This is a before photograph of a Wurlitzer Alto Horn Mouthpiece on the left and a York & Sons, Boston Model 7 for a Cornet on the right. Both were quite tarnished and corroded, so I began with the chem room. It was then necessary to remove the dents that they both had in the shank area. Lastly it was a quick spin polish with my bench motor and now they look amazing.
According to The New Langwill Index (NLI), The Wurlitzer Company was founded by Franz Rudolph Wurlitzer after his emigration to America from Saxony in 1853. By 1860 he is reported to have a thriving musical instrument company in Cincinnati, OH and by 1865 he had expanded to Chicago as well. In 1872 Rudolph Wurlitzer was joined by his brother Anton, and the company was renamed "Rudolph Wurlitzer & Bro.". The company continued to thrive under the direction of Rudolph's son for several years and was not terminated until being bought by the Baldwin Piano Company sometime in the 1980s. Such longevity and so few markings on this mouthpiece makes a date difficult to describe. Unlike the "York & Sons" mouthpiece which can be dated based on the companies name changes.
"York & Sons" was started by James Warren York in 1882 as a music store and importer of instruments under the name of "J. W. York". Manufacturing started in 1885 and c.1900 he was joined by his two sons Frank W. and Charles. The name was changed to "J. W. York & Sons" at that point and remained that way until c.1926 when the company was bought out and changed to the "York Band Instrument Co." That would date this cornet mouthpiece to sometime between 1900 and 1926, with a strong possibility of being closer to 1900 because "J. W. York & Sons" are known to have specialized in cornet and trombone production until c.1917. (NLI)
