USA > Massachusetts > Suffolk County > Professional and industrial history of Suffolk County, Massachusetts, Volume III > Part 43
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Prior to Mr. Chickering's death, the old factory of Chickering & Sons, on Washington street, was burned December 1, 1852, involving a loss of $250,000. Undisheartened by this disaster, he laid plans for the erection of a new factory on Tremont street, but his death occurring be- fore they were carried out, the work was completed by his sons.
Mr. Chickering's sons possessed in a very eminent degree the quali- ties which shone so brilliantly in the character and career of their hon- ored father. They have not only maintained the high character of the business as conducted by their father, but in the wonderful progress made in the manufacture of pianos since his death, have kept the name . of Chickering & Sons in the front rank of the piano manufacture of the world. Col. Thomas E. Chickering, the eldest son of Jonas Chicker-
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ing, was born in Boston. October 22, 1824, and acquired under his fathi- er's direction a most thorough knowledge of the process of manufactur- ing every part of the piano. With his two younger brothers he was admitted to partnership with his father in 1852, and quickly gained recognition on account of the ability he displayed in conducting the commercial department of the business. He entered the service of his country in 1861 as colonel of the Forty-first Massachusetts, a regiment remarkable for the success and brilliancy of its operations. In recog- nition of his efficient military service he was, in 1865, brevetted briga- dier-general. To the regret of everybody who knew him he died sud- denly in February, 1871. He was devoted to music, literature and art, and held a deservedly high place in the business community.
C. Frank Chickering, the second son, was born in Boston on January 20, 1821. At the age of seventeen, his health having temporarily given way, he took a voyage to India, where he sold several Chickering pianos, which excited great interest among the European residents. In 1851 he superintended the exhibit of the Chickering pianos at the great exhibition in London, where they attracted great attention and were universally commended by musical critics. After the death of his father he assumed the direction of the technical and mechanical department of the business, for which he had shown the highest order of natural aptitude. In scale drawing he especially excelled, no scales having been used by the Chickering & Sons for the last thirty-six years that he had not drawn, with the exception of a few made by Col. Thomas E. Chickering. Numerous and valuable inventions pertaining to the piano were patented by him. In 1854 he produced a high develop- ment of the "circular scale " in two scales. About the same time he accomplished over-stringing in an upright piano. He was animated by an intense love for musical art, and this furnished the incentive for all of his exertions. The results of his endeavors are seen in the numer- ous letter-patents granted to Chickering & Sons during the last quarter of a century. These include an improvement in square pianos; means of applying the circular scale to upright pianos, patented in 1871; the famous Chickering upright action, patented in 1872; an improvement for insuring the grand piano frame against string tension, patented in 1846; varions improvements in piano acoustics and in relation to metal- lic string frames, patented in 1877; a skeleton metal frame, patented October, 1881, and the improvement in stringing and plate bracing conditions, patented in 1886. The above are but a few of the evidences
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which might be given of Mr. Chickering's genius. The tone and musical character of the piano owes, indeed, much to the patient labors of this enthusiastic lover of music and art, whose death on the 23d of March, 1891, was a severe loss to the musical world. "He maintained, " says one writer, "almost to the last, his energy and clearness of intel- lect, and might be found in Chickering Hall, New York, compasses in hand, bending over a drawing board, brain and fingers busy in the effort to approach a little nearer to the great ideal of his life-the evo- lution of a scale that should be as nearly perfect as human intellect could make it. Near by was an old-fashioned piano-maker's work- bench, the bench at which his eminent father had stood more than half a century before, and on which the latter constructed the models of some of his most important improvements in piano manufacture."
George H. Chickering, the only surviving son of Jonas Chickering, was born in Boston in 1830. Like his brothers, he was thoroughly trained in all departments of practical piano-making. He and his father for many years fashioned every piano hammer and voiced every grand piano themselves. In more recent years the hammers in grand pianos, used by Gottschalk, Thalberg, Herz, Von Bulow, Joseffy, Dr. Pachman, and many other distinguished artists, were made by the hands of George H. Chickering. During a period of nearly half a century he has conducted the great Chickering factory in Boston. He has a posi- tive genius for organization, and every detail of this large establish- ment receives his close personal attention. Like his deceased brothers, he has always evinced a keen interest in all matters pertaining to art. For thirty-four years he has been connected with the Handel and Haydn Society of Boston, as president, vice-president, librarian, and director, having held the vice-presidency for twenty-nine years. He was also for many years an active member of the Apollo Club of Bos- ton, and is still vice-president of that organization. He possesses, like his honored father and brothers, in a marked degree, a genius for piano mechanics, united to great executive ability, such as is required to manage a vast commercial establishment. He is in the forefront of every movement to advance the interest of true art, and is a worthy representative of a family which has done so much to extend around the world the name and fame of American skill and genius.
The superiority of the instruments made by Chickering & Sons has been attested on both sides of the Atlantic. Of their earlier triumphs the crowning one was achieved in 1867 at the International Exhibition
Ean. H Semissy
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at Paris, where they were awarded a gold medal, and in addition were the recipients from the Emperor of the French Cross of the Legion of Honor, the only American piano manufacturers who have received this distinguished decoration. Since that date medals and diplomas have been showered upon them in rigid tests of comparative merit in com- petition with the best instruments made in Europe and America, such as have established beyond question their reputation as masters of pianoforte mechanics. Their achievements in this direction, however, are not the sole reason for their renown. Their liberal and generous patronage of art and of musicians is well known. By their enterprise Americans have been favored with exhibitions of the splendid powers of many of the most distinguished artists of the world. In the laudable exercise of their ambition in this direction, they have been faithful de- votees of art, thus adding to the pleasure and edification of the music loving public.
Timothy Gilbert, one of the earliest piano makers of Boston, was born in the town of Enfield, Mass., in 1797. His father was a farmer, and the boy worked on a farm until he was twenty-one. He then came to Boston, and served an apprenticeship first to a cabinet-maker, and then to a pianoforte-maker. By nature he was of a mechanical dis- position, and readily acquired the details of these trades. He entered into partnership with E. R. Currier, and commenced the manufacture of pianos, in which business he achieved great success financially and mechanically. His desire to produce an instrument capable of uttering a " concord of sweet sounds " led him to invent the " Æolian attach- ment," which has become known the world over. It was, however, in the field of morals that he gave the best of his time and ability. He was an. ardent Christian and a zealous abolitionist. He died in 1865.
Lemuel Gilbert was also one of the earlier piano manufacturers of Boston. He was born in Enfield, Mass., in 1804. In 1832, as one of the firm of T. Gilbert & Co., he commenced the manufacture of piano- fortes, the factory being situated on the east side of Washington street, near Beach street. He was afterwards of the firm of Lord, Gilbert & Cumston, corner of Washington street and Hayward Place. In 1839 he commenced on his own account, occupying the old Brewer mansion, on Washington street, between Kneeland and Beach streets. His business increased, and he enlarged his factory until he had absorbed seven adjoining buildings. He was the originator of many improve- ments in the piano, including an action which greatly increased the 56
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delicacy of touch. Other changes were introduced, among which was that of using three strings in the middle and upper notes, greatly in- creasing the volume of tone. He constructed the æolichord piano, having an extra set of strings placed above the usual set, and tuned an octave lower, by which the harmony was increased and prolonged. He brought from Europe the " boudoir," or upright, piano. Our climate, however, necessitated many changes in construction, all of which he successfully accomplished, and established what has since become the popular form of the instrument. A large number of gold and silver medals were awarded him during his career by many of the best known associations in the country. He died suddenly in Memphis, Tenn., February 27, 1864. In 1853 he was succeeded in business by Andrew M. McPhail, who was the founder of the present A. M. McPhail Piano Company, which was incorporated in 1891. Of this corporation Mr. McPhail is president; William Barry Owen, treasurer; John C. Warren, secretary, and B. F. Dunbar and G. Frank Blake are among the directors. The factory is located at 520 Harrison avenue. About 15,000 MePhail pianos are now in use throughout the United States. Mr. McPhail is a native of Massachusetts, but is not now actively en- gaged in the company's business.
In 1833 Russell Hallett and William Cumston established the piano manufactory of Hallett & Cumston, both of whom are dead. James S. Cumston, son of William Cumston, is now proprietor of the business. The factory is located on Leland Place. William Cumston was born in Saco, Me., in 1813, and was engaged in piano making for nearly forty years. In business he achieved a wide reputation, and amassed a fortune. He was a man of strong patriotic sentiments, and during the war of the Rebellion was very liberal with his large means in promot- ing the comfort of our soldiers. He was a director of the Metropolitan Railroad, the Five Cent Savings Bank, and served in the Board of Aldermen, and was conspicuous in the highest bodies of Masonry. He died at the age of fifty-eight years.
The piano manufactory of Hallett & Davis Company was established in 1839, and largely owes its inception to the personal zeal of George H. Davis, 1 who continued in the active conduct of the business until his death in 1879, when the present corporation was formed. The present officers of the company are: George Cook, president; E. N.
1 Mr. Davis was born in New Hampshire in 1811. He took an active part in the " Peace Jubilee," and was largely interested in matters of public concern.
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Kimball and C. F. Howes, vice-presidents; Wilbur D. Cook, treasurer, and E. W. Davis, superintendent. The original factory, on the site now occupied by the Conservatory of Music, was burned in 1864, and the present establishment, on Harrison avenue, was erected thereafter, where employment is now furnished to 250 skilled workmen. Their pianos are of high grade and have a well recognized position among the best.
The Woodward & Brown Piano Company was founded in 1843, and the present corporation was organized in 1891. George T. Mclaughlin is treasurer and manager. The factory is located on Warren street.
William P. Emerson1 began the manufacture of pianos in Boston in 1849. He carried on the business successfully until his death in 1871. For a time thereafter it was conducted by his executor, and later by William Moore. In December, 1878, the factory was destroyed by fire. Business, however, was resumed within a few months in new premises. In May, 1879, the business was purchased by its present proprietors, P. H. Powers, Orrin A. Kimball and Joseph Grainer, who constitute the members of the Emerson Piano Company. During the year 1891 the company erected a new factory, corner of Harrison avenue and Waltham street, which covers a space of 23,000 square feet, is six and seven stories high, and has a capacity of 125 to 150 pianos per week. Under the management of the present proprietors the business has been carried on with a high degree of success.
Elias Hook acquired his first knowledge of organ building of William M. Goodrich, of Boston, and in 1827 with his brother, George G. Hook, started in business at Salem. They finally removed their establish- ment to Boston, and for some time were located on Friend street, and afterwards on the corner of Leverett and Brighton streets. In the early fifties they built the factory on Tremont street. The Hook broth- ers admitted F. H. Hastings as a partner several years ago, and the name of the house was then changed from E. & G. G. Hook to Hook & Hastings. George G. Hook died in 1880, and Elias Hook in 1881, since which Mr. Hastings has been the sole proprietor. This house has mainly been engaged in the manufacture of organs for churches and large public buildings. Some of the largest instruments made in this country have been produced by this concern, notable examples of the high qualities and perfections of its productions are furnished by the
1 William P. Emerson was born in Boston in 1820. He died at the age of fifty-one years.
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great organs in Tremont Temple, Boston Music Hall, and St. Francis Xavier Church, New York.
James Whiting Vose, who began the manufacture of pianos in Bos- ton, in 1851, was born October 18, 1818, at Milton, a suburb of Boston, where lived Benjamin Crehore, generally believed to be the maker, about 1798 or 1800, of the first piano constructed in America. After receiving a liberal education he was apprenticed, in 1834, to a cabinet- maker. Five years later he received a position in a Boston piano fac- tory, and in 1846 started on his own account to manufacture piano and organ keys. In 1851 he added to his key business the manufacture of pianos, continuing the double concern until 1855, when he sold out the key business and has since solely devoted his energy to the manufact- ure of pianos. In 1855 two pianos per week was the average output of the Vose factory. In 1890 the business had increased to an average of more than sixty per week, while in some weeks of that year one hun- dred pianos per week were made. During all the years from 1851 Mr. Vose has been the active presiding spirit of the house. His three sons, Irving B., Willard A. and Julian W. Vose, are associated with him in business, under the firm name of Vose & Sons. The three sons named were born in Boston, and as soon as each had received a liberal educa- tion he entered his father's factory and became thorough master of every detail of piano manufacturing. The factory of Vose & Sons is situated on the corner of Waltham and Washington streets, and has a capacity for seventy-five instruments per week.
In 1852 S. D. and H. W. Smith began the manufacture of organs in Boston. They were among the first to make reed organs in New Eng- land. In 1870 an act of incorporation was secured, and the business has since been carried on under the name of the Smith-American Or- gan Company. The company has two factories, one on Tremont street, opposite Waltham street, and another at the corner of Albany and Brookline streets. More than one hundred and twenty-five thousand of the instruments of this company are now in use, and they have re- ceived the highest endorsement of competent musical critics. The of- ficers of the company are: S. D. Smith, president; H. W. Smith, vice- president; and E. W. Smith, secretary and treasurer.
In 1854 Henry Mason and Emmons Hamlin formed a partnership for the manufacture of melodeons in Boston. They began with a small imperfect instrument which they have continued to improve till, in its present perfected state, it commands the endorsement of the first artists
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of the world. In 1861 a new form was given to the melodeon by the introduction of a cabinet organ. A stock company was formed in 1868, and in 1882 the present company was organized under the title of the Mason & Hamlin Organ and Piano Company, with branch houses in New York and Chicago. The manufacture was commenced in Cam- bridge street, Boston, in a small way, and as the business increased a new and substantial factory was erected; but it was not long before the manufacturing facilities were found to be inadequate, and land was bought and the present extensive factory on the corner of Broadway and Brewery street, in Cambridgeport, erected. As organ builders Ma- son & Hamlin have become famous all over the world, having received the highest honors at important international exhibitions where their instruments were in competition during the last ten years. In 1882 the company added to their extensive organ business the manufacture of pianos on a new and improved method, and in this direction the success attained has been in every way highly gratifying. The officers of the company are: Edward P. Mason, president and treasurer; Edward P. Mason, James Hollyer, and John P. Richardson, directors; Henry Bas- ford, secretary.
In 1863 Henry F. Miller, sr., established a piano manufactory in Bos- ton. He started with comparatively little capital, but possessed of rare mechanical and inventive qualities, his instrument rapidly found favor with the musical critics and brought him deserved business success. In 1884 Mr. Miller died, and the business was organized into a Massachu- setts corporation, under the name of the Henry F. Miller & Sons Piano Company. Mr. Miller's five sons, Henry F., Walter H., James C., Ed- win C. and William T. Miller, trained to the piano-forte business from their boyhood, are all connected with the company, and together with Joseph H. Gibson, who has been associated with the enterprise from its inception, are successfully conducting the business. This factory is located in Wakefield, a suburb of Boston. On the visit to the recent Paris Exposition of the American mechanics of all branches of industry, the workman to represent the entire piano manufacturing of America was chosen from this establishment.
In 1873 A. F. and J. A. Norris established a piano factory in Boston. Charles Fletcher subsequently joined A. F. Norris in the business, and they now constitute the firm of Norris & Fletcher. Their factory and warehouses are at 2257 Washington street.
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In 1877 C. C. Briggs began the manufacture of pianos in Boston. Four years later his son, C. C. Briggs, jr., was admitted as partner under the firm name of C. C. Briggs & Co. Their factory is on Apple- ton street.
The Ivers & Pond Piano Company was incorporated in 1880 by W. H. Ivers, H. Pond, G. A. Gibson and J. N. Thompson. Several years prior to the incorporation, however, W. H. Ivers had been manufac- facturing pianos, and the present company was the outgrowth of his enterprise. The factory is on the corner of Maine and Albany streets, Cambridge.
The first piano made by the New England Piano Company was com- pleted on June 6, 1881. Its manufacturer, Thomas F. Scanlan, had started in a very modest way with facilities for making two or three pianos a week. About a year and a half later he secured his present location on George street with greatly increased manufacturing capac- ity. From this time forward the growth of Mr. Scanlan's business has been very rapid. Additions to his manufacturing plant have been made from time to time until the present structure is numbered among the largest and best equipped establishments of its kind in America. The main edifice fronts on three streets, and is seven stories in height, the total floor space utilized being more than six acres. Mr. Scanlan is sole proprietor of this concern, which his activity, push and enter- prise have brought to such large proportions within a comparatively brief period.
Samuel G. Chickering has been engaged in the manufacture of pianos in Boston since 1884. The business is now conducted under the firm name of S. G. Chickering & Co., Charles P. Cummings being a mem- ber of the firm. Their factory is located on Hampden street.
In March, 1826, the New England Society for the Promotion of Manufactures and Mechanic Arts was organized by citizens of Boston who were desirous of promoting American industry and talent. It was empowered to hold public exhibitions of the product of American in- dustry and to award premiums for new and useful inventions, and for the best specimens of the skill and ingenuity of manufacturers and mechanics. Public sale of manufactured products were held twice a year, the Common Council granting the use of the hall over the Faneuil Hall Market, free of expense. The first public sale was held in Sep- tember, 1826, when the amount received was nearly two million dollars. This society exerted a most favorable influence upon the progress of
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the useful arts in this vicinity. The year following its organization the Boston Mechanics' Institute was incorporated. A course of lectures was commenced three weeks after its organization; among its early lecturers were George B. Emerson, Professors Farrar and Webster, Daniel Treadwell, Edward Everett, Dr. John Ware, and Dr. Bigelow.
The new industries started in Boston during the years between 1825 and 1835 were in connection with watch crystals, saws, sugar, rubber and silk. According to Bishop, there was a watch crystal factory in Boston as early as 1829.
At the tariff convention held in New York city in 1831, the committee on glass reported that there were twenty-one furnaces in the United States, six of which were in Boston or its vicinity. The total product of flint glass was $1,300,000, of which $400,000 was made in two of the largest at Boston, much of the latter consisting of cut glass. But one factory of black glass bottles was known to exist, and that was near Boston, with a capital of $50,000, and employing sixty-five men and boys. Its product was six thousand gross annually. The New Eng- land Crown Glass Company, near Boston, with a capital of $450,000, made crown window glass to the value of $100,000, and was the only factory of its kind, except one in New York. There were also at this time (1831) three sugar refineries in Boston, while the Messrs. Monta- gue had an establishment on Washington street, which had been for three or four years in operation, where were employed two hundred looms in weaving Tuscan braid. Silk formed the warp, and the filling was of imported Tuscan straw, with occasional admixtures of Manilla grass, or fine strips of whalebone. From eight hundred to twelve hundred bonnets were made weekly at this factory. Another industry at South Boston at this time, of considerable magnitude, was the American Flint Glass Works of P. F. Shane. Mr. Shane had com- menced work in the glass house of the South Boston Glass Company, and gradually enlarging and extending his operations, he had attained a high position, and won an enviable reputation for the excellence of his productions, when his entire works were destroyed by fire in 1852. He rebuilt, but soon after beginning operations another fire destroyed his plant. He, however, again rebuilt, and in 1858 employed two hundred men, and was doing a prosperous business. The Phoenix Glass Works, started in 1811, as previously mentioned, were also at this time in operation, being conducted by Thomas Cains and his son. The Mount Washington Glass Works, for many years under the super-
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intendence of Luther Russell, were now being conducted by Jarves & Cormerais.
The evolution of the printing press owes much to the inventive genius of Boston men. In 1826 Daniel Treadwell, of Boston, was granted a patent for a power printing press, which about this time was in operation in the office of the National Intelligencer. It was said to be at this time the only press on the cylindrical principle adapted to book printing, which it executed in a most satisfactory manner. In 1830 the Daily Advertiser and several other papers in Boston were printed on Treadwell power presses, which were moved by steam and capable of making six hundred impressions per hour. In 1830 and 1836 Isaac Adams, of Boston, patented the press which has always been called by his name, and which has not yet been superseded in value for book work and fine printing. Important improvements were also made at a later date in the printing press by Stephen P. Ruggles, Seth and Josiah Adams, of Boston.
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