Kenya has always been a wildlife haven. During the first half of the 20th century, tourism boomed in the region thanks to big game animals. Hunting wildlife for sport was legal at the time. As a result, Kenya became a destination country for hunters from all over the world.
The wildlife also drew international scholars keen on growing their pool of knowledge. Among them was German zoologist Karl Fritz Paul Zimmermann who first visited the country to undertake a research project. Zimmermann enjoyed his time in Kenya so much that he took up full residency in 1929.
The Taxidermy Business
Zimmermann set up a taxidermy company near River Ruaraka and named it Zimmermann Ltd. He made a fortune from creating animal trophies and even expanded his business to open a leather tanning factory in the same premises. His clientele ranged from private gallery owners to museum curators and aristocrats around the world.
Negative Impact on Wildlife
Zimmermann Ltd. became the largest taxidermy company in Africa and the second largest in the world. The company continued to thrive even after Zimmermann sold off the land and company to a European businessman in 1961.
Even though big game hunting was a controlled sport and required a license, poachers managed to hunt without the necessary permission and kill wildlife in excess.
In the 1960s and 70s, Kenya’s wildlife population began to dwindle.
Extended Conservation Efforts
Changes in legislation began in 1973 with the ban of elephant hunting. In 1977, this protection was extended to the entire wildlife population as Kenya decreed all animal hunting illegal. The government ordered all licensed hunters to turn in their weapons to the Central Firearms Bureau.
This ban brought an end to Zimmermann Ltd.’s reign of success. Tourists flocked to Nairobi for the final sale before the company shut down in December that year.
Zimmermann’s First African settlers
The closure of Zimmermann Ltd. left the land it occupied unsupervised for a long time. Africans who lacked sufficient funds to purchase land settled on the plot illegally. Building permits required for construction could only be obtained from the Nairobi City Council. Therefore, the structures put up on this land were termed illegal housing developments. Every so often, the Council ordered the demolition of unauthorized buildings for African occupation in Zimmermann. But it only took a matter of time before the structures were rebuilt and settlement resumed.
New Roysambu Housing Company eventually purchased the land. This company sold plots of land measuring 350 square metres at Kshs. 6,600. Nairobi City Council’s Water and Sewerage Department extended services to the estate in 1978.
The next year, the council built the first primary school in the area. These new amenities drew more buyers to Zimmermann in the 1980s. By 1989, New Roysambu Housing Company had sold a total of 1300 plots in Zimmermann Estate.
Over time, the name Zimmermann evolved to omit the second ‘n’ in its spelling.
Zimmerman Today
Zimmerman Estate, or Zimma as it is better known, is presently a 24-hour economy of sorts, a place full of hardworking Kenyans. It is not uncommon to step outside in the middle of the night and find life carrying on as usual. Businesses stay open till late, and public transport continues to ferry people in and out of Zimma. The hustle mentality is still alive, carried forward from the workers of the old taxidermy company and into the present-day culture.
Zimma peeps, comment below and share what’s your favourite thing about your mtaa!
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