William Lewis & Son Co.

William Lewis & Son was a distinguished Chicago-based music store that specialized in violins and bows. The firm was founded in 1874. In 1995, the company was purchased by Selmer, and has since become a division of Conn-Selmer, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Steinway Musical Instruments.

Established in 1874, the firm endured for over 80 years, and among other things, amassed an important collection of fine orchestral string instruments from the violin family, which included those of Antonio Stradivarius, Giuseppe Guarneri, Domenico Montagnana, Sanctus Serafin, Lorenzo Storioni, Rugeri, Joannes Baptista Guadagnini, Nicolas Lupot, J. B. Vuillume. The bows collected included those of François Tourte, Dominique Peccatte, Nicolaus Kittel, Jean Pierre Marie Persois.

The firm gained coast-to-coast clientele and built credibility with notable musicians — professional and amateur. With comprehensive services for string players, the firm came to be known as the "Violinist's Headquarters." Several notable makers and restorers worked for the firm, including Carl G. Becker (1887–1975) and Frank Kovanda. Lewis & Son produced influential publications, including How Many Strads by Ernest Nicholas Doring (1877–1955), (who worked for the firm), Violins & Violinists a magazine for which Doring was editor, and Bows for Musical Instruments of the Violin Family, by Joseph Roda (1894–1963).

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