Hugo Sohmer
Encyclopedia
Hugo Sohmer was an American piano builder and manufacturer of German descent.
, a village near Rottweil
, on the foothills of the Black Forest
, Germany
. His father was a physician and cared about a good education for his sons. So he was educated in literary and scientific subjects as well as music and the piano, and emigrated to New York
in 1863, where he apprenticed as a piano-builder in Schuetze & Ludolff's factory. He spent two years travelling in Europe continuing to study piano making, and returned to New York in 1870. In 1872 he founded Sohmer & Company
in partnership with the Austrian piano builder Joseph Kuder (1831-1913). The company building in Queens
built by Architects Berger & Baylies and finished in 1886 achieved the status of landmark in 2007. After his death he was succeeded by his son Harry J. Sohmer.
His younger brother William
was a politician in New York city.
Life
Hugo Sohmer (1845-1913) was born in DunningenDunningen
Dunningen is a town in the district of Rottweil, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany.- Notable residents :Notable people born in Dunningen* William Sohmer* Hugo Sohmer...
, a village near Rottweil
Rottweil
Rottweil is a town in the south west of Germany and is the oldest town in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg.Located between the Black Forest and the Swabian Alb hills, Rottweil has about 25,000 inhabitants...
, on the foothills of the Black Forest
Black Forest
The Black Forest is a wooded mountain range in Baden-Württemberg, southwestern Germany. It is bordered by the Rhine valley to the west and south. The highest peak is the Feldberg with an elevation of 1,493 metres ....
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. His father was a physician and cared about a good education for his sons. So he was educated in literary and scientific subjects as well as music and the piano, and emigrated to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
in 1863, where he apprenticed as a piano-builder in Schuetze & Ludolff's factory. He spent two years travelling in Europe continuing to study piano making, and returned to New York in 1870. In 1872 he founded Sohmer & Company
Sohmer & Co.
Sohmer & Co. was a piano manufacturing company founded in New York in 1872. Sohmer & Co. marketed the first modern baby grand piano, and also manufactured pianos with aliquot stringing and bridge agraffes, as well as Cecilian "all-inside" player pianos and Welte-Mignon-Licensee reproducing pianos....
in partnership with the Austrian piano builder Joseph Kuder (1831-1913). The company building in Queens
Queens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
built by Architects Berger & Baylies and finished in 1886 achieved the status of landmark in 2007. After his death he was succeeded by his son Harry J. Sohmer.
His younger brother William
William Sohmer
William Sohmer was an American politician.-Life:...
was a politician in New York city.
Sources
- Georg von Skal: History of German immigration in the United States and successful German-Americans and their descendants. New York, Smiley, 1908, p. 127, 164
- Obituary, New York Times, June 10, 1913