Benjamin Pike Jr.

Benjamin Pike Jr. (1809May 7, 1864) was a businessman and manufacturer of philosophical and optical instruments. He was the eldest son of Benjamin Pike Sr., whom he joined in business from 1831 to 1841 under the name Benjamin Pike & Son, before establishing his own successful firm, Benjamin Pike Jr. & Co.

Early life

Benjamin Pike Jr. was born in 1809 in New York City, New York, into a family of English immigrants. His father, Benjamin Pike Sr., immigrated from the United Kingdom to establish his own optical, scientific, and engineering business in New York, Benjamin Pike Sr. Very little is known about Pike's early life, but it is known he grew up in the Pike family home on North Moore Street, Manhattan. It is presumed that he studied to be an optician like Pike Sr.

Pike had five siblings, Daniel, Mary, Elizabeth, Gardiner, and Harriet, all born between 1818 and 1827.

Career

Benjamin Pike & Sons

Records show that in 1831, Pike Jr. joined his father in business, prompting the company to adopt the name Benjamin Pike & Son. However, this name would go on to change quite frequently as family members came and went from the business. For example, when Pike's younger brother, Daniel, joined the business in 1839, it became known as Benjamin Pike & Sons.

By the 1840s, the firm had earned widespread acclaim from patrons and experts alike, with Benjamin Pike & Sons going on to win a Silver Medal at the Fifth Annual Fair of the Mechanics' Institute, being commended for their "''surveying and drawing instruments''". The Thirteenth Annual Fair of the American Institute would mark another victory for the firm after receiving a second place Diploma for "''specimens of surveyors compasses and levels, beautiful finish''"

Benjamin Pike Jr. & Co

In 1843, Benjamin Jr. separated from his family's business and formed his own firm, viewed in similarly high regard by the general public, known simply as Benjamin Pike Jr. & Co., located at 294 Broadway. This also served as his family's home until 1858. Pike Jr.’s expertise and innovative approach quickly earned his new venture recognition, with many noting his "widely known mechanical skill". His firm won several awards for both the quality and use of his many instruments, including three silver medals at American Institute Fairs shortly after going into business. Two of which were for his remarkably "superior air pumps" and one other for his innovative "electro-magnetic apparatus". It was again at the American Institute Fairs that he would win two diplomas that demonstrated his firm's proficiency in both purely mathematical and scientific instruments.

Pike Jr.’s success was not merely driven by craftsmanship and optical knowledge but also by his marketing ingenuity. In the 1840s, he forever revolutionized the distribution of scientific instruments by publishing two extensive catalogs, one in 1848 and another in 1856. These cumulative portfolios, featuring over 750 items, showcased nearly all major scientific instruments ranging from telescopes to spectacles. Pike also included detailed descriptions and engravings, usage instructions, and background information on the scientific principles behind each instrument. This made the catalog not only a sales tool but also a valuable educational resource for scientists and engineers. Rather than simply restricting himself to the market of New York City and those who physically came to his Manhattan firm, he created a system that allowed individuals from anywhere to see and purchase his products on a monumental scale.

This marketing innovation was revolutionary not only for his business but for the entire scientific world and the diaspora of its knowledge as a whole. It was regarded as the most comprehensive collection of philosophical instruments to ever be conceived that acted as a near-universal catalog of countless devices and scientific products of the age. Moreover, it was in these catalogs that Pike took the opportunity to further emphasize the quality of his products and the innovative and modern nature of his designs that incorporated all the finest aspects of the age's contemporary science and engineering. He further wished to sway the favor of the United States' growing scientific community and shift their consumption from traditionally European instruments to those of his own firm, and in this goal, he largely succeeded. Hence, orders flowed from all across the nation and even parts of Europe, which brought Pike and his company to new heights of fame and prestige. He then massively expanded his business by demolishing and rebuilding a larger version of his store at the same address in 1850 to accommodate the new influx of customers. Leading to the further growth and development of the market reach of his firm as word spread of its utmost quality.

The catalog also highlighted Pike's contributions to the growing field of electromagnetism, detailing his improvements to early electro-magnetic apparatus. This innovation attracted interest from leading scientists of the day, positioning Pike's firm as a pioneer in both practical and theoretical instrument development.

In addition, his depictions and descriptions were so robust and unprecedented that his engravings were used commonly for more than a century for analysis of both period and contemporary counterparts of scientific instruments in a wide variety of textbooks. By the early 20th century, his work had become a fundamental basis for scientific demonstration and description in both professional and scholastic environments.

Personal life

Pike married Frances Matilda Hope on April 14, 1838, with whom he had a son and two daughters.

With such a quantity of both patrons and corresponding fame, the Pike family desired an escape from the busy and crowded life of the city where they had been living on the upper floors of their shop for over a decade. So, using the vast riches collected as a result of their massive surge in business, Pike constructed an $85,000 27-room mansion in Northern Queens in what is today Astoria, New York. He was seen here in the 1860 U.S. Census, and despite his famous optical firm, Pike had his occupation listed as a farmer. The home was later sold to William Steinway of the piano-making Steinway family in 1870 after the death of Benjamin Pike Jr., and is today known as the Steinway Mansion.

Death

Pike died of "congestion of the lungs" on May 7, 1864, in Astoria, New York, around the age of 53. His widow subsequently sold the mansion, which was bought by William Steinway in 1870. It is unknown where Pike's wife and children moved following this.

According to directories, the Pike Jr. firm was permanently closed shortly after.

See also

*Steinway Mansion

References

Further reading

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Pike, Benjamin Jr.
1809 births
1864 deaths
People from New York City
American scientific instrument makers
American opticians
Telescope manufacturers
19th-century American businesspeople