What was Smoking a Pipe Like 100 Years Ago?

[ARTOPUT]

Tonight after a long road trip, I sit here smoking a couple of bowls and drinking some of my favorite scotch. Just pondering what it was like 100 years ago or more to smoke a pipe. After reading a post here on the forms about methods for cleaning a pipe. What was it like during the peak of pipe smoking for the common man? Did he smoke several bowls during a day at work? Did he have a ritual procedure for both smoking and cleaning his pipe? And what was it like before the invention of the simple pipe cleaner? How did a person clean one’s pipe? Did he just grab a chicken feather and run it down the pipe stem as some have suggested before the pipe cleaner? I am curious what the very early time of smoking a pipe was like and what has come for not only smoking the pipe but also for cleaning and what was the norm back then. I would love to see the stories of the past what the peak of pipe smoking was like and how we have gotten to where we are now. If you have any insights into the early history of pipe smoking was like I would love to see them.

 

[bullet08]

I guess 100 years ago was right after WWI? If I'm not wrong, by that time, briar pipe should have been widely available. Looking through Google, it seems pipe cleaners were invented in early 1900. So, maybe not that much different. But with less number of pipes per person and less options in selection of blends.

 

[briarfoxx]

It’s an interesting thought! I looked up the history of pipe cleaners and found this article from rebornpipes:

history of pipe cleaners – rebornpipes

Posts about history of pipe cleaners written by rebornpipes

rebornpipes.com

He mentions the same chicken feather theory for use pre-pipe-cleaner. He also mentions the inventor of the pipe cleaner died in 1922, 100 years ago, so they must’ve had pipe cleaners for some years before that.

As far as habit, some famous pipe smokers alive in that time period would’ve been Mark Twain (earlier) and J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Bing Crosby (later), for whatever data we may have on them. From what I’ve heard many of them smoked quite frequently and had favorite blends or types. Some smoked cigars and/or cigarettes as well. I’ve read that Mark Twain had lots of Peterson System pipes laying around and smoked constantly (cigars too). I’ve read Bing Crosby had a large pipe collection.

 

[Briar Lee]

There is an intriguing book published 100 years ago named Tobaccoland free online:

Tobaccoland

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this...

books.google.com

The first modern flavored, moist canned tobacco was Prince Albert, in 1907, which had such massive sales success by 1922 most all of the still popular brands of “drugstore tobacco” were on the market at 15 cents for a two ounce tin.

By 1922 the modern cigarette, beginning with Camels in 1913, was extremely popular and replacing pipe and cigar smoking.

What was different then, was flaked, dry tobacco put up in cloth sacks was still popular for both hand rolled cigarettes and pipe smoking. Most of it seemed to have been bright leaf Virginia, but there were strong Burley blends as well. Most were likely flavored.

The oldest blend still in production might be Five Brothers, which is dark fire cured Burley and strong.

I smoke pipes every day that are over seventy years old.

This WDC Special Wellington is likely about 100 years old. It holds nearly a half ounce of tobacco .



Pipe smokers then, are about the same as us today.

 

[Chaukisch]

In the days of clay pipes they used molinia to clean the long stems. If you switch to the German article you can see it's still called "Pfeifengräser" (pipe grasses).

 

[HawkeyeLinus]

I think you should ask @ashdigger!

I'm working on finding out more about it!

 

[ARTOPUT]

I think you should ask @ashdigger!

I'm working on finding out more about it!

I am guessing you might be taking a poke at @ashdigger, but I look forward to what you come up with.

 

[ARTOPUT]

There is an intriguing book published 100 years ago named Tobaccoland free online:

Tobaccoland

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this...

books.google.com

The first modern flavored, moist canned tobacco was Prince Albert, in 1907, which had such massive sales success by 1922 most all of the still popular brands of “drugstore tobacco” were on the market at 15 cents for a two ounce tin.

By 1922 the modern cigarette, beginning with Camels in 1913, was extremely popular and replacing pipe and cigar smoking.

What was different then, was flaked, dry tobacco put up in cloth sacks was still popular for both hand rolled cigarettes and pipe smoking. Most of it seemed to have been bright leaf Virginia, but there were strong Burley blends as well. Most were likely flavored.

The oldest blend still in production might be Five Brothers, which is dark fire cured Burley and strong.

I smoke pipes every day that are over seventy years old.

This WDC Special Wellington is likely about 100 years old. It holds nearly a half ounce of tobacco .

View attachment 178207

Pipe smokers then, are about the same as us today.

Just finished reading the Forward of this work Tobaccland book. I must say it got my attention and look forward to what history may be pulled from it. I truly am curious about what it was like in the early beginning of tobacco use. Thank you for your insights and this resource to ponder some more while having a bowl in my free time.

 

[ARTOPUT]

In the days of clay pipes they used molinia to clean the long stems. If you switch to the German article you can see it's still called "Pfeifengräser" (pipe grasses).

That is interesting I had not thought of long grasses being used for cleaning out the stem. Makes sense. Thank you

 

[Chaukisch]

That is interesting I had not thought of long grasses being used for cleaning out the stem. Makes sense. Thank you

It works quite well, I tried it myself. I suppose you'd want to use stalks that have dried a little on the outside so they can soak up the moisture better. I'm pretty sure that's what I'll be using exclusively once I get a churchwarden clay pipe.

 

[sablebrush52]

If you actually want good well researched information from someone knowledgeable about the history of pipes and tobaccos, I recommend you contact Ben Rapaport and buy a copy of his latest book, AN INTIMATE HISTORY OF THE TOBACCO INDUSTRY,1850-1920, From The Briar Pipe of Saint-Claude to The Cigarette in THE Trenches of World War One.

He's written a number of books and articles on the topic. Here's the entry for him at Pipedia.

Ben Rapaport - Pipedia

pipedia.org

You'll get solid well written information rather than guesses.

 

[Alejo R.]

If you want to know what it was like to smoke since there is historical record, you should read La Diva Nicotina by Ian Gately.

 

[greeneyes]

While John Harry Stedman seems to receive credit (at least in this country) for the invention of pipe cleaners, browsing the advertising and patent filings from the decades preceding Stedman's 'invention' reveals several claims to articles that are in the very least the "next-step" predecessor to the modern pipe cleaner. Suffice it to say there were many, many patents with similar structural features to the modern pipe cleaner that were filed prior to the period of Stedman's claim to invention. Here are just a few.

1902

https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/50/21/63/ca26f0fab5b35c/US690717.pdf

1902

https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/e8/33/16/23f0b6d084172d/US692800.pdf

1898

https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/5c/62/87/c2b0ad033d9cb3/US612657.pdf

1896

https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/5b/fb/db/87c56dc7622dcd/US566570.pdf

1886

https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/94/ce/1e/9a7b3511ae87d0/US347169.pdf

So I'd say that calling Stedman the inventor of the modern pipe cleaner is a bit of historical "glossing over" which is more the norm than the exception.

The Balayeuse Manon pipe cleaners which were sold and manufactured in France in the early 1900s are another very clear predecessor to the modern design, differing in any meaningful sense in that it has absorbent material only at its tip. The intertwined wire at the core is the same.

Thus, the true story, as ever, is less straightforward but much more interesting than what's printed on the 'cover page.'

 

[simong]

Precursor to the ‘French Tickler’ perhaps? Lol
What’s wrong with them, I dunno. Even their pipe cleaners look like something out of a Parisian Bordello. So different, so French, ooh la la!

 

[vosBghos]

There is an intriguing book published 100 years ago named Tobaccoland free online:

Tobaccoland

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this...

books.google.com

The first modern flavored, moist canned tobacco was Prince Albert, in 1907, which had such massive sales success by 1922 most all of the still popular brands of “drugstore tobacco” were on the market at 15 cents for a two ounce tin.

By 1922 the modern cigarette, beginning with Camels in 1913, was extremely popular and replacing pipe and cigar smoking.

What was different then, was flaked, dry tobacco put up in cloth sacks was still popular for both hand rolled cigarettes and pipe smoking. Most of it seemed to have been bright leaf Virginia, but there were strong Burley blends as well. Most were likely flavored.

The oldest blend still in production might be Five Brothers, which is dark fire cured Burley and strong.

I smoke pipes every day that are over seventy years old.

This WDC Special Wellington is likely about 100 years old. It holds nearly a half ounce of tobacco .

View attachment 178207

Pipe smokers then, are about the same as us today.

Great info this , thanks for posting, 5 brothers is one of the few that pads every order I make , love that stuff…

 

[Searock Fan]

Don't know much about that time period but here are a couple of things I've heard.

Some pipe smokers used a straw from a broom as a pipe cleaner.

In WWl the cigarette manufacturers sent tons of cigs to the troops overseas free of charge. By the time they came home they were hooked.

 

[HawkeyeLinus]

If you actually want good well researched information from someone knowledgeable about the history of pipes and tobaccos, I recommend you contact Ben Rapaport and buy a copy of his latest book, AN INTIMATE HISTORY OF THE TOBACCO INDUSTRY,1850-1920, From The Briar Pipe of Saint-Claude to The Cigarette in THE Trenches of World War One.

He's written a number of books and articles on the topic. Here's the entry for him at Pipedia.

Ben Rapaport - Pipedia

pipedia.org

You'll get solid well written information rather than guesses.

Great book!

 

[HawkeyeLinus]

I am guessing you might be taking a poke at @ashdigger, but I look forward to what you come up with.

Not poking him at all - share a love of 100+ year old briar!

 

[warren]

Just pondering what it was like 100 years ago or more to smoke a pipe.

Buy a clay loaded with tobacco. Smoke it, then ... toss it in the Thames. Pick a clay off the rack break off a bit of the stem, load, light and enjoy with a pint. Set the reins down, load, stuff and smoke sitting on a stump while the wife fed the chickens. A hundred different smokers in different locales probably did just as a hundred different smokers today do ... whatever it took to get pleasant smoke. A comfortable chair at the club, a glass of port, stuff, light and enjoy.

I believe during most of the early history of pipe smoking the smoker stuffed, lit and smoked. Pretty much the same as today. We have more choices with regard to blends and pipes. But even back a century or more it was stuff, light and smoke.

 

[ARTOPUT]

If you actually want good well researched information from someone knowledgeable about the history of pipes and tobaccos, I recommend you contact Ben Rapaport and buy a copy of his latest book, AN INTIMATE HISTORY OF THE TOBACCO INDUSTRY,1850-1920, From The Briar Pipe of Saint-Claude to The Cigarette in THE Trenches of World War One.

He's written a number of books and articles on the topic. Here's the entry for him at Pipedia.

Ben Rapaport - Pipedia

pipedia.org

You'll get solid well written information rather than guesses.

Cool thank you will have to check this out. Thanks again