 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: dushjs
Date: 2004-01-22 01:13
Greetings to all. Has anyone heard of a manufac. from beaufort Chicago. I have recently purchased a Bb that is dated 1916, and has this fornamed city inscribed on the bell. It is silver plated and I am having a hard time trying to find a history. Thanks, Jess
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Author: BobD
Date: 2004-01-22 13:53
that's a new one on me. Are you certain about the "beaufort" spelling....and the B is not capitalized??
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Author: dushjs
Date: 2004-01-22 21:37
yep, it says Beaufort, Chicago, Ill on the bell in caligraphy. The kinda neat part about it is that under the barrell where it has the date listed it also has a patent number that coinsides to the number for H Bettoney who from what I have researched is the guy who kind of popularized the short lived life of the metal horns in the US. But the crazy thing about the patent is that it didn't go into existance until either '29 or '39, I don't remember which. So it says patent pending and then gives the number. I took it in to get looked at and the guy at my repair shop said that most of the metal horns that he has seen were so badly made that they aren't even repairing (it needs new pads) but that the quality of it was tremendous. So I may really be streching here, but would it make sense to you that Bettoney would send out so far away to have a protype made. Because like I stated, I haven't came accross any manufact. from that area. I know that they didn't have much for assembly lines back then, but it is obvious that there was a great deal of care put into it. So, I am stumped and any info would be appreciated. Thanks so much for taking interest. Jessica
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Author: Mark P. Jasuta
Date: 2004-01-22 22:36
Bettoney's patent number 1,705,634 was filed (pending) January 31, 1927. The patent was issued March 19, 1929. So the "1916" on your instrument is most likely a serial number instead of a manufacture date. So I would venture to say that your instrument was made between 1925 and 1929.
Regards
Mark
Post Edited (2004-01-22 22:37)
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Author: dushjs
Date: 2004-01-23 01:27
it would make sense, but it has the date at the month listed oct 1916, but I will take your advice and see if I can find that as a serial number
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Author: mBourne
Date: 2018-12-20 07:55
Yes! I have a Beaufort Chicago metal clarinet. Just got it refurb’d and it sounds great except in the extreme tonal regions. Did you find anything else about the manufacturer?
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Author: Ursa
Date: 2018-12-20 11:09
The Beaufort was a model sold by Holton. Holton was established in Chicago in 1898, and moved to Elkhorn, Wisconsin, USA in 1918.
They also sold saxophones under the Beaufort marque. These were "stencil" instruments built for Holton by other manufacturers.
Check out the old Holton catalogs here:
https://www.saxophone.org/museum/publications/manufacturer/54/museumType/1
Seems the earliest catalog with Beaufort clarinets is the 1924, and there's no metal clarinet model in that publication. Holton began building their own saxes around 1917, and there are Holton metal clarinets in the '28 catalog.
The '24 catalog lists Buffet, Beaufort, and Bettoney clarinets. Wouldn't surprise me if Bettoney built the metal Beauforts.
Also, Kohlert-built double-reeds make their appearance in the 1931 catalog. In the 1932 catalog, metal Kohlert alto and bass clarinets, along with metal oboes(!), are listed.
Kohlert was known to build Beaufort saxes; Kohlert-built Beaufort instruments have an "AUSTRIA" inscribed upon them. I'd look at the inscriptions on the clarinet, if any, and note what patent dates and/or countries of origin are stamped on the clarinet.
Post Edited (2018-12-20 11:38)
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Author: Clarineteer
Date: 2018-12-20 11:46
The clarinets that Bettoney stenciled according to my research were not pro instruments but rather intermediate ones copied from the Boston Wonder not the Silva Bet.
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