Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
Music Trade REVIEW.
The Only Music Trade Paper in America, and the Organ of the Music Trade of this Country.
Fo-anded
VOL. X.
No. 19.
July,
1879.
NEW YORK, MAY 5 TO 20, 1887.
PUBLISHED * TWICE • EACH • MONTH.
BILL & CARR,
EDITORS AND PKOPBIITOBB.
All Checks, Drafts, Money Orders, Postal
Notes and mall matter should be
made to
BILL & CARR,
EDITORS & PBOPBIETOBS.
3 EAST 14th STREET, NEW YOBE.
SUBSCRIPTION (including postage) .United States and Canada,
$3.00 per year, in advance; Foreign Countries, $4.00.
ADVERTISEMENTS, $2.00 per inch, single column, per Insertion;
unless inserted upon rates made by special contract.
Entered at the New York Pott Office at Second Clou Matter.
DEACON JACOB ESTEY CELEBRATES HIS
GOLDEN WEDDING.
A MOST INTERESTING OCCASION—THE BRIDE AND
GROOM—A IiOOK HACK OVER THE
DEACON'S CAREER.
J
ACOB ESTEY and his estimable wire celebrated
tho 50th anniversary of thoir wodding Mon-
day afternoon and evening, May 2, at their
Canal street home, in Brattleboro, Vt., which is
on the site of the house where they began their
wedded life. Invitations had been sent o.iit to
relatives and friends in all parts of the Union,
as well as across tho ocean. The house was beauti-
fully decked with flowers, and the venerable couple
stood for five hours receiving ihe almost uninter-
rupted congratulations of those present. Among the
out-of-town guests present were Marc A. Bl jmenberg,
editor of the Musical Courier, George G. Saxe, of the
firm of Saxe & Robinson, C. C. Beaman, of the law
firm of Evarts, Choate & Beaman, and wife, J. C.
Freund, editor of the American Musician, Rodden
Proddow, J. B. Simpson, of the Estey Piano Co., all
of New York; Prof. Sanders, of Sanders & Stayman,
of Baltimore; Herr William Ritz, of Hamburg; S.
Hamilton and wife and G. H. Christy and wife, of
Pittsburg, Pa.; E. M. Bruce and wife, of Philadel-
phia; George S.Cheney and wife, of Boston; and
Miss Jennie Chamberlain, of Iowa. Congratulatory
dispatches were received from Gov. Ormsbee, ei-
Gov. Proctor, ex Gov. Farnham, Judges Veazoy and
Rowell, Col. Albert Clarke, Senators Morrill and Ed-
munds, and scores of others, including some from
London, Hamburg, Basle, and from all the firm's
branch houses. The presents included elegant arti-
cles in gold, silver and bronze. One of the most
unique was given by S. Hamilton, of Pittsburg, Pa.—
a burnished brass miniature light-house, surmounted
by a revolving double-faced clock and thermometer
and barometer, tho whole mounted on a bronze ped-
estal, studded with Mexican onyx. It is estimated
that Mr- and Mrs. Estey received tho congratulations
of upward of 2,000 people. Caterer Cooper furnished
an elegant collation, and the music was by the Phil-
harmonic orchestra and the 1st regiment band.
Mr. and Mrs. Estey were married May 2, 1837, in
the house of David Wood, a farmer, father of the
bride, who was the second child of a family of four.
Rev. Dr. Walker performed the ceremony, and only
one of those present as witnesses of the wedding is
believed to be living now. Farmer Wood's house
then stood on the ground since occupied by the
depot. Mr. and Mrs. Estey have had three children,
two of whom are living, Col. J. J. Estey and the wife
of Lieut.-Gov. Fuller. Probably very few manufac-
turers are better known at home or abroad than Dea.
con Jacob Estey. He offers a perfect type of the self-
made man to whose conservative habits of living can
bo attributed In a great measure his phenomenal suc-
cess. It has been his invariable practice to retire at
9 o'clock and rise with the sun. Always strictly
temperate in his habits, he has rarely ever had any
sickness. His indomitable will and quick perception
have served to bridge many difficulties which have
arisen in his career. His frequent but undemonstra-
tive charitable acts, together with those of his kind-
hearted wife, have made for them countless friends,
who handsomely manifested their kindly appreciation
on this occasion. The deacoa's keen eye to business
Is well illustrated in a little occurrence between him-
self and a respected but not over-prompt neighbor,
who, when about to remove from Chesterfield years
ago, humorously informed some of his acquaintances
of his purpose to make at least $200 a year out of
Jacob, to whom he in due time appealed for the loan
of $100, promising #10 bonus for three months. The
clever Jacob saw his opportunity, and rather indiffer-
ently replied that, although pretty good interest, he
didn't think he had the money to spare. " I will get
Dutton & Co. to sign the note,"replied the borrower.
" Will you ? " said the lender; " well, if you can get
them I think I can raise the money;" and a note
with the names of the borrower and tho backers was
produced. The deacon opened an old book, and,
counting out the money, handed it to the solicitor,
who quickly discovered that the package contained
$50 in money and a roceipted bill for the balance of a
$50 account which the borrower owed the lender.
Comment was unnecessary, and the recipient good-
humoredly accepted the situation in silence.
Mr. Estey was born in Hinsdale, N. H., September,
1814. He was of a family of eight children, five boys
$8.00 PER YEAR.
SINGLE COPIES. 16 CENTS.
and three girls, four of whom are living, one sister,
Mrs. Fisher, being upward of 80. The house of their
birth was on the east road leading from Hinsdale vil-
lage to Chesterfield.' Their parents being poor, Jacob
at four years went to live with Alvin Shattuck, whose
farm was on the stage road from Brattleboro to Hins-
dale. Common report had it that the Shattucks were
not over kind to him, and at the age of 13, as the
deacon now tells it, he imagined that he was abused,
and, "I struck out cross-lots without the permission
of my guardian for Worcester," where one of his
brothers had previ mslygone for employment. There
Jacob readily found work on a farm at $6 a month,—
then considered good wages,— and finally secured
an apprenticeship in the plumbing establishment of
A. M. Knight, now of Springfield, Mass. While there,
Jacob Estey graduated from the Worcester manual
labor academy. In 1834 he returned to Hinsdale to
attend the funeral of his father, just a ter which he
wandered over to Brattleboro, where he subsequently
made Stephen Parker an offer for his plumbing busi-
ness, and got the refusal of the same for six weeks.
As this trade would require all of his hard earned
and meager capital, he was sorely troubled to know
how to get along. But here his characteristic pluck
served him, and he returned to Worcester to consult
his employer, who encouraged his enterprise, and
freely promised letters of credit to large city houses.
He came back to Brattleboro to find that Parker had
changed his mind, deciding that the sale of his busi-
ness must also include the purchase of his house and
tools. The young apprentice was in a dilemma, but,
flattered by the good will of his Worcester employer,
he decided to accept Parker's second offer and trust
to luck to find the money,—but not until he had se-
cured a legal consummation of the trade. This done,
he waited on "Uncle" John Stearns of Hinsdale, to
whom he made known his wants. Uncle John inform-
ed the boy that in his opinion he had "got stuck like
the devil," but, reflecting, he added: "If you have
made a good trade, Jake, I'll help you, otherwise not
a red." On his arrival at Brattleboro they found
Parker again disinclined to trade and willing to for-
feit $50 to be released from the contract. There-
upon Uncle John became obdurate and informed the
purchaser that if Parker would pay $50 he should be
made to pay $500, the sum named in the binder-
This brought matters to a focus, and Mr. Eetey took
possession of his newly acquired business and house.
At that time the plumbing business included the
manufacture of lead pipe, the lead being melted and
cut into chunks 10 or 12 feet in length and afterward
drawn. There were only three or four of these fac-
tories in operation, one in Worcester, another in
Concord and still another in Lansingburg.
Mr. Estey continued in this business from 1835 to
1855, and before leaving it he had formed a co-part-
nership with Mr. Carpenter for the manufacture of
melodeons. They continued In business for about
two years, their factory being in the same building
with the plumber's shop, which was located near and
just south of the Main-street bridge. '1 his building
was burned in 1857, and another factory was built
the following year where the Brattleboro housejpnow
stands. Mr. Carpenter was succeeded in the firm by
Alonzo Hines, who was in turn succeeded by H. P.
Green. Mr. Estey's highest ambition in those days
was to make and sell $70,000 worth of instruments.
Starting with seven or eight hands, the business
gradually increased, and this necessitated repeated
additions to the factory, until something over 100
hands were employed. In 1866 a more extensive
building was erected on Flat street, and both factor-
ies were run together for a time. On locating In the