Jacob Kirchmann (Kirkman)
died 1778 · German
harpsichord maker
Biography
Kirkman landed in London in 1740 as Jacob Kirchmann, a German harpsichord maker, and became even more financially successful than Johannes Zumpe. He left an estate valued at about $1,000,000 when he died in 1778. Along with Zumpe and Broadwood, Kirkman's financial success is credited with attracting capital to the piano industry and helping make London the birthplace of the modern piano factory, where steam-driven machinery such as circular saws and planing machines came into use as early as 1815.
Highlights
- Landed in London in 1740 as Jacob Kirchmann, a German harpsichord maker, later anglicizing his name to Kirkman
- Was even more financially successful than Johannes Zumpe
- Left an estate valued at about $1,000,000 when he died in 1778
Source
Alfred Dolge, Pianos and Their Makers, Vol. I (1911), pp. 172, 173.
Public domain.