Francis Ramacciotti Explained
Francis Ramacciotti (c. 1826 Livorno, Grand Duchy of Tuscany – 13 June 1891 Manhattan) was an Grand Duchy of Tuscany-born inventor who founded a major piano string manufacturer in the United States.
Career
Ramacciotti was reportedly associated with Garibaldi and held a military rank. Ramaciotti immigrated to the US in 1848, moving to Buffalo, New York. He apprenticed in a piano company in Buffalo before founding his own piano string company, the F. Ramacciotti company, in 1852. While in Buffalo, Ramociotti played bassoon as a member of the Metropolitan Theater Orchestra under the direction of Albert Benjamin Poppendorf (1819–1900).
Ramacciotti – on June 12, 1952, in Buffalo – married Rachel Caroline Rendt (maiden; 1833–1914) of Detroit. The couple had five children: (i) Italo Francis Ramacciotti (1853–1911), (ii) Hugo Louis Ramacciotti (1855–1907), (iii) Alberto "Albert" De M. Ramacciott (1857–1926), (iv) Eugenia W. Ramacciotti (1860–1938; married to Edward G. Johnson), and (v) Emma Serena Ramacciotti (1869–1963; married to Milton Lockwood Bouden; 1866–1938).
In 1867, Ramaciotti moved his company to New York City. He invented and patented the first modern bass string for the piano. Previous piano strings used iron winding over iron. This modern invention using a special new machine used copper wound over iron. The company was one of the top makers of piano strings in the world for several decades.
In 1891, Francis Ramacciotti died. His son Albert took over the company the next year. Albert expanded it to one of the three top string makers in the nation.
Selected patents
1883: US 280512 A – "Spinning Lathes for Winding Piano-Strings."
1893: US 508974 A – "Machine for Swaging Wire for Musical Instruments."
1902: US 740918 A – "Bass String for Pianos or Other Musical Instruments."
Bibliography
References
- . Scientific American . Scientific American . July 28, 1883 . [{{GBurl|7bkzAQAAMAAJ|p=58 |dq="ramacciotti"}} Mechanical Inventions ]. New Series . 49 . 4 . 58 . October 14, 2021. Google Books (Penn State) .
- – July 3, 1883 . Spinning Lathes for Winding Piano-Strings . filed November 23, 1882; serial number 280,512; granted July 3, 1883 . 24 . 1 . 39 . .Retrieved October 14, 2021..
- – November 21, 1893 . Machine for Swaging Wire for Musical Instruments . filed October 5, 1892; serial number 447,953; granted November 21, 1893 . 65 . 8 . 1095 . .Retrieved October 14, 2021..
- – October 6, 1903 . Bass String for Pianos or Other Musical Instruments . filed December 13, 1902; serial number 135,184; granted October 6, 1903 . 106 . 6 . 1455–1456 . .Retrieved October 14, 2021..
- Book: . Frank E. Morton . William G. Schaff . John Rossi . George Holz . Albert Francis (Alberto "Albert" De M. Ramacciotti; 1857–1926) . C.F. Hovey . Dr. Floyd S. Muckey . William Ruhenbeck (1866–1935) . Francis Kraus . Justin O. Shore . Mark P. Campbell . Dr. Daniel Russell Hodgdon (1885–1957) . March 5, 1919 . Bass Strings – Their Manufacture and Proper Use . Piano Tone Building – Proceedings of the Piano Technicians' Conference, Chicago, 1919 . https://archive.org/details/pianotonebuildin12pian/page/22/mode/2up?q=Ramacciotti . 19–28 (21, 22, 24, 25) . October 14, 2021 . Internet Archive (Brigham Young University) .,, .
- Book: 1877 . Rand's New York City Business Directory for 1877 . . Walter Heugh & Co. (publisher) . 2 . .Retrieved September 23, 2007.. .
- Holmes . Michael Irwin (1941–2016) . 1997 . Musical Instruments Made of Aluminum . . Mugwumps Instrument Herald .
- . June 6, 1914 . F. Ramacciotti Incorporated . The Music Trade Review . 58 . 23 . 59 (column 1; bottom) . November 18, 2014 . .
- Book: Underwood . Oscar Wilder (1862–1929), Chairman . Oscar Underwood . Paragraphs 134–135 — Wire Rods, Wire, Etc . 1913 . Tariff Schedules – Hearing Before the Committee on Ways and Means – House of Representatives. Vol. 2; Schedule C . . 1224–1240. ; & .
"One day a foreman in the Ramacciotti plant, John —, who had been a boy apprentice when" "that was the end of the New York Cooperative Piano String Co."
- Book: Dolge . Alfred (1848–1922) . Alfred Dolge . 1911 . Pianos and Their Makers: A Comprehensive History of the Development of the Piano From the Monochord to the Concert Grand Player Piano . . Covina Publishing Company (publisher). The Quinn & Boden Co. Press (printer) . 465. ; .
| ---- | ---- | Estab-
lished---- | ---- |
| Strings | — | New Brunswick |
| Keys | 1876 | New York |
| Felts | 1901 | New York |
| Strings | 1867 | New York |
| Hardware | 1866 | New York | |
- Book: Williams . Charles Miller . 1916 . Fifty Years of St. Cecile Lodge, No. 568 . 2nd . St. Cecile Lodge, No. 568, F. & A.M.. ; .
" Francesco Ramacciotti, who died June 13, [1894]." "The lodge met in a hall corner of Third Avenue and Eighty-Sixth Street." "Ramacciotti joined the lodge in 1871 "
- Book: . 1928 . Ramacciotti F. Inc . [{{GBurl|BRUWAAAAIAAJ|q="ramacciotti"}} Musique-Adresses Universel – Annuaire International du Commerce de Musique ]. The Universal Music Trade Directory . 11 . 1540. .
"Ramacciotti F. Inc, 421 W. 28th St. — Manuf. of Piano Wire and Bass Strings — Panels."
- Book: McAdoo . William Gibbs (1863–1941), Secretary of the Treasury . William Gibbs McAdoo . 1916 . Treasury Decisions Under Customs and Other Laws. Vol. 29. July–December 1915 . T.D. 35966 – "Drawback on Pianos and Player Pianos" . . 649–650 .
"The sworn statement of Francis Ramacciotti, dated January 21, 1915, covering bass strings "Note: The petitioner, Albert Francis (Alberto "Albert" De M. Ramacciotti; 1857–1926), was Francis Ramacciotti's son.
