John Broadwood & Sons Pianoforte Manufactory

Operation

1823 to 1902

Location

Loading map...

{"minzoom":false,"mappingservice":"googlemaps3","type":"ROADMAP","geoservice":"geonames","types":["ROADMAP","SATELLITE","HYBRID","TERRAIN"],"maxzoom":false,"width":"400px","height":"300px","centre":false,"title":"","label":"","icon":"","visitedicon":"","lines":[],"polygons":[],"circles":[],"rectangles":[],"wmsoverlay":false,"copycoords":false,"static":false,"zoom":12,"layers":[],"controls":["pan","zoom","type","scale","streetview"],"zoomstyle":"DEFAULT","typestyle":"DEFAULT","autoinfowindows":false,"resizable":false,"kmlrezoom":false,"poi":true,"markercluster":false,"tilt":0,"imageoverlays":[],"kml":[],"gkml":[],"fusiontables":[],"searchmarkers":"","enablefullscreen":false,"locations":[{"text":"","title":"","link":"","lat":51.4944,"lon":-0.13046,"alt":0,"address":"","icon":"","group":"","inlineLabel":"","visitedicon":""}]}

Located in

London

Produced

Grand piano, semi-grand piano, square piano, cottage upright piano, cabinet piano

Used Raw Materials

Timber, Mahogany, Cedar, Fir, Lime-tree, Beech, Sycamore, Rosewood, Beef-wood, Oak, Pine, Wire, Glue, Ivory, Ebony, Iron. Steel, Brass, Lead, Cloth, Vellum, Felt, Wool, Leather

|1823 |1902 |John Broadwood & Sons |-

Description

Extensive details on factory layout and manufacturing process: George Dodd, Days at the Factories; or, The Manufacturing Industry of Great Britain Described, Series 1: London (London, 1843; repr. New York, 1967), 387–408. https://archive.org/stream/daysatfactories00doddgoog#page/n395/mode/2up

“1842 - 2,500 pianos a year were being made in the great factory in Horseferry Road, Westminster. Broadwoods were one of the twelve largest employers of labour in London, in an industry that was still craft-based with all parts made in-house.

1856 - The Horseferry Road factory burnt down. Only about 200 pianos salvaged. Production continued elsewhere until the factory could be rebuilt.

1902 - Factory moved to Old Ford, Hackney, with new machinery and methods. Cuthbert Heath "the father of British insurance" became Chairman, his sister having married a Broadwood son.” http://www.broadwood.co.uk/history.html

http://www.surreycc.gov.uk/heritage-culture-and-recreation/archives-and-history/surrey-history-centre/surrey-history-centre-help-for-researchers/archives-and-history-research-guides/john-broadwood-and-sons-piano-manufacturers

https://books.google.ca/books?id=PvYgWaXfcIYC&lpg=PA4&dq=broadwood%20and%20sons&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=false

Kent, Marie. “The Piano-Industry Workforce in Mid-Victorian England: a Study of the 1881 Census.” Royal Musical Association Research Chronicle 46:1 (2015): 95-158. DOI: 10.1080/14723808.2014.986259