Includes records of the Steinway & Sons, business and personal correspondence of Fred T. Steinway, serial number books of piano production, photographs of company facilities, and other documents.
There are four microfilm reels (negatives) of company and family records. These were borrowed by the Archives Center from John and Henry Steinway, microfilmed by the Library of Congress in 1989, and returned to the donors.
Reel one, Minute Book, 1876-1909, documents meetings of the corporation trustees and annual meetings of the shareholders. It also lists stockholders and, in later years, includes annual financial summaries.
Reel two, Correspondence, consists of copies of letters of Fred T. Steinway, 1877-1900. One letter press volume, 1887-1888, was kept while Steinway was in London. The second volume, 1887-1891, includes personal and business correspondence written, in English and German, in Hamburg, Germany. This volume also contains lists of materials for the construction of pianos, descriptions of manufacturing processes, and other business information. The third volume, 1894-1900, is similar to the second but also includes some daily diary entries recording business and private activities.
Reels three and four, 1856-1903, are annual inventories of all manufacturing stock, real estate, accounts payable, and other assets and liabilities of the firm. These handwritten volumes also record the annual division of profits among the shareholders.
This series also includes three microfilm reels (negative) of serial number books listing pianos manufactured by Steinway & Sons. A set of eleven microfilm reels (positive) of the serial number books is located in the museum's library (call number MFM 1176). A second set of eleven reels is in the Steinway Diary Project office along with positive copies of the four reels of company and family records described above.
This series also contains loose pages from William Steinway's office diary and photographs of the Steinway Ware Rooms, factory, and Steinway Hall, the concert hall built by the Steinways.
Collection Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use. Researchers must use positive microfilm copy of diary. Researchers must handle unprotected photographs with gloves.
Collection Rights:
Copyright held by the Smithsonian Institution. Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Reproduction permission from Archives Center: fees for commercial use.
Collection Citation:
Steinway and Sons Piano Company Collection, 1857-1919, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
