Charles A. Sterling

Biography

Charles A. Sterling founded what became one of the earliest commercial successes in the industry, the Sterling Company of Derby, Connecticut. He took over the assets of the former Birmingham Organ Company in 1871 and organized the Sterling Organ Company in 1873 with a capital of $30,000. Piano manufacturing under the firm began in 1885. A portrait captioned 'Chas. H. Sterling' (a discrepancy in initials from the body text's 'Charles A. Sterling') accompanies the account. From Spillane (1890): Charles A. Sterling began making the Sterling organs of Derby, Conn., in 1871, having succeeded to the business of the Birmingham Organ Company. In 1873 the business was formed into a stock company, the Sterling Company, which went on to manufacture both organs and pianofortes of excellent character. Sterling died on May 3, 1887, in his seventy-third year, having been for many years the guiding figure of the enterprise before Rufus W. Blake took over as its energetic head.

Highlights

• Took over the assets of the Birmingham Organ Company in 1871
• Organized the Sterling Organ Company in 1873 with $30,000 capital
• Began manufacturing pianos under the Sterling name in 1885
• Began manufacturing Sterling organs in 1871, succeeding to the business of the Birmingham Organ Company.
• Organized the business into a stock company in 1873.
• Died May 3, 1887, in his seventy-third year.

Sources

Alfred Dolge, Pianos and Their Makers, Vol. I (1911).

Daniel Spillane, History of the American Pianoforte (1890), pp. 307, 308.

Public domain.