In 1837, William joined fellow German Henry Gaehle to form the piano manufacturing firm of Knabe & Gaehle. Within three years he started his own business in an old frame building – buying, selling, and repairing pianos. William must have managed his modest eight dollars a week with admirable economy. After a year, William and Christiana sold their farm tools and settled in Baltimore. Wilhelm (now calling himself William) took a job with the German piano maker Henry Hartge, who had recently made a name for himself by creating iron frames for his pianos. Wilhelm and Christiana were married, and planned to remain in Baltimore a year to learn the new language and customs before continuing on to Missouri. The family paused in the port of Baltimore to recuperate from a tragic journey. Wilhelm purchased a set of farm tools, and prepared to go with his beloved.
Christiana’s brother had already helped establish a new German settlement in Hermann, Missouri. Ritz and his family decided to leave for America with a company of immigrants. But before Wilhelm and Christiana could be married, Dr. Instead of attending the university, young Wilhelm, who showed an aptitude for mechanical things, was apprenticed to a cabinet and pianoforte maker.įollowing German custom, Wilhelm traveled six years learning his craft, and then apprenticed himself for three more years.Īt 28, Wilhelm, known among friends for his uncommon order and keen perceptiveness, became engaged to the daughter of a physician, Christiana Ritz. Like many families, the Knabes’ resources were devastated.
But in 1812, Napoleon’s army marched through Germany, bringing the calamities of war. Martin Friedrich Knabe, the town apothecary, and his wife Ernestine intended their son Wilhelm for a learned profession. It begins in 1803, in Germany, with the birth of Wilhelm Knabe in Kreuzberg, a small town near Berlin. (pronounced Kah-nob-aye), is a 19th century tale of earnestness and pluck, salted with intelligence, taste and vision. Knabe & Co.” have nearly vanished from the cultural landscape, and a grand American contribution to music has disappeared with them. Today, pianos – grand pianos, square pianos, and uprights – displaying the name “Wm. Lifetimes ago, Knabe pianos were among the finest in the land, manufactured in Baltimore by a venerable firm and played in home parlors, churches and school rooms, in the White House, and on the concert platform from Tennessee to Tokyo.
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