The New World – Steinway & Sons | Departure 2

The first permanent home of the Steinwegs in the New World was a 4 storey brick building in 199 Heester Street, Lower Manhattan. The location was picked with care; there were many piano manufacturers in the neighborhood. With the immense migration from Europe to America came a constantly rising need in pianos. The immigrants did not only bring their hopes for a better life with them, but also their musical culture. As part of their identity, it was cultivated both in private and public settings; pianos were much in demand.  

The first piano produced in America is commonly thought to be a square piano built in 1775 in Philadelphia by German immigrant John Behrent. Dozens of piano workshops were founded over the following decades. The most successful manufacturers were by Jonas Chickering (1798–1853) in Boston and the brothers Robert (1791–1869) and William (1794–1879) Nunns in New York. 

To build an existence and learn about the practices of American piano making, Heinrich Engelhard (1797–1871) and his sons Karl (1829–1865), Heinrich jr. (1831–1865) and Wilhelm (1835–1896) initially took jobs with various manufacturers. In a letter to her older brother Theodor (1825–1889) in Brunswick, Heinrich jr. and Karl describe the conditions as follows: 

“Father found work with a German instrument manufacturer by the name of Leucht [Lighte & Company]. He makes sound boards and now earns 6 dollars a week. If he could work with an American, he would earn at least 7 dollars, however due to his lack of English which he will never learn, he will never be able to work for an American. I work with a master named Pirsson [James Pirsson & Company]. […] I now earn 7 dollars per week. If I would agree to become a tuner, I could get a job for 9 to 10 dollar, but I don’t feel like tuning all the time. I now make keyboards. […] As Heinrich gets tired, I will go on: I work at Nunns & Co [William Nunns & Company]. I was asked to sign on for three years, but I only granted them one, making cases at 3 dollars a week. We all work in different workshops, close to each other. It seems there are 200 pianoforte manufacturers here, and the same amount in Boston. […]”