In 1874, Wilhelm Haarmann founded a vanillin factory in Altendorf near Holzminden. The scientist had found a way to synthesise the increasingly popular flavour of vanilla and now wanted to make a profit from it. With this step, he laid the foundation for 150 years of industrial history in the production of fragrances and flavours in Holzminden. During this time, there were two world wars and some severe economic crises. In retrospect, it can be seen that the industry often benefitted from those crises in the long term. With the help of informative texts, revealing sources and numerous historical illustrations, this book provides an insight into the extra- ordinary industrial history of the Weserbergland, a supposedly remote region.