Historical Context
Heinrich Engelhard Steinweg had been making pianos in his home town of Seesen, Germany since the 1820s before he emigrated to America and founded his company with his sons in Manhattan, New York. He received his first patent in 1857 and another 138 followed. The family anglicized their name from Steinweg to Steinway in 1864.
Since then the Steinway grand piano has dominated the high end of the piano market. Famous Steinway pianos include the 300,000th made for The White House in Washington and John Lennon's upright piano on which he composed "Imagine". It was sold for 1.6 million pounds to George Michael in 2000.
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Location published: New York City, New York, USA
Related Events
- 1853-03-05 Piano company Steinway & Sons founded by Heinrich Steinweg (later Henry Steinway) in New York City
