Kern & Co. was founded in 1819 by Jakob Kern in Aarau, Switzerland. Jakob Kern initially produced drawing instruments. The first theodolite was produced in 1824. The company grew steadily over the years, however after the First World War a poor economy and competition from the Wild company led to business difficulties. The beginning of a new era for Kern began in 1937 when Heinrich Wild started working for the company. Heinrich had left Wild, the company he founded, in 1932 – he cared little about the business side of the company and wanted to be able to work as a freelance designer and inventor. While working with Kern, Heinrich applied his knowledge designing instruments to compete with those produced by the Wild company. With Heinrich’s help, Kern once again became one of the largest manufacturers of surveying instruments worldwide. With Kern, he designed the DK2, DKM1, the DKM2 and DKM3 theodolites. The characters “DK” in the model name indicates that it is a Doppelkreis (double-circle) theodolite. The character “M” indicates that the theodolite is equipped with a micrometer. The DKM1, DKM2, and DKM3 were meant to be competitors of the Wild T1, T2 and T3, respectively. Heinrich continued designing up until his death in 1951. He had a remarkable career as a surveyor and designing and producing instruments for Zeiss, Wild and Kern.
Kern also produced levels and later expanded into photogrammetry equipment and EDM instruments. Remarkably, five generations of the Kern family stayed involved in managing the company. In 1988, Kern merged with the Wild Leitz group and, in 1991, after over 170 years, the company Kern & Co. Ltd. in Aarau closed.
Sanquet Tachymeter and Wooden Box. Manufactured by Kern in Aarau, Switzerland. Tachymeters are used to obtain distances and to measure bearings and elevations. A note in the documentation that accompanied the instrument reads “this tachymeter dates from around 1912.” Siegfried Osterwoldt found this instrument in a wooden box in 1940, while he was in the German army travelling through France on the way to the English Channel. Siegfried, who spent time as a prisoner of war, carried it with him when he and his wife immigrated to Canada in 1954 and kept it while working in Edmonton drafting for an Edmonton survey firm and working in the survey control section with the Alberta Surveys Branch. He donated it to the Alberta Land Surveyors’ Association in 1981. For an interesting autobiography of Siegfried and story of his Sanquet Tachymeter see ALS News, Winter Edition 1982. Also, in the 1982 Winter Edition, R.O. Keglowitsch ALS#286 explains the theory and use of the instrument.
Donated by Siegfried Osterwoldt
ALSA 2007.06.01
Kern DK2 Theodolite s/n 39066. The serial number indicates this theodolite was manufactured during the period 1947 to 1949.
Donated by Bruce Gudim, ALS (Hon. Life), Maltais Geomatics
ALSA 2009.07.02
Kern DKM1 Theodolite s/n 58762. It was designed by Heinrich Wild in the 1930s. The serial number indicates it was manufactured during the period 1956 to 1957. This miniature micrometric theodolite, about 13 centimetres high, was used for triangulation and for general use. Because of its small size it could be easily carried up mountains so was often referred to as a mountain theodolite. It reads to ten seconds.
The source is unknown.
ALSA 2006.23.01
Kern DKM 3 s/n 49309. The serial number indicates this theodolite was manufactured during the period 1953 to 1954. It was used by the Geodetic Survey of Canada in 1955 for observations on Polaris. It is a First Order Triangulation Theodolite with 1/10” resolution.
Donated by the Surveyor General Branch, Natural Resources, Canada.
ALSA 2016.01.06
ALSA has several other Kern instruments including a 1914 geodetic theodolite which is illustrated in article 11 of this series, Early Geodetic Theodolites.
Sources of Information:
- Virtual Archive of Wild Heerbrugg, Milestones by Kern & Co. AG. https://wbk.wild-heerbrugg.com/historie/milensteine-von-kern
- Aarau City Museum website, Collection from Kern Aarau – 1819 to 1991: https://www.kern-aarau.ch/kern/rundgang/geodaesievermessung.html
- Online article: 100 Years of Geodetic Surveys in Canada, The Canadian Geodetic Survey.
- Website of Nicolas de Hilster, PhD, Geodetic Instruments: https://www.dehilster.info/geodetic_instruments/theodolites.php
Author: Gordon Olsson, ALS (Hon. Life)
September 19, 2021
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