Academy Dr. Josef Theurer, the booksellers Kozlik and Simon and the headmaster of the burgher school Vlasák. At the very beginning, Domin donated a considerable sum of 493 gold coins to the association, which he generously described as "various savings of several years." The aim of the association was to provide free lunches for the poor inmates (students), to provide them with free treatment and medicine, and to contribute to their necessary clothing, shoes and books.

In 1908 it was appointed as a government board. He managed the Pribram Pedagogical College until his retirement at the end of 1921. He died on 19 April 1922.

He wrote textbooks on arithmetic and geometry for teachers' institutes and revised for them the older textbooks of his father-in-law and the renowned professor of pedagogy Dr. Gustav Lindner on education, which were published in numerous editions. He wrote scientific and methodological articles for pedagogical journals.

His son, Dr. Karel Domin (*1882, +1953), graduated from the gymnasium in Příbram and then studied natural sciences at the Czech University in Prague. He became a prominent botanist, director of the Prague Botanical Institute and Botanical Garden and between 1933 and 1934 rector of Charles University.

Source: State Teachers' Institute Příbram 1874-1948. Inventory of the Fund. Příbram 2006. National Policy of 31 May 1933.

Elaborated by: PhDr. Věra Smolová, Director of SOA Příbram