Broken Pipe: Herb Brigham of Brigham Enterprises Inc. Passes
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Kevin Godbee - Oct 25, 2010
- 1 min read
Herb Brigham died September 30th at the age of 94. Herb was the son of Roy Brigham founder of Brigham Enterprises, a Canadian pipe manufacturer since 1906. Herb joined the firm at an early age and eventually took his father’s place as head of the firm.
His Obituary read:
HERBERT NELSON BRIGHAM After a full and happy life, Herb passed away on Thursday, September 30, 2010 at the age of 94. He was loved by all who knew him; he was cherished for his sunny disposition and his interest in everything around him. He lived an amazing life of travel and adventure, always with the love of his life and best friend, Joanne, by his side. They were happily married for 59 years. Herb and Joanne traveled together to virtually every corner of the world, enjoying many remarkable experiences along the way. He was a warm and loving husband to Joanne (nee Howard), and an outstanding father to Heather, Matthew and Mike, father-in-law to Brent and Belle, grandfather to Ryan and Laura, and brother to Eileen Alton (late Gord) and the late Ken (Jean). We will all miss him so very much. Honoring Herb’s wishes, we will celebrate his life in an informal gathering on Monday, October 18, from 3-5 p.m. at Mississauga Golf and Country Club, 1725 Mississauga Road. We would like to acknowledge the care and compassion Dad received during his last days from his caregiver-friends at Home Instead Senior Care – thank you so much. If desired, donations in Herb’s memory may be made to The Credit Valley Hospital Foundation.
The Brigham pipe line has a unique "Rock Maple" filter system exclusive to their products. Their extensive line of moderately to moderately-high priced, high quality pipes can be seen on their website; BrighamPipes.com
Pipes are available for purchase at PipesandCigars.com, and CupOJoes.com.
Written by Kevin Godbee
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Welcome to The Pipes Magazine Radio Show Episode 636. Our featured interview on tonight’s show is with Barry Kane. Barry started smoking a pipe in 1961 when he was 14-years old. Back then it seemed like everybody smoked, and you could buy pipes and tobacco just about anywhere. Barry is a true old-school pipe smoker, sticking to just one blend. See if you can guess which one before listening. At the top of the show Brian will give his take on Scandinavian Tobacco Group’s purchase of Mac Baren and Sutliff Tobacco and their announcement that they will be shut down.
There’s a pipe in my collection that I cannot bring myself to smoke, though I’ve had it for more years than I care to recall. It’s old, or shall I say, well experienced; that experience, that oldness came to it long before it was in my possession. The pipe is an old Comoy’s Grand Slam from the 1940s. The shape (#93), a slightly canted, stack billiard (sometimes referred to as a Belgian) is right up my alley, and it’s a beautiful example of it. It came to me with some wear and tear; nothing unusual for an old pipe, but more the signs of one that has been well loved, smoked a lot, treated as a favorite tool, cherished, in a sense, by frequent use. It’s the pipe equivalent of a vintage car that’s been driven a lot, enjoyed fully and maintained adequately, rather than one kept in a spotless garage, dusted and detailed weekly, brought out only for leisurely Sunday drives, or to be ogled behind the ropes at the next Concours d’Elegance. 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It revivified a long dormant memory that is mine, and mine alone, and that’s enough. I keep it in a drawer with other old English pipes. In some ways, it’s nothing special, just a nice old pipe. I don’t lavish it with any particular care that arguably befits the hidden treasure that it holds. It’s not in a special box, or displayed preciously in a glass cabinet. Every once in a while, I take it out, point my nose bowlwards, and every time, those memories return just as powerfully as they did the first time. I have no idea how long it’s been since its last owner smoked it, but in the years I’ve had it, there seems to have been very little degradation of the aroma, and that’s […]
Welcome to The Pipes Magazine Radio Show Episode 635. Our featured interview on tonight’s show is with James Ravenwood. James is the boutique tobacco blender of Ravenwood Blends. His blending started out as a fun hobby, and he now has professionally packaged commercially available products with some great tin art. Part of his interest in pipe smoking goes back to fond memories of a retired Navy Veteran that lived on his street while he was growing up that would sit in his driveway smoking a pipe all day. Later, in 2011 he began smoking pipes and soon after started experimenting with mixing different tobaccos. His other hobby, that he has been doing for 30 years, is photography. He takes wonderful photos of outdoor spaces, and still life pictures of pipes and tobacco. You can see them on his Instagram @thebriarfellowship. At the top of the show we’ll have an Ask the Pipemaker segment with renowned pipe artisan Jeff Gracik.
Welcome to The Pipes Magazine Radio Show Episode 634! Our featured interview on tonight’s show is with Warren Ertle. Warren is an extremely accomplished musician with a PhD in music. He started early as a percussionist in sixth grade. Later his grandmother got him a cheap Casio keyboard which he taught himself to play. He started playing in blues bands in high school, and has been a pianist with jazz big bands for years. Even though he was already a professional musician, he took his first real piano lesson when he enrolled in college with his studies in classical music. He is of course a pipe smoker. At the top of the show we will have an Ask the Tobacco Blender segment with Jeremy Reeves. Jeremy is the Head Blender at Cornell & Diehl, which is one of the most popular boutique pipe tobacco companies in the USA.
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Welcome to The Pipes Magazine Radio Show Episode 633. Our featured guest tonight is Jon David Cole. JD is the Owner/Tobacconist at The Country Squire in Jackson, MS, and the accompanying online store. We’ll have JD and Brian talking about what’s new at the store and in the business in general. At the top of the show, Brian will discuss tobacco growing, what happens to the leaf, and provide updated information on where tobacco is being gown today. Tobacco production originated in the United States and we were once the #1 producer. It’s quite different now.
My first pipe was a Brigham 149 single brass pin. Not that I have a tremendous collection, but that Brigham is still my go-to pipe. I’m not a collector by any stretch of the imagination, but if I were, I think I’d collect Brighams.
Simon
I have an Algonquin 2-dot Rhodesian that smokes a Va flake like a champ; and those filters are terrific. I hope the company continues on in their fine tradition. It’s fair to say they represent Canada well in the pipe smoking world.
To mark the occasion, I’ve won a Brigham 484 estate pipe on eBay. Four brass pins: this is three steps up from by other Brigham. I’ve posted the pic from the auction in my album (https://pipesmagazine.com/members/classicgeek/album). I’m guessing you’d call it a semi-rusticated 1/2 bent volcano. I’m looking forward to including it in my collection.
I got to know Herb during the time that I worked at Brigham. He was always quick witted and charming. He still smoked his pipes in the office when he visited despite the prevailing laws. The tobacco was always ‘Brigham’s Own’ a black cavendish that he developed decades ago. He will be missed.