Who Discovered Briar As A Pipe Material?

[mso489]

I think there is a historical consensus that briar came into extensive use as tobacco pipe material in St. Claude France some time in the late 1700's or early 1800's. Correct me if I'm wrong there. Does any person or group have claim on actually discovering this unique root stock or is the early source of this clouded in time? Clay pipes go back further in time, I think. Meerschaum, cob and morta, and others, I just don't know. Missouri claims eminence in brick, mules and corn cob pipes ... ninety nine varieties of bricks to be exact.

 

[sandollars]

My understanding is there was a load of wood inadvertently sent to the St. Claude factory. It turned out to be Briar roots. They thought it might work well for pipes and the rest is history. At least this is the way the French tell it. I have no reason to doubt the story.

 

[writingraav]

I think there is a historical consensus that briar came into extensive use as tobacco pipe material in St. Claude France some time in the late 1700's or early 1800's. Correct me if I'm wrong there. Does any person or group have claim on actually discovering this unique root stock or is the early source of this clouded in time? Clay pipes go back further in time, I think. Meerschaum, cob and morta, and others, I just don't know. Missouri claims eminence in brick, mules and corn cob pipes ... ninety nine varieties of bricks to be exact.

Mid to late 18oo's, I believe. Certainly not the 1700's. Otherwise there are all kinds of stories with the most likely being a fortunate accident as referenced by Sandollars.

 

[sandollars]

When Was the Briar Pipe Invented? :: General Pipe Smoking Discussion - http://pipesmagazine.com/forums/threads/when-was-the-briar-pipe-invented.31264/

Here is an old thread on the subject. ^^ clicky ^^

 

[condorlover1]

Some French dude?

 

[Waning Embers]

 

[donjgiles]

According to pipedia - Comoy's

Francois Comoy and his brothers started making pipes (probably clays, boxwood and beech) in 1825 in the small monastic town of Saint-Claude in eastern France. Claude and his son Louis discovered that briar had vastly superior qualities and from 1848 made pipes only in this wood.

 

[sablebrush52]

According to pipedia - Comoy's

Francois Comoy and his brothers started making pipes (probably clays, boxwood and beech) in 1825 in the small monastic town of Saint-Claude in eastern France. Claude and his son Louis discovered that briar had vastly superior qualities and from 1848 made pipes only in this wood.

That seems as good a story as any. They certainly had a hand in popularizing briar as a material for tobacco pipes.
Briar made its appearance in Great Britain in the early 1850's, with Loewe setting up shop in the Haymarket in 1856, according to their literature. Jon Guss has found evidence that suggests a different year, and I'd be inclined to believe him.
It didn't take long for smokers to become enamored of briar as a durable tough material, and the love affair was on.
Initially, the bowls were turned in St Claude, and were shipped to the UK to be finished and assembled, a practice that continued throughout the remainder of the 19th century and well into the 20th. Vulcanite became available as a stem material at about the same time. The earliest mention of Vulcanite pipe stems that I've found dates to 1852.

 

[bnichols23]

I think there is a historical consensus that briar came into extensive use as tobacco pipe material in St. Claude France some time in the late 1700's or early
Missouri claims eminence in brick, mules and corn cob pipes ... ninety nine varieties of bricks to be exact.

[Carson voice] "I did not know that" about bricks. Dead-on on clays, of course -- they go waaaaay back.


B

 

[cosmicfolklore]

It would be interesting to know what other sorts of things were being made out of briar, since there was a truckload of it all prepped when it was discovered great for pipes.

Also, imagine the first pipes made with fresh briar, blech! I wonder how long it took for them to start aging it... or, curing it.

 

[didimauw]

T

It would be interesting to know what other sorts of things were being made out of briar, since there was a truckload of it all prepped when it was discovered great for pipes.

Also, imagine the first pipes made with fresh briar, blech! I wonder how long it took for them to start aging it... or, curing it.

That was my thought. What else was it being used for?

 

[jpmcwjr]

It would be interesting to know what other sorts of things were being made out of briar, since there was a truckload of it all prepped when it was discovered great for pipes.

Also, imagine the first pipes made with fresh briar, blech! I wonder how long it took for them to start aging it... or, curing it.

Good point. But, I think that while it was real raw to start with, through time and many bowls, the briar got "cured". Cake was formed. Happiness ensued, and broken-in pipes became a treasured item.

Since there were folks that were hired to break in pipes —mid to late 19thC, IIRC— curing by factories may have taken some time to catch on.

 

[tobefrank]

I have no clue what they must have made from briar before pipes, but it must have been because of the unique wood pattern, in particular birdseye.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Excellent question. Marquetry in furniture? Decoration on firearms? Knife handles?

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I have no clue what they must have made from briar before pipes,

My guess is compact make-up cases, mirror frames, or any of the many things being produced just as we went into the Art Nouveau style of mass production.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Maybe knife handles, but I have never run across any briar scales, but most definitely it could have been used for inlay and exotic wood designs. There is a lot of that in Nouveau designs. But, I have never heard of briar specifically being used.

 

[tobefrank]

My guess is compact make-up cases, mirror frames, or any of the many things being produced just as we went into the Art Nouveau style of mass production.

I noticed it is still used on luxury products such as fountain pens.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I noticed it is still used on luxury products such as fountain pens.

I don't ever see briar being sold in the pen blank sections of the wood craft stores, but I imagine that a lot of pen makers may have dabbled in pipemaking, as they both use a lathe.

 

[condorlover1]

Novelty amusement items for single ladies of a delicate persuasion probably sold under the slogan 'Put Some Wood in Your Women' or some other suitable 19th century style slogan!

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Novelty amusement items for single ladies

And, that was before batteries, so it would have had to be steam powered.