[1] He was the only son of John Kempe, bullion-porter in the Royal Mint, and his wife Anne, youngest daughter of James Arrow of Westminster, who died in 1835.

[2] For about five years Kempe held a commission in the Tower Hamlets militia, but resigned his post in 1811, and lived for a time at Chepstow and Swansea.

Charles Alfred Stothard, who married his sister, interested him in antiquities and they spent much time exploring the district.

[2] Following Stothard's death in 1821, Kempe helped his sister bring her husband's Monumental Effigies of Great Britain to completion, writing most of the additional text.

[3] For a short time Kempe held an appointment at the Royal Mint, but lost it due to staff cuts.