Legacy

Terry292 · Legacy

We went to the in-laws this weekend to help my mother-in-law sort and classify my late father-in-law's possessions. When we got ready to leave, she gave me a small box with six pipes and a couple of lighters in it, said I was the only one of the sons, or sons-in -law, with any interest in pipe smoking, so I should have these. In the box were two Kaywoodies (sorry, Ted), a DeMuth, two Dr Grabows, and one unmarked pipe.

I was totally surprised, first, by the gesture, and, secondly, I never had any idea my father-in-law had ever smoked a pipe. When I met him he was a pretty heavy cigarette smoker, but he gave those up about a dozen years ago. My wife later told me she remembered him smoking a pipe when she was little, so this would have had to have been around the early to mid-sixties. These pipes apparently had been in a drawer in his bedroom all these years. I do know, they'll never leave my possession as long as I live.

Here's a photo of the Dr Grabows (a Grand Duke and an older De Luxe) and the unmarked pipe. I think it also has some connection with Dr Grabow, or one of the associated companies, because the stem is an adjustomatic. There's no Patent Number on it, though, no markings other than Imported Briar.

Terry

Sir Duke

Priceless!

So you wife never mentioned him pipesmoking b4, or had she forgotten?

Thanks for sharing,

Tom

You can tell you mother -in -law, how your buds online appreciated the gift as well.

drbridges

The DG Deluxe would be earlier than the 1960s. Linkman began the DG Deluxe during the 1930s, and HL&T appear to have made them until about 1955 when they introduced the new DG pipe lines.

If your DG Deluxe is from HL&T, ted will recognize the shape. They were the same shapes as the later DG pipes.

I would be interested to see a larger image of the DG Deluxe.

ted

Guys....The Deluxe is a Grabow #60 or #61, but the trademark is pre-55'.

The bottom pipe, I do not recognize.

As I've said several times, Every smoker bought a pipe or a few in 64'/65' because of the Surgeon General's report on cigarette smoking.

Terry, Something to cherish.......ted

Terry292

I think my wife's not mentioning it is just a case of not remembering. Apparently, he only smoked pipes for a short time. What's more surprising to me is he never once mentioned it to me, and I knew him for over 25 years. But, then, my father-in-law, Tom, was a man of few words. To me, he's a genuine American hero. He grew up in the Texas panhandle, a virtual orphan, during the Depression, joined the Army Air Forces in 1947 and retired 21 years later, a Senior Master Sergeant in charge of maintenance for all the Strategic Air Command computer systems. After that, he worked another 20 years designing and supervising installation of computer systems for government agencies and some of the largest banks and financial institutions in the world.

Along the way, he got shot down in Korea flying photo-reconnaissance missions, operated a fueling tanker boom during the Cuban Missile Crisis, and got into computers when they still used vaccuum tubes and took entire buildings to do less than we can do with a cell phone today. He also raised seven children (4 boys, 3 girls) on an airman's salary and stayed married to the same woman for over 55 years.

He was certainly of a different generation. One of his favorite comparisons of his generation and today's: "Today, if you ask a kid if he wants ice cream, he says, 'What flavor?' In my day, the answer was "Yes!'"

Sorry for rambling so long, but Thomas B. Brothers, Sr, meant a lot to me.
Terry

ted

steverino

Terry, thanks for writing that. Though my dad's career was not as illustrious, your father-in-law reminds me of him.

Terry292

Steve, my own father has always been my number 1 hero, but Tom ran a very, very close second. Dad was quite a bit older than Tom, but they were both wonderful examples of "The Greatest Generation," in my not-so-humble opinion.
Terry

ozark southpaw

And that generation is almost gone.

Terry292

Dr B, here's a few photos of my father-in-law's Dr G Deluxe. It also has a shape number, 9702, on the right side of the shank. Any info y'all can provide will be appreciated.

It's hard to see, but that's a white spade on top of the stem.
Terry

drbridges

Terry, that DG was made by Linkman. Linkman made some push stem DG pipes. Not alot. Most of Linkman's push stem examples were Olde London and the Fifty Grand.

I believe the Linkman threaded stem joint was the germinal idea behind the DG line, and Linkman tended to cling to it as much as possible. He may have been forced to abandon it temporarily during the war because the military build up was using all available aluminum. And Linkman appears to have abandoned it again near the end of his business.

The cleaner is the old-style drilled 1-hole, and is probably original to this pipe.

Is it stamped "Imported Bruyere" or "Imported Briar?" If it is described as bruyere, then it is definitely from the war years. If it is briar, then it is probably from the 1949-1952 period.

I hope Mac will add his opinions here. And I hope ted will confirm Linkman's #02 shape differs from the Sparta #60 shape. The #02 looks higher above the beading and thinner in the shank.

ted

Dr.B/Terry.......In the newest picture I can say that this is NOT a #60 or #61. This one is taller.

Brings up a question.....Why did HLT change (slightly) shapes from Linkman?....Maybe smaller....easier to get out of smaller "laurel" burls....Only curious.....ted.......

Terry292

Dr B, it's stamped "Imported Bruyere" on the bottom of the shank. The final "e" in bruyere is just ahead of the metal band. I almost missed it, because of the location, and it's almost faded away. I was also mistaken when I said Tom only smoked a pipe for a short time. Trease talked to her mom last night, and she said he had at least one pipe when they were married in 1951. Apparently, he was an on and off-pipe smoker, but finally stopped smoking his pipes sometime in the mid-sixties. Trease doesn't remember him smoking them after she was in junior high.

Thanks, Dr B and Ted, for your help. It helps to flesh out more of Tom's life for me.
Terry

drbridges

Terry, Linkman used bruyere during the mid-1940s to describe his pipes.

Terry292

This has nothing whatever to do with Dr Grabows, or even pipe smoking in general, but I just have to tell you one more story about Tom; then I'll leave it alone.

Trease and I were stationed in Germany when my Dad died in 1988. Even emergency leave requires a certain amount of paperwork, packing, and getting from wherever you are to where the planes are to take you home. We arrived at Rhein-Main Air Base on the way home, only to be told the last flight to Dover had left less than an hour before. So, we spent the night in the passenger terminal trying to cat-nap on the seats and benches, drinking bad coffee, and generally freting about when we would be able to get home to bury Dad.

Trease called her parents, who live about 20 miles from Dover, and her mother met us, jet-lagged, at the terminal after about an 8 hour flight on an Air Force C-5. She drove us to the farm, where we slept a few hours, showered, and changed clothes. Afterwards, Trease, her mother and I were sitting in the kitchen drinking coffee and debating the fastest and cheapest way for us to get the last 500 miles to Tennessee. Just then, Tom walked into the kitchen and handed me a one-hundred dollar bill and the keys to his Datsun 280Z. He said we could keep the car as long as we needed it, just bring it back with a full tank of gas, and, 'for God's sake, don't break my car.' The money was for gas and food on the road, and the rest was to be given to my mother to use however she saw fit.

I was surprised, to say the least. That Z was Tom's pride and joy. Other people had driven it, but never very far, and never without Tom planted firmly in the passenger seat. Whether intended or not, it turned out to be good therapy for me. I was so worried about damaging Tom's car, it kept me from dwelling on why I was going home in the first place.

When we brought it back about three weeks later, he made a big production of checking the bodywork, the odometer, and under the hood. With a slight grin on his face, he finally pronounced himself satisfied I hadn't destroyed his car.

I think Tom would rather have lost an arm than actually have to tell someone he loved them, but he was always doing things like this for family, friends, and neighbors.
Terry

ted

Wonderful story Terry.....

steverino

Thanks for posting, Terry. It's the action that counts.