Pipe Lore.

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Been here for a bit, and I have been picking up on some pipe lore. I'm typically "get it done and move on" type of person. Don't really get involved in background stories. But last few posts I have seen are starting to get me interested in history of pipes and their manufacturers. Where do you start if you want to know more about them? I do have books on Peterson, but let say I want to know more about British pipes. What would be a good source to read up on?

 

[dPero]

Start with pipepedia

 

[Latakia Dave]

The Ultimate Pipe Book, by Richard Carleton Hacker

 

[RustiePyles CPG]

The history of British briar is tangled and convoluted, often reading more like GOT than the history of pipe manufacturing. There are families and dynasty's, betrayal and secret alchemical processes.

I would narrow my search and start with a specific company/family. For every British Briar house there are experts, and your best bet is start with one of those experts and ask them some questions. @sablebrush52 is a expert on all things Barling and also has a great deal of knowledge on other pipe making concerns as well. @georged knows more about Dunhill than most anyone alive. @jguss is an absolute wealth of information about all things British pipe. @glpease is the GBD guru as well having a great deal of knowledge about Comoy's.

But if you really want to take a deep dive into British pipes, you actually need to start with the French in the town of St Claude, that is where the British Pipe industry was born.

 

[SBC]

I've recently taken an interest in the Saint-Claude history, and found Pipedia helpful in tracking down the origins of and historic relations among the Jeantets, Comoys, Chapuis, Ropps, etc.

What I never cease to get over is just how recent a phenomena briar pipes are. 1840s. That's like yesterday.
It almost tempts me to get into clay pipes with @halfdan just to swim in more antiquated waters ;-)

 

[Puffaluffaguss]

+1

 

[Puffaluffaguss]

I'm not 100% sure if all the old english pipe makers got all the bowls pre turned in St Claude, but from what I'm able to gather they shipped in by bulk massive amounts of stummels from France to Britian.