Baldwin Pianos
 |
|
| Subsidiary | |
| Industry | Musical instruments |
| Founded | 1857 |
| Founder | Dwight Hamilton Baldwin |
| Headquarters |
Trumann, Arkansas , United States (Distribution) China (Manufacturing) |
|
Key people
|
Henry Juszkiewicz (CEO) |
| Products | Pianos |
| Parent | Gibson |
| Subsidiaries | Wurlitzer |
| Website | baldwinpiano.com |
The Baldwin Piano Company is an American piano brand. It was once the largest US-based manufacturer of pianos and other keyboard instruments known by the slogan, "America's Favorite Piano". It ceased most domestic production in December 2008, moving production to China. Baldwin is currently a subsidiary of the Gibson Guitar Corporation, the largest American manufacturer of musical instruments.
The company traces its origins back to 1857, when Dwight Hamilton Baldwin began teaching piano, organ, and violin in Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1862, Baldwin started a Decker Brothers piano dealership and, in 1866, hired Lucien Wulsin as a clerk. Wulsin became a partner in the dealership, by then known as D.H. Baldwin & Company, in 1873, and, under his leadership, the Baldwin Company became the largest piano dealer in the Midwestern United States by the 1890s.
In 1889–1890, Baldwin vowed to build "the best piano that could be built" and subsequently formed two production companies: Hamilton Organ, which built reed organs, and the Baldwin Piano Company, which made pianos. The company's first piano, an upright, began selling in 1891. The company introduced its first grand piano in 1895.
Baldwin died in 1899 and left the vast majority of his estate to fund missionary causes. Wulsin ultimately purchased Baldwin's estate and continued the company's shift from retail to manufacturing. The company won its first major award in 1900, when their model 112 won the Grand Prix at the Exposition Universelle in Paris, the first American manufactured piano to win such an award. Baldwin-manufactured pianos also won top awards at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition and the 1914 Anglo-American Exposition. By 1913, business had become brisk, with Baldwin exporting to thirty-two countries in addition to having retailers throughout the United States.
Baldwin, like many other manufacturers, began building player pianos in the 1920s. A piano factory was constructed in Cincinnati, Ohio. The models became unpopular by the end of the 1920s, which, coupled with the beginning of the Great Depression, could have spelled disaster for Baldwin. However, the company's president, Lucien Wulsin II, had created a large reserve fund for such situations, and Baldwin was able to ride out the market downturn.
...
Wikipedia