Willis & Co. Piano Company

Willis & Co.

Sewing Machines, Pianos and Organs! Oh my!

About:

To be quite honest, Willis & Co. never actually manufactured any sewing machines but they were the proud, sole distributors of Wanzer sewing machines in the Montreal area during their beginnings in 1884.  Wanzer Sewing machines were produced in Hamilton, Ontario during the mid to late 1800s and the company was eventually bought out by the Canada Sewing Machine Company.  For more information on R.M.Wanzer & Co. check out the Sew Muse link in the sources section - She's done her research!  

With model names like the "Wanzer A", "B", "C", "D" and "F" you just know that not a drop of creative juices was spent on anything other than product design... I mean, take a look for yourself. That's a pretty machine any way you slice it. I'm sure that's part of the reasons our friends at Willis & Co. brought it to Montreal.

We basically sew with cheap plastic boxes nowadays - This is manufacturing art!

The next logical step of course, when you are a sewing machine distributor, is to get into the piano business (?).  I'm guessing Alexander Parker Willis (1845-1934), the founder, either had a tip from a friend that the piano business was about to take off (piano sales steadily climbed from 1910 to 1930 before the crash) or he had an undeniable passion for ivory because he stopped distributing these Wanzer beauties in 1888, 4 years after founding the company.  Either way, it sure worked out for him: the company managed to acquire the rights to sell a range of other piano brands throughout it's lifespan - One that greatly exceeded M. Willis' own (the company went bankrupt in 1979).

Ghost Sign Location:
Ste-Catherine St West & Drummond St

Montréal, QC H3G

Willis & Co. Legacy to Montreal

Many Canadian families are still the proud owners of a Willis piano.  The company mostly sold upright pianos but did sell grand pianos starting 1925 for the company's golden jubilee! Now, if ever you cross an old piano and it says the word "Willis" on it - You'll know where it comes from.

Willis & Co. also leaves behind the Willis building (Building on which the ghost sign is located) - Completed in 1910.  It adorns Ste-Catherine St West.

Till next time!

Jo

Sources:

• Industries of Canada : City of Montreal [microform] : historical and descriptive review, leading firms and moneyed institutions (1886) (Link1) (Link2)
• SewMuse - Wanzer Sewing Machines (Link)
• Piano Tech - Willis Pianos (Link)
• The Canadian Encyclopedia (Link)

Redpath Sugar

Redpath Sugar

150 Years of History and Counting

An old Redpath Sugar advertisement on what was once Canada's largest industrial plant.

About:
You probably don't realize this (I sure didn't) but I'm quite sure you've had quite a few servings of Redpath sugar during your life if you live in Canada.  The last 4-5 generations of your family have been making their chocolate chip cookies, pies, and other delicious baked goods with it.  Here's what the sign looked like originally:

Original Redpath Sign

This particular ghost sign is located on the southern side of the company's old flagship canal Lachine factory, once Canada's largest industrial plant.  When the company closed the factory in the 1980s, the building remained abandoned for 20 some odd years.  A strange fate for a factory that made it onto a stamp!

Sold at auction for 90$ on March 15th 2014 - (Link)

The factory was converted into luxury condos beginning in 2002 and let me tell you... They are some nice condos...  It's also interesting to note that the old storage silos and the space adjacent is now used by Allez Up, a climbing gym who's got some pre-tty impressive facilities

The Redpath family was sporting "Bleu-Blanc-Rouge" way before it became a thing in Montreal.

Ghost Sign Location:
Saint-Patrick St & Montmorency St

Montréal, QC H3K

Redpath Legacy to Montreal

When I started researching this ghost sign's history, I didn't know what I was in for... The Redpath family established in Canada in 1816 when John Redpath, then 20 years old and penniless, immigrated from Scotland to Quebec city with the little money he did have.  Shortly thereafter, he decided to walk barefoot to Montreal - BAREFOOT - because of what I believe was an epiphany that Montreal would always be a better choice than Quebec city. Although... I'm guessing here...

After a few years in the city, armed with determination and work ethic, he was already running his own sizeable construction company and was hired as part of the consortium to build the Lachine canal - a feat attempted and failed multiple times by others over the previous 130 years.  Having made a name for himself by successfully completing this project, he was further solicited to help build the Rideau Canal in Ottawa, the Notre-Dame Basilica and some of McGill university's initial buildings and consequently grew his assets and influence in the city.  In 1854, he founded the Canada Sugar Refining Company, which we know to be the producers of Redpath sugar.

With this new found wealth, John Redpath invested in several businesses he thought would help the city grow and establish itself as a major economic player - the Montreal Towboat Company, the Montreal Telegraph Company and the Montreal Fire Assurance Company to name a few. He also sat on the Montreal city council for 3 years from 1840 to 1843. Along with his other accomplishments, he helped the Redpaths become one of the most influential Montreal families of the 19th century. 

Leaving behind a spectacular 17 children, John Redpath passed away in 1869 at the age of 73 and lies peacefully in the Mount Royal Cemetary.  Not suprisingly, the Redpaths were hard hit by the crash of 1929 and merged with a Toronto sugar refinery.  The company also moved its operations to Toronto in the 1950s.  Repath sugar is still produced today although the company was bought out by American Sugar Refining, an american company (surprise!).  The US always wants our goodies...

Indubitably, It's unreasonable to try to summarize a family's story in a few paragraphs...  For more information on the Redpath family story, you can look into the following sources which I used for this article.

Till next time!

Jo

Sources:

• A Gentleman of Substance: The Life and Legacy of John Redpath (1796-1869) (Link)
• Redpath Museum on McGill Grounds: (Link)   
• Family Murder Mystery (Link)
• Redpath Sugar Wikipedia page (Link)
• John Redpath Wikipedia page (Link)
• Heritage Montreal - Redpath House (Link) 
• Heritage Canada - Redpath House (Link)
• Montreal Neighborhoods History (Link)