Charles S. Fischer

Biography

Charles S. Fischer was descended from a family of piano makers established in Naples, Italy, where his grandfather had been court piano maker to King Ferdinand I and his father had continued the trade. Charles S. and his brother John U. Fischer emigrated to New York City in 1839, taking employment with William Nunns and becoming his partners as Nunns & Fischer; after Nunns retired in 1840 the firm became J. & C. Fischer. The brothers built great wealth producing reliable pianos, and when John U. retired to Italy in 1873, Charles S. admitted his own four sons, thoroughly trained in the business, to partnership. Under the young men's vigorous activity and their father's guidance, annual output rose to 5,000 pianos while quality was studiously improved. The firm was incorporated in 1907. A portrait of Charles S. Fischer accompanies the text. From Spillane (1890): C. S. Fischer took over as senior member of the firm J. & C. Fischer after his brother J. Fischer's retirement in 1873. By the time Spillane was writing, the management of the large and successful Fischer business was in the hands of C. S. Fischer and his five sons, all practical piano-makers, each overseeing a special department of the wholesale and retail trade.

Highlights

• Emigrated to New York in 1839 with his brother John U. Fischer and joined William Nunns, forming Nunns & Fischer, later J. & C. Fischer.
• After his brother's 1873 retirement, admitted his own four thoroughly trained sons to partnership.
• Under his guidance the firm's output grew to 5,000 pianos a year; incorporated in 1907.
• Assumed sole senior position in J. & C. Fischer after his brother J. Fischer's 1873 retirement
• Managed the firm with his five sons, all practical piano-makers

Sources

Alfred Dolge, Pianos and Their Makers, Vol. I (1911), p. 289.

Daniel Spillane, History of the American Pianoforte (1890), p. 200.

Public domain.