John Calvin Campbell

Biography

John Calvin Campbell was born at Newark, N.J., in 1864. Described as a mechanical genius, he served an apprenticeship as a machinist, then turned to construction and invented several useful wood- and iron-working machines. In 1890 he took up piano making and made a scientific study of piano construction, achieving such success that his pianos were immediately accepted by the wholesale trade as of splendid commercial value. His firm, Kohler & Campbell (founded with Charles Kohler), grew to unexpected magnitude, beginning with small capital in 1896 and placing over 120,000 pianos on the market within 14 years. He died in 1908. A portrait of Campbell accompanies the text.

Highlights

• Born at Newark, N.J. in 1864; a mechanical genius who invented several wood and iron working machines
• Took up piano making in 1890 and made a scientific study of piano construction
• Co-founded Kohler & Campbell, which placed over 120,000 pianos on the market within 14 years; died in 1908

Source

Alfred Dolge, Pianos and Their Makers, Vol. I (1911), p. 335.

Public domain.