Perhaps the most notable design from the Kapp and Peterson factory was Peterson’s famed ‘Dry System’ pipes, patented in 1894. Featuring a small reservoir intended to collect moisture before it reaches the smoker, the System Pipe makes for a cool smoke that minimizes tongue bite and the “disgusting juice” that is the bane of every pipe smoker. Indeed, it is on this groundbreaking design that the worldwide reputation of Peterson rests. During the last hundred years, Peterson has grown tremendously without losing sight of its original dedication to quality, handcrafted products at a reasonable price. When it was first released in 1987, Peterson’s Sherlock Holmes series was intended only as a one-off design commemorating the 100th anniversary of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s first Sherlock Holmes novel, A Study in Scarlet. The shape was a trumpeting Calabash shape, something of an XL version to the modern 305 System pipe, designed by Paddy Larrigan, the Irish marque’s senior craftsman at the time, and that shape is now known as the Original.
Their historical elegance coupled to Celtic charisma and eccentricity adds to a massive world wide following and popularity. As well as being excellent everyday smoking pipes, they are also very collectible. Particularly the Patents, Pre-Republics and original Mark Twain’s, all of which command reasonably consistent, estate prices at auction. I have to admit that I am smitten by this new series from Peterson.
As I have stated previously, the huge World-wide number of contented Peterson pipe smokers is evidence enough and must be considered a great endorsement of the brand. For what it is worth, I reckon the Deluxes are probably the best value range of pipes that Peterson produce, both in terms of functionality and value. Those who malign the brand because they’re made by the hundreds using machines, are very wrong, in my opinion. I like them a lot and the bang for the buck is the best I’ve ever seen for new pipes of this quality.
A few years later the P-Lip, the unique Peterson mouthpiece, appears. This characterizes the company, which continues to make the same models. Before it was Peterson Pipes it was the Kapp Brothers – Friedrich and Heinrich Kapp, German immigrants to Ireland from Nürnberg, Germany, who founded the famed Kapp Brothers store on Grafton Street, Dublin, in 1865. Then one day a Latvian immigrant, Charles Peterson, strolled into the Kapp workshop and declared that he could make better pipes than they. Armed with an imaginative flair for pipes and a craftsman’s background, Peterson not only proved himself correct, but became the third partner in the fledgling firm.
Friedrich and Heinrich Kapp, German immigrants to Ireland from Nuremberg, founded the famed Kapp Brothers store on Grafton Street, Dublin in 1865. Shortly thereafter, a Latvian immigrant, Charles Peterson, captain black tobacco strolled into the Kapp workshop and declared that he could make better pipes than they could. They have also had a full lineup of tobaccos that the P&C Faithful have flocked to for years.
Over 100,000 pipes are made every year at the Peterson factory; traditionally most are smoked in the UK & Europe, but increasingly more are being enjoyed by smoker’s worldwide. According to many smokers, Peterson pipes are some of the best tobacco pipes because of the Peterson System and Peterson mouthpiece, which give the smoker a cool, dry, and comfortable smoking experience. Featuring a small reservoir intended to collect moisture before it reaches the smoker, the ‘System Pipe’ is designed to create a drier and cooler smoke and discourage the formation of dottle. These special pipes, all of which are silver mounted, are rare and a limited number are available each year. Shapes can vary depending on availability of suitable raw materials”.
Tom also believes that, ”the major changes have been refocussing our outlook on the smoker and given him variety and something to look forward to every year.” With Ireland’s joining of the European Community in 1973, a fourth miniature hallmark representation of the Celtic Glenisheen collar was added to the right of the date stamp for that year, hallmark letter F. This recognition would turn into worldwide respect, and the team of Kapp and Peterson became one of the most popular pipe manufacturers in the world.
1895 Kapp & Peterson moved to bigger premises at 111 Grafton Street Dublin and also opened a new depot in Broad Street London. 1900 K & P exhibited with great success at the Paris International exhibition winning several gold medals and accolades for the quality of their pipes. Fredrick Henry Kapp, son of Alfred and known as Harry, joined his father’s business in 1914 at the outbreak of the first World War. The Kapp brothers, George and Frederick originally emigrated to Great Britain from Nuremburg in Bavaria. They first appear in the London trade directories in 1866, when they are listed as Meerschaum pipe makers of 98 Dean Street, Soho, London. They then parted company in 1869 and established their own pipe shops independently of each other.
Shannon airport outlet sold a considerable amount of pipes during its period of existence, covering all qualities, from the basic entry level Aran series up to the De Luxe Systems. They also stamped some mid range pipes with the mark ‘SHANNON’. This was only for pipes issued and sold from Shannon airport and was not the same as the present day Shannon series. In 1874, Frederick Kapp opened a tobacco and pipe shop in Dublin, and within a year, he employed a young Latvian woodworker named Charles Peterson. During his first years with the Kapps, Peterson made and repaired briar and meerschaum pipes, thinking critically about how to improve their design, and between 1890 and 1898, Peterson secured patents for his pioneering System pipe design. Not only did the Peterson System pipe become the Peterson pipe, it informed Peterson’s entire identity, influencing the marque’s overall shaping style and signature Irish aesthetic of muscular shanks, tubular designs, and generous bends.