Lucius Beebe Memorial Library, Wakefield, Mass.

Title

Henry F. Miller Piano Factory, circa 1894

Description

"The Henry F. Miller Piano Factory was one of three imposing buildings in the downtown area that were built in the 1870s. The building, located behind the Town Hall at Water and Main Streets, was the factory for the company's Boston, Philadelphia and Cincinnati showrooms. The company was established in Boston by Henry F. Miller in 1863. A musician, Miller was described as an inventive genius with great skills as a 'mechanician'. He was joined in the business by his five sons who moved the factory into the stately building in 1884. The company continued under the direction of Henry F. Miller, Jr. and his brothers after his father's death in 1884, and Henry F. Miller & Sons continued to produce high quality pianos made by master craftsmen until a decline in demand caused the company to discontinue its own piano line in the late 1920s. The company became a part of the Continental Piano Company. The Miller Piano Factory building was sold to William T. Curley, Sr. in 1930 and houses various businesses over the next 30 years, including a furniture store, several shoe manufacturers, and an antique store. The building was razed in 1960 to make way for the Surety Bank and Trust Company building."

Image from the Wakefield Municipal Gas and Light Department annual calendar, 2012

Contributor

Institution: Lucius Beebe Memorial Library

Wakefield Municipal Gas & Light Department (Wakefield, Mass.)

D'Onofrio, Jayne M.

Coverage

Massachusetts--Middlesex (county)--Wakefield

Date

ca. 1894

Format

image/jpeg

Publisher

Wakefield, Mass. : Wakefield Municipal Gas & Light Department

Subject

Commercial buildings

Henry F. Miller Piano Factory (Wakefield, Mass.)

Type

still image

Photographs

Original Format

1 picture: b & w

Extent

26 x 18 cm.