J.W. Pepper history

Next, in 1877, he opened a retail store in Philadelphia to sell instruments and accessories along with the sheet music he published.

He grew up at 1508 N. 13th Street, Philadelphia (not sure which year his parents settled there, but James remained there until he was 25, in 1878).

Carolene Clementine Nicholls, the woman James would eventually marry around 1879, was born in Delaware in June.

J.W. Pepper music stand patent (June 1880)

On March 14, Pepper published Sousa's march, "Guide Right." “In 1881 it became necessary, on account of the growth of business, to secure larger quarters, and he removed to 8th and Locust Streets, to a building 22½ ft. by 100 ft., with four floors.

In 1882 he and a son moved to Philadelphia to establish a plant for Pepper where instruments, including Distin’s cornets, could be manufactured.

On December 30, Pepper published Sousa's comic opera, "Desiree," which had a three week run in Philadelphia in 1884.

Pepper however, wished to sell cheaply to a mass market, so Distin, whose interest was in high-quality instruments, formed a partnership with Senator Luther R. Keefer and other businessmen to establish the Henry Distin Manufacturing Co. (2nd March 1886)" (Source: Farr, Distin Diaries).

1888 Alexander LeForrestier becomes superintendent of bell making and would oversee perhaps the company's most recognizable achievement.

In 1890 Pepper moved his business interests to a new seven-story building in Philadelphia, consolidating his printing and manufacturing interests while also accommodating administrative offices, mail-order operations, and a retail store.

Following up on a request from Sousa back in 1892, Pepper built the first Sousaphone:

1893 The Chicago World's Fair, also known as the World's Columbian Exposition, commemorates the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus' arrival in the Americas.

Pepper produced one of the earliest drum pedals, patenting the design in 1894.

Pepper begins importing and selling Sousaphones, but only briefly. It appears that he never built another Sousaphone after the prototype in 1895.

Pepper's Sousaphone went on tour with the Sousa Band early this year (shown below on March 7, 1896, in Salt Lake City, directly behind and above the first chair clarinetist).

“He soon afterwards added a factory for the manufacture of band instruments, which has grown, during the last fourteen years, to the largest and most complete establishment of its character in the United States” (Source: 1897 Catalogue).

1898 Pepper expands to a new market, beginning to publish piano music.

1900 Continuing the tradition of education and empowerment for musicians, the company begins publishing The Pepper Piano Music Magazine.

Pepper played its part by making and naming the first Sousaphone for John Philip Sousa himself! By 1902, Pepper's publishing efforts expanded to include music for band, orchestra, piano, banjo, and mandolin, as well as collections for all brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments.

27). He filed a patent for his Portable Drum Rack (approved in 1903; patent can be viewed online here).

A new location at 33rd and Walnut Streets became Pepper's home in 1910, at which time the company discontinued its instrument manufacturing operations, but continued importing instruments for sale.

1911 So then it's really a Sue-sar-phone?! At the U. S. Marine Band Library A message from Herman Conrad . . . A Selective History of J. W. Pepper How well did Sousa know Pepper? Happy 90th birthday, Mr.

1912 Another big change in practices occurs when Pepper ceases publication of the Musical Times and Band Journal.

1914 With turmoil brewing overseas, Pepper foresees the material shortages that were on the horizon.

Shortly after the war came to an end, Pepper died in 1919 and his 37-year-old son Howard E. Pepper took over the presidency.

The 1924 decision to focus on selling reissued sheet music left Pepper with a catalog that was so woefully out of date that there was little in it to generate sales.

1926 With changing needs, the company decides to sell the Howard E. Pepper building to the University of Pennsylvania.

1940 The company moves to a new building at 210 N. Broad Street, but sales remain stagnant.

In 1941, a year in which the company lost $1,000 on revenues of $8,000, Pepper was finally forced to declare bankruptcy and be put up for sale at auction.

The stock is formally issued on September 16, 1942.

Burtch was able to complete the Navy order in 1943.

1944 The company purchases a building at 1423 Vine Street, signifying a new beginning for the company under the Burtch family leadership.

He had joined the company in 1946 after graduating from high school.

A focus on mail-order advertising led sales upward and reversed ten years of operating at a loss by 1953.

1954 Part of the Burtch family's success rejuvenating the company is a willingness to accept outside management when working to grow the business.

In 1958 Burtch’s son, Dean Burtch, took over as Pepper’s president.

In 1963 he would be on his own following the death of his father.

Wingert-Jones was founded in 1964 as a labor of love between two instrument salesmen with a passion for high-end band music.

1966 Pepper opens a new location in Atlanta, headed up by Ron Rowe.

1968 Pepper opens another new store in the Midwest, in Troy, Michigan.

Two years later an office was added in Detroit to better serve the Midwest, followed in 1970 by the opening of an office in Tampa, Florida, to grow sales even further in the southeast.

While the data-processing system was being developed, Pepper returned to the publishing business by launching Charter Publications in Atlanta in 1971.

1972 With rock and roll reigning supreme in the pop world, Dean Burtch ventures into the fray.

In 1973 Pepper’s headquarters moved out of Philadelphia after nearly a century of operating in the city, taking up offices in the Valley Forge Corporate Center.

Pepper's 100th Anniversary Bicentennial Edition catalog cover (1975)

1977 Lee Paynter, future Chief Operating Officer, joins the Pepper team and plays an integral part in the company's expansion efforts.

In response, Pepper establishes a nationwide toll-free line in 1981.

A fifth distribution branch opened in Los Angeles in 1983 to serve the western part of the country.

In 1985 Pepper established a relationship with European American Music, warehousing its stock in the new Paoli site and taking responsibility for European American’s retail, wholesale, and rental business.

Another distribution center opened in Grand Prairie, Texas, in 1986, the same year the Tampa site was closed and its operations moved to the Atlanta center.

Another strategically located distribution center was opened in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, in 1988.

Tech Exec magazine with Dean Burtch, Bob Murphy, & Ron Rowe (November, 1989)

In 1990 the company opened its first satellite store in a Paige’s Music outlet in Indianapolis.

Glenn began his career at Pepper in April of 1991 and held several management positions before being named President.

Music Inc. magazine cover featuring Ron Rowe (May 1992)

A year later Pepper opened a similar store in a Duncan Music store in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, followed in 1993 by an operation in a Duncan Music store in Salt Lake City.

A branch office opened in 1994 with Ted Brown Music in Tacoma, Washington.

In 1995 Pepper began selling music over the Internet.

Pepper of Chicago was opened in conjunction with Lyons Music in 1997, and a year later a satellite store opened within the Eckroth Music store in Bismarck, North Dakota.

1999 Ron Rowe retires from Pepper.

2000 Pepper introduces ePrint, a service that allows customers to purchase music online and print it out on their personal printer.

Another branch office, Pepper of San Francisco, opened in July 2001.

The company began offering e-Print digital delivery services in 2002, allowing customers to immediately print the sheet music they purchased.

Binzen, Peter, “Sheet Music Sales Make Pepper a Form of Note,” Philadelphia Inquirer, May 24, 2004.

2007 Upon the retirement of Greg Burtch, Glenn Burtch (Dean Burtch's youngest child) is named the President of Pepper.

When the recession of 2008 hit, the upheaval damaged businesses across the country, and the music industry was not immune.

2009 Pepper begins shipping exclusively from two Distribution Centers, one in Atlanta and the other in Salt Lake City.

2012 Pepper introduces My Score, a marketing platform for independent composers and arrangers.

Wingert-Jones Orchestra Music catalog (2016)