JOHN REDMAN Aristocrat Stewarts Baltimore
England, 1950-70s
To trace the history of this striking Redman pipe, you need to cross the big, beautiful ocean and dock in Baltimore. There, right in the city centre on the north-east corner of Howard and Lexington Streets, ask for Stewart’s Department Store; it was extremely well known in the middle of the last century. “Many Baltimoreans have fond memories of shopping at Stewart’s and recall making day-long excursions to the store. Stewart’s, according to local columnist Jacques Kelly, had ‘…an excellent men’s clothing department – ties and jumpers’ and a wonderful selection of ‘…china and silver’ and ‘fabrics (dressmaking materials)’,” as reported by Baltimore Heritage. Of course, there had to be a section for pipes, tobacco, and other delicacies. And John Redman’s company was happy to supply its products to Baltimore connoisseurs; this is by no means the only pipe of theirs branded for Stewart’s.
Your last chance to buy such a pipe would have been in 1979, during the massive clearance sale before the department store closed. So, as we can see, the history of Maryland and the history of English pipe-making complement each other harmoniously.
Pipe markings: “Aristocrat \ LONDON MADE”, “STEWARTS \ BALTIMORE \ MADE IN ENGLAND”
Length 14.5 cm (5.71″)
Bowl height 5.0 cm (1.97″)
Outside diameter 4.2 cm (1.65″)
Chamber diameter 2.0 cm (0.79″)
Chamber depth 3.8 cm (1.50″)
Weight 46 g
Briar, vulcanite stem, no filter.
The pipe has been thoroughly cleaned, polished, sanitised, and is now ready for a new life.
Archive photos are included for illustrative purposes.
