After his early death in Wetzlar in 1855 from tuberculosis at the age of 29, his widow led the company, which had twelve employees at that time. In 1856, she married her employee Friedrich Belthle (February 27, 1829 – May 9, 1869), who from then on managed the company. In 1864, precision mechanic Ernst Leitz joined them; he became a partner on October 7, 1865, took over the company in 1869 and re-founded it as the Ernst Leitz GmbH.