Squire Longson Baby Grand Piano

[emma843168]

Hello,
I wondered if you could help with the history and age of my late grandfather's Squire Longson Baby Grand Piano?
All I know about it is that he has had the piano for 70 years now, but I am not sure how old it was when he got it.
There are three numbers on the piano:
14546
32024
15637
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Emma

[Bill Kibby]

It is almost impossible to date baby grands of the 1900s by their appeaance, and no reliable numbers are published for Squire & Longson. Some of their pianos were made by Kemble, and should have a number preceded by a letter K. If you know how to remove the fall (keyboard lid) you will be able to see the action, and it may have markings that help. Removing the action is a very risky operation, and I would advise against it, ask your tuner to have a look for the action makers' name and number. Otherwise, anything you can tell me about how these other numbers are written, printed or imprinted might help. On any removaable parts of the case, look for a 3-digit number repeated in various places. This should be the last 3 digits of the main number. If you can email photos of the whole piano to me they may help.

[Colin Nicholson]

It is better to send this info by a separate post, rather than tagging it onto a previous request.

For Emma,

Squire & Longson were made by Kemble, so some of the serial numbers are used by them, and as Bill says, no reliable source from S&L.

Fitting your description about your late grandfather, the number #32024 is the nearest (and the only one fitting Kemble serial numbers) - suggests around 1929.

Remember that serial numbers are unique to a piano's age, other numbers are often just casework/ parts numbers of which there are no records. Different sets of numbers may also be applied to the piano in different ways, so some numbers are 'punched' or 'embossed' on the wood (sometimes under the keyboard on grands - cabinet numbers), some are etched/ punched onto the soundboard beneath the strings, but serial numbers for some pianos are usually stencilled/ stamped in black ink - each number being about 2cm in height, and usually serial numbers are more ornate looking, with a fancier font - in olden times. There is only one way to tell - send a photo of all the numbers. Serial numbers are also usually found near the tuning pins.