Piano Factories in Illinois

Sheila Kirby shared
Chicago Lyon and Healy 
Factory where the piano is made C 1910

A fraction of this building still exists as a harp repair company.

I came across the above posting just a few hours after I learned there was a Straube Piano Company in Downers Grove, IL from a 45-min presentation on the history of Downers Grove. More research indicated Straube was at the present intersection of Warren and Forest Avenues. In 1904, a new plant was built in Hammond, IN. That explains why a 1938 aerial photo shows the factory in Downers had been replaced by the intersection of Warren and Forrest. (Wikipedia)

Cable Piano Co. in St. Charles

Lost Illinois Manufacturing posted
The Howell factory on the west bank of the Fox River, St. Charles. Howell purchased the Cable Piano factory in 1937 (built in 1901) which had closed its doors as a result of the Great Depression. The foot bridge - built by Cable so its employees on the east side could get to work - can be seen spanning the river. In 1986 the factory was converted to the Piano Mall and was torn down in 2000. All that remains today is the foot bridge.
[Some comments indicated the mall was called the Piano Factory.]

The piano factory used the C&NW spur that ran just east of 1st Street.

Satellite

Image Credit: St. Charles Heritage Center via St. Charles Public Library
[Howell was a foundry. It settled on manufacturing tubular furniture. "After the United States entered World War II, the Howell Company began supplying stainless steel mess trays to the U.S. Navy. The company also manufactured artillery shells, sections of airplane wings, and casings for 200 pound fragmentation bombs during the war. After the war the Howell Company returned to manufacturing furniture and entered a time of peak production, employing over 400 workers at its St. Charles plant." Howell ceased operations in St. Charles because of financial problems and an employee strike.]