C. P. Heininger & Company

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C. P. Heininger & Company was established by Charles Heininger in 1881 or 1882 in San Francisco, California. Heininger is listed as a smoking pipe dealer in 1882, but by 1885 seems to have gotten out of the business and into publishing. In 1889 he resumed pipe and smoking accessories importing and manufacturing.

Heininger imported the raw materials and utilized local workmen and women to manufacture the raw materials into various goods, mainly tobacco-related articles such as pipes and cigarette holders; the company also imported or produced “view albums of pacific coast scenery and cities,” and walking canes and “fancy articles from native woods, big tree bark and native shells” and other similar items.

Apparently, 1895 was a good year for his business as he moved to the “Cunningham Block” located on the 500 block of Market Street, which was a very desirable business address at the time near the center of the commercial district. (The 500 block of Market Street is the same block that the “legendary” tobacconist Sutliff would open his shop in 1925.) Besides selling his own “C.P.H.” line of pipes, he also was well known for selling the English-produced G.B.D. and Biltor brand pipes. In 1896 or 1897 he became business partners with John McDonald, but this was short lived and by 1900 McDonald was no longer involved in the company.

1904 advertisement

After the April 18, 1906 San Francisco earthquake and fire, Heininger temporarily moved his company from Market Street to Haight Street, and then to Guerrero Street, as the building (the entire area, actually) where his business was located on Market Street was destroyed by the quake and fire. Both his business and home were destroyed by the fire; his business on day one, and his house on the last day of the fire (which was also on the last block in the area that burned).

1920 advertisement

Heininger’s company sold smoking articles until 1924, and are listed as selling “novelties” until 1926 or 1927.

Charles Peter Heininger was born December 28, 1857, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He worked for various Philadelphia manufactories until he moved to San Francisco in 1881. He married his wife, Theresa A. Logan, in Philadelphia in 1888. In 1922 the Heininger family moved to Yolando/San Anselmo in Marin County (located just north across the bay from San Francisco). Heininger died May 6, 1943, and is buried in Holy Cross Catholic Cemetery, in Colma, California.


Known business addresses in San Francisco by date:

1882: 609 Sacramento

1883: 501 Montgomery

1884: 419 Sacramento

1885: 26 Montgomery (but not as a pipe dealer anymore)

1886-1888: 411 1/2 California (still not listed as a pipe dealer)

1889-1891: 411 1/2 California (once again as selling “smokers’ articles”)

Sept 1891-1895: 22 Sansome

1896: 526 Market Street

1897: 526 Market Street

1898-1899: 533 Market Street

1900: 533 Market Street

1901- 1905: 535 Market Street

1906: 373 Haight Street

1907: 687 Guerrero


Pipe examples

CPHpipe1.jpg