Books › Ayars, Contributions to the Art of Music in America by the Music Industries of Boston (1937) — the Squier, Farley, Rettberg, Rockwell and Elias Howe matter, 1937 › scan 271
Scan 271
Ayars, Contributions to the Art of Music in America by the Music Industries of Boston (1937) — the Squier, Farley, Rettberg, Rockwell and Elias Howe matter, 1937
37 lines. Read by computer on 27 September 2026. Printed page 245. See the scan on archive.org.
11862—[address hidden]
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6GEORGE M. GUILD & CO. 11
7The George M. Guild piano was first made in 1861, when C. C. Briggs became a partner. By 1870 this firm was succeeded by Guild, Church & Co., consisting of Geo. M. Guild, Cephas Church, who furnished the capital, and Geo. Hewes. In 1890 it was Guild Piano Mfg. Co. This went out of business between 1890-1895.
9Mr. Guild was a practical pianoforte maker and obtained numerous patents for mechanical improvements some of which were practical. Among these were his stringing and tuning scheme and his sounding board and back arrangement, an adaptation of an old theory, which was used in modified form by other firms. [address hidden] were well known as good inexpensive instruments.
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17and [address hidden]
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20HALLET, DAVIS & CO.; HALLET & DAVIS
21This new concern immediately succeeded Brown & Hallet in 1843. It consisted of Russell Hallet, George H. Davis and Henry Allen. Mr. Davis, who came from New Hampshire, acquired his knowledge of the pianoforte business when he first came to Boston. He withdrew about 1847 and formed a partnership with Benjamin Franklin Hallet, as Hallet, Davis & Co. This last firm was a close competitor of Jonas Chickering until its factory burned in the 1860's. After that it was not so successful.
23"Their instrument became a standard instrument as early as 1851 when it vied with such well known ones as Nunn & Clark and Hall & Sons, N. Y.; T. Gilbert, Boston; Conrad Meyer, Philadelphia." 8
25At the New York Mechanics' Institute exhibition in 1853, a Hallet, Davis & Co. pianoforte was awarded a gold medal and praise from the committee which included Henry C. Watson and W. Vincent Wallace.
27This firm had many patents including "a suspension agraffe bridge" for insuring a more upward bearing and consequently a better quality of resonance and tone production in the extreme treble register. [address hidden] their other specialties were their grand action and movable keyboard (from Brown & Hallet?).
29Mr. Davis died in 1879. The company was incorporated in 1890 with G. Cook, W. D. Cook and E. N. Kimball, Mr. Davis' factory superintendent, as chief stockholders. The company was continued by the Conways of Chicago, large stockholders, under a finance corporation. In 1931
317 As far as the author could find.
328 Spillane, Daniel. History of the American Pianoforte p. 170.
339 Ibid. p. 172.
3410 Ibid. p. 173.
3511 Listed in Pauer, Ernst. The Pianist's Dictionary p. 142.
3612 Spillane, Daniel. History of the American Pianoforte p. 174.
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