Music Trade Review
Issue: 1920 Vol. 70 N. 7 - Page 5
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FEBRUARY 14,
THE
1920
MUSIC TRADE
REVIEW
CHUTE & BUTLER PIANO CO. PLANT DESTROYED BY FIRE
NEW HONOR FOR w. M. BROWNLEE
Main Factory Building and Two Warehouses Totally Demolished by Fire of Unknown Origin—
Loss Partially Covered by Insurance—Firm Will Begin Rebuilding Immediately
Head of Cable Piano Co., Atlanta, Ga., Elected
President of Atlanta Retail Merchants' Asso-
ciation—Looks for a Busy Year
PERU, IND., February 9.—The main factory
building and two warehouses of the Chute &
Butler Piano Co. were totally destroyed by fire
early last Friday morning. The loss is esti-
mated at approximately $150,000, partially cov-
ered by insurance. The main building, three
stories in height, was burned to the ground,
destroying not only the manufacturing plant of
the concern, but also a great many pianos in
various stages of construction. In addition to
the two warehouses, one of the lumber yards
was destroyed and the roof on the engine house
was burned. The fire was discovered in the
finishing room, Jocated on the south end of
the third floor of the factory building, by the
night watchman. The watchman immediately
turned in an alarm, but before the fire depart-
ment could respond the entire plant was ablaze.
The firemen worked heroically, but the fire was
beyond control, and they were finally forced to
confine their efforts toward saving as many of
the smaller buildings as possible. The origin
of the fire has not been ascertained, although it
is presumed that spontaneous combustion was
responsible for it.
R. H. Bouslog, vice-president and general
manager of the factory, who, together with
other officials, did his utmost to aid the fire-
men, states that the Chute & Butler Co. will
rebuild as quickly as possible and that in the
meantime arrangements will be made, if pos-
sible, to manufacture pianos in another factory.
DEATH OF JULIEN H. RICE
STARR PIANO CO. IN NASHVILLE
Well-known Piano Man Passes Away in Dallas
—Had Wide Experience in the Trade
Arranges to Open Wholesale Distributing
Branch for Its Products in That City
DALLAS, TEXAS, February 6.—Julien H. Rice,
well-known piano man, died here of pneumonia
yesterday at 3 o'clock in the afternoon. He
was in Dallas visiting with his son-in-law, Dr.
Ralph Guy, at the time the death occurred and
the remains were immediately shipped to the
home of the deceased in Davenport, Iowa, where
the funeral services' will be held.
Julien H. Rice was the brother of I. N. Rice,
well-known piano man operating on the Pacific
Coast. His connection with the piano business
dates back as far as 1890, when he went to
Chicago from Osceola, la., with the Rice-Hinze
Piano Co., where he was associated with his
brother. After this he became connected with
the Schaeffer Piano Co., of Chicago, where he
worked for some time. Then he took up a posi-
tion with the Schiller Piano Co. as wholesale
representative. About eighteen years ago he
opened up a branch store for the Schiller Piano
Co. in Davenport, la., taking the position of
manager. He was associated with the Schiller
Co. in this capacity up until the time of his
death. It is a coincidence worth noting, how-
ever, that a short time ago he commenced mak-
ing preparations for closing out his business and
had about completed these at the time of his
death. For some time past the deceased had
been interested in oil land in Texas, together
with his son-in-law, and was in this state when
he contracted pneumonia. He was popular
throughout the trade and possessed a great num-
ber 'of friends. In Davenport he was always
alluded to as "Schiller Rice" by his friends.
He is survived by a widow, Laura Rice, and a
daughter, Mrs. Ralph Guy.
NASHVILLE, TENN., February 9.—The Starr
Piano Co., of Richmond, Ind., will establish a
wholesale branch here for the distribution of
its pianos, Starr phonographs and Gennett rec-
ords, according to an announcement of Clar-
ence Gennett, one of the officials of the com-
pany. The new branch will be located at 240-242
Fifth avenue North, over the retail store which
the company has maintained here for several
years. The district manager of the wholesale
department will be Hugh M. Light, former man-
ager of the local retail store.
SOMLYORETURNSFROM EUROPE
Arnold Somlyo, the New York and export
manager of the Baldwin Piano Co., returned
last week from Europe. For the past several
weeks Mr. Somlyo has been in Europe visiting
business associates and his family in Hungary.
He reports that traffic conditions are very poor,
but that Europe is making fast strides to regain
its pre-war prosperity.
ATLANTA, GA., February 7.—W. M. Brownlee,
president of the Cable Piano Co., of this city,
has been elected president of the Atlanta Retail
Merchants' Association and immediately started
active work to make his administration a suc-
cess by calling a meeting cf the Association.
"This is sure to be a critical year for all mer-
chants," said Mr. Brownlee, "a year in which
we will want to co-operate fully with the Fed-
eral, State and city authorities, and at the same
time secure their full co-operation. We want to
outline a definite, active program to pursue, and
at this meeting, which we hope to have attended
by representatives of all lines of industry repre-
sented in the association, we will discuss our
plans and fix our policies."
Mr. Brownlee is a native of Ohio and was
formerly in the piano business in Chicago. He
came to Atlanta several years ago and has since
proved himself an important factor in local
business affairs.
IMPORTANT A. B. CHASE AGENCIES
Two New A. B. Chase Agencies Arranged
During Convention Week
An important deal was closed during Con-
vention Week by the A. B. Chase Piano Co.
whereby the John Church Piano Co. will repre-
sent the A. B. Chase line in Cincinnati, O. An-
other arrangement was completed by which the
Turner Music Co., of Tampa, Fla., will also in
future represent the A. B. Chase line.
IVORY PRICE AGAIN ADVANCES
Through a prominent manufacturer of piano
keys The Review was informed that the price of
ivory has just experienced another rather
severe rise. This same manufacturer attributes
this advance principally to the very heavy buy-
ing which continues on the part of British and
German concerns.
GROUND BROKEN FOR NEW BALDWIN PIANO CO. FACTORY
CINCINNATI, Q., February 9.—Construction work
on the great new plant of the Baldwin Piano
Co. has already begun. As soon as the contract
for the construction work was awarded the
of the Baldwin Co., in the presence of factory
officials, formally broke ground for the new
plant, lifting the first shovelful of earth for the
excavation. Immediately after the formal cere-
E. A. PARKS ELECTED PRESIDENT
Hannibal, Mo., Music Dealer Becomes Head
of Local Chamber of Commerce
HANNIBAL, MO., February 9.—At a recent
meeting of the board! of directors of the Hanni-
bal. Chamber of Commerce E. A. Parks, head
of the Parks Music House Co., was elected
president of the Chamber for the coming year.
Since coming to Hannibal some years ago Mr.
Parks has identified himself closely with "all
civic movements and has been particularly ac-
tive in the Chamber of Commerce ranks.
FIRE CAUSES HEAVY LOSS
BEAUMONT, TEX., February 7.— Fire caused'
by defective wiring destroyed the stock and a
large part of the building occupied by the
Texas Music Co. last week, causing a loss esti-
mated at $30,000.
mwicafname
Jnt/ieWorfa.
President Armstrong Breaking Ground for New Baldwin Plant
lumber piles and sheds at the Gilbert avenue mony a steam shovel was put to work and the
plant were removed in order that the ground excavating for the basement of the new plant
might be left free for building operations, and started. The accompanying photograph shows
on last Monday G. W. Armstrong, Jr., president President Armstrong breaking ground.
PIANOS
ORGANS
E5TEY PIAND COMPANY NEW YDRK CITY
FEBRUARY 14,
THE
1920
MUSIC TRADE
REVIEW
CHUTE & BUTLER PIANO CO. PLANT DESTROYED BY FIRE
NEW HONOR FOR w. M. BROWNLEE
Main Factory Building and Two Warehouses Totally Demolished by Fire of Unknown Origin—
Loss Partially Covered by Insurance—Firm Will Begin Rebuilding Immediately
Head of Cable Piano Co., Atlanta, Ga., Elected
President of Atlanta Retail Merchants' Asso-
ciation—Looks for a Busy Year
PERU, IND., February 9.—The main factory
building and two warehouses of the Chute &
Butler Piano Co. were totally destroyed by fire
early last Friday morning. The loss is esti-
mated at approximately $150,000, partially cov-
ered by insurance. The main building, three
stories in height, was burned to the ground,
destroying not only the manufacturing plant of
the concern, but also a great many pianos in
various stages of construction. In addition to
the two warehouses, one of the lumber yards
was destroyed and the roof on the engine house
was burned. The fire was discovered in the
finishing room, Jocated on the south end of
the third floor of the factory building, by the
night watchman. The watchman immediately
turned in an alarm, but before the fire depart-
ment could respond the entire plant was ablaze.
The firemen worked heroically, but the fire was
beyond control, and they were finally forced to
confine their efforts toward saving as many of
the smaller buildings as possible. The origin
of the fire has not been ascertained, although it
is presumed that spontaneous combustion was
responsible for it.
R. H. Bouslog, vice-president and general
manager of the factory, who, together with
other officials, did his utmost to aid the fire-
men, states that the Chute & Butler Co. will
rebuild as quickly as possible and that in the
meantime arrangements will be made, if pos-
sible, to manufacture pianos in another factory.
DEATH OF JULIEN H. RICE
STARR PIANO CO. IN NASHVILLE
Well-known Piano Man Passes Away in Dallas
—Had Wide Experience in the Trade
Arranges to Open Wholesale Distributing
Branch for Its Products in That City
DALLAS, TEXAS, February 6.—Julien H. Rice,
well-known piano man, died here of pneumonia
yesterday at 3 o'clock in the afternoon. He
was in Dallas visiting with his son-in-law, Dr.
Ralph Guy, at the time the death occurred and
the remains were immediately shipped to the
home of the deceased in Davenport, Iowa, where
the funeral services' will be held.
Julien H. Rice was the brother of I. N. Rice,
well-known piano man operating on the Pacific
Coast. His connection with the piano business
dates back as far as 1890, when he went to
Chicago from Osceola, la., with the Rice-Hinze
Piano Co., where he was associated with his
brother. After this he became connected with
the Schaeffer Piano Co., of Chicago, where he
worked for some time. Then he took up a posi-
tion with the Schiller Piano Co. as wholesale
representative. About eighteen years ago he
opened up a branch store for the Schiller Piano
Co. in Davenport, la., taking the position of
manager. He was associated with the Schiller
Co. in this capacity up until the time of his
death. It is a coincidence worth noting, how-
ever, that a short time ago he commenced mak-
ing preparations for closing out his business and
had about completed these at the time of his
death. For some time past the deceased had
been interested in oil land in Texas, together
with his son-in-law, and was in this state when
he contracted pneumonia. He was popular
throughout the trade and possessed a great num-
ber 'of friends. In Davenport he was always
alluded to as "Schiller Rice" by his friends.
He is survived by a widow, Laura Rice, and a
daughter, Mrs. Ralph Guy.
NASHVILLE, TENN., February 9.—The Starr
Piano Co., of Richmond, Ind., will establish a
wholesale branch here for the distribution of
its pianos, Starr phonographs and Gennett rec-
ords, according to an announcement of Clar-
ence Gennett, one of the officials of the com-
pany. The new branch will be located at 240-242
Fifth avenue North, over the retail store which
the company has maintained here for several
years. The district manager of the wholesale
department will be Hugh M. Light, former man-
ager of the local retail store.
SOMLYORETURNSFROM EUROPE
Arnold Somlyo, the New York and export
manager of the Baldwin Piano Co., returned
last week from Europe. For the past several
weeks Mr. Somlyo has been in Europe visiting
business associates and his family in Hungary.
He reports that traffic conditions are very poor,
but that Europe is making fast strides to regain
its pre-war prosperity.
ATLANTA, GA., February 7.—W. M. Brownlee,
president of the Cable Piano Co., of this city,
has been elected president of the Atlanta Retail
Merchants' Association and immediately started
active work to make his administration a suc-
cess by calling a meeting cf the Association.
"This is sure to be a critical year for all mer-
chants," said Mr. Brownlee, "a year in which
we will want to co-operate fully with the Fed-
eral, State and city authorities, and at the same
time secure their full co-operation. We want to
outline a definite, active program to pursue, and
at this meeting, which we hope to have attended
by representatives of all lines of industry repre-
sented in the association, we will discuss our
plans and fix our policies."
Mr. Brownlee is a native of Ohio and was
formerly in the piano business in Chicago. He
came to Atlanta several years ago and has since
proved himself an important factor in local
business affairs.
IMPORTANT A. B. CHASE AGENCIES
Two New A. B. Chase Agencies Arranged
During Convention Week
An important deal was closed during Con-
vention Week by the A. B. Chase Piano Co.
whereby the John Church Piano Co. will repre-
sent the A. B. Chase line in Cincinnati, O. An-
other arrangement was completed by which the
Turner Music Co., of Tampa, Fla., will also in
future represent the A. B. Chase line.
IVORY PRICE AGAIN ADVANCES
Through a prominent manufacturer of piano
keys The Review was informed that the price of
ivory has just experienced another rather
severe rise. This same manufacturer attributes
this advance principally to the very heavy buy-
ing which continues on the part of British and
German concerns.
GROUND BROKEN FOR NEW BALDWIN PIANO CO. FACTORY
CINCINNATI, Q., February 9.—Construction work
on the great new plant of the Baldwin Piano
Co. has already begun. As soon as the contract
for the construction work was awarded the
of the Baldwin Co., in the presence of factory
officials, formally broke ground for the new
plant, lifting the first shovelful of earth for the
excavation. Immediately after the formal cere-
E. A. PARKS ELECTED PRESIDENT
Hannibal, Mo., Music Dealer Becomes Head
of Local Chamber of Commerce
HANNIBAL, MO., February 9.—At a recent
meeting of the board! of directors of the Hanni-
bal. Chamber of Commerce E. A. Parks, head
of the Parks Music House Co., was elected
president of the Chamber for the coming year.
Since coming to Hannibal some years ago Mr.
Parks has identified himself closely with "all
civic movements and has been particularly ac-
tive in the Chamber of Commerce ranks.
FIRE CAUSES HEAVY LOSS
BEAUMONT, TEX., February 7.— Fire caused'
by defective wiring destroyed the stock and a
large part of the building occupied by the
Texas Music Co. last week, causing a loss esti-
mated at $30,000.
mwicafname
Jnt/ieWorfa.
President Armstrong Breaking Ground for New Baldwin Plant
lumber piles and sheds at the Gilbert avenue mony a steam shovel was put to work and the
plant were removed in order that the ground excavating for the basement of the new plant
might be left free for building operations, and started. The accompanying photograph shows
on last Monday G. W. Armstrong, Jr., president President Armstrong breaking ground.
PIANOS
ORGANS
E5TEY PIAND COMPANY NEW YDRK CITY
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