Recipients of the Doctor of Pipes Award (1998-present)
Introduction
"The Doctor of Pipes program was launched in 1998 at the Chicagoland International Pipe & Tobacciana Show when the first two awards were presented to Frank Burla and Tom Dunn. Only two awards are conferred each year, one to a member of the pipe smoking hobby, and another to an individual working within the industry. It takes a lot to be considered for this honorary degree. Candidates must have at least 20 years in the hobby and demonstrated commitment to the advancement and support of pipe smoking. Current Doctors propose candidates by writing summaries of their achievements and submitting them for consideration to all of the living Doctors, who vote to determine the next Doctors. It is among the most prestigious awards that our community offers; if pipes were as mainstream as Hollywood, a Doctor of Pipes award would be equivalent to an Oscar." Chuck Stanion, Smokingpipes.com Pipeline post
Doctor of Pipes Awards (1998-present)
1998
- Tom Dunn (deceased). Founder and editor of The Pipe Smokers Ephemeris (TPSE), US ISSN 0032-0161: Edited and Published for 41 years (1964 - Winter-Spring 2005).
- Frank Burla (deceased). Frank Burla was a well known antique pipe collector, even internationally, and was the founder and promoter of the annual International Pipe and Tobacciana Show (the Chicago Show).
1999
- Barry Levin (deceased). The first major seller and promoter of "Estate Pipes", who very likely created the market for pipes once destined to be destroyed as unhygienic smelly relics.
- Basil Sullivan (deceased)
2000
- Chuck Levi
- Ed Lehman (deceased)
2001
- Bob Hamlin (deceased)
- Rich Esserman. The "Big Pipe Guy", has written extensively and knowledgably about pipes for decades. He is cited often here on Pipedia and contributed a great deal to the "brain trust".
2002
- Mary McNiel Co-founder of the now shuttered McClelland Tobacco Co., along with her then husband, Carl R. Ehwa, Jr.. She later continued and expanded the company and its legendary offerings with Mike McNiel.
- Chuck Rio (deceased). Chuck was a notable briar pipe collector, specializing in Costello pipes, a leader in the Chicagoland Pipe Collectors Club (CPCC) and at the center of the American pipe collector community with his attendance at all of the major pipe shows.
2003
- Peter Stokkebye (deceased)
- Linwood Hines
2004
- R. David Field -- R.D. Field Pipe Import and Distributor Co., partner with Bill Ashton Tyler in Ashton. Scholar and writer, quoted often in Pipedia articles.
- Ben Rapaport -- Scholar, antique pipe collector, author of books, magazine articles, newsletter articles, and Pipedia articles.
2005
- Michael Butera -- Pipemaker, and owner of a premium pipe tobacco and cigar distributor company.
- Rick Newcombe -- Writer, collector, and influential early advocate of high grade Danish pipes.
2006
- Marty Pulvers -- Tobacconist, writer, former owner of Sherlock's Haven, and current proprietor of Pulvers Prior Briar
- Mike Reschke (deceased)
2007
- Tom McCranie (deceased) -- Founder of McCranie's Pipe & Tobacco Shop
- Federico Baylaender (deceased)
2008
2009
- William John Ashton Taylor (deceased) -- Pipemaker, formerly with Dunhill and then founder of Ashton
- Fred Janusek
2010
- Alan Schwartz
- Fred Hanna -- Scholar, writer, and avoid collector of Straight Grain pipes and Charatans.
2011
- Paul Creasy
- John Eells (deceased) -- Pipemaker, well known for his traditional English shapes and often cited as a mentor by other American Pipe makers.
2012
- Mike McNiel -- Tobacco blender and co-owner of McClelland Tobacco Co. with his wife, Doctor of Pipes, Mary McNiell.
- Tad Gage -- Scholar, collector, publisher, and well known for his Barling collection and expertise. Contributed extensively to our Barling article on Pipedia.
2013
2014
2015
- Brian Levine -- Worked in virtually every capacity known in the tobacco industry, for a wide variety of companies and with various responsibilities. And currently Host of the Pipes Magazine Radio Show.
- Dennis Congos
2016
2017
- Gregory Pease -- Tobacco blender G.L. Pease is a long time collector of pipes and has written extensively about pipes and pipe collecting, and often quoted here on Pipedia.
- Vernon Vig
2018
2019
2020
- Sykes Wilford -- Founder and President of Laudisi Enterprises and Smokingpipes.com
- Jeff Knoll -- President and Treasurer of the North American Society of Pipe Collectors [(NASPC)], and co-editor of The Pipe Collector.
2021
- Steve Fallon -- aka Pipestud, eBay seller of consigned estate pipes, and owner-operator of consignment tobacco website.
- Mark Irwin -- Scholar, collector, and co-writer of The Peterson Pipe book.
2022
- J.T. Cooke -- Pipemaker, especially well known for his unique deep blasting technique, and hand cast acrylic stems.
- Jeff Weiner
Masters of Pipes Awards (2017-present)
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
Notes:
- We hope to eventually have all the red links (no articles, but a take off for creating one) to blue (indicating we have an article on Pipedia for the recipient). Please feel free to dive in and help. If you have yet to register, send an E-mail to sethile.pipes@gmail.com, and I will create an account for you.
- This take off page was inspired by the following article by Ben Rapaport, The CPCC Doctor and Master of Pipes Awards: They’re Not Forever Programs, as well as Chuck Stanion's article quoted in the introduction.