Missouri Meerschaum Factory Tour

The following photos and narrative are from a factory tour in March of 2019. The wonderful old building is just across the road from the Missouri River, which can be seen out windows that originally supplied the light to work by. The corner section is the original building, which was added onto in various stages, both upstairs and upriver, to keep up with the growing demand for corn cob pipes in the early to mid 20th century. The founder, Henry Tibbe made pipes using a foot powered treadle lathe and other hand tools in a much smaller workshop, and resisted the notion of scaling up as the demand for his pipes increased. He founded the company in 1869, which is this year (2019) celebrating its 150th anniversary!
Henry's son, Antone Tibbe is responsible for the building and additions, and was the primary force in the scaling up of the company. Most of the third floor, once humming with activity is now used for housing an inventory of cobs (aged at least 2 years before being crafted into pipes). There is also ample storage for retired machines, which are often gleaned for parts to maintain the machines that are still in production. The second floor has more cob storage, as well as office space, and a wonderful museum and gift shop. The making of pipes, packaging, and the shipping and receiving area are on the first floor. There is an old freight elevator facilitating the production by transferring cobs and various parts and supplies between floors. It is driven by the original belt and cable system which was first powered by steam, and later converted to electricity. It is still carefully controlled using the same antiquated pulley system with a false move causing the unspooling of a large cable. Thankfully that is rare!
<revive zone="17" align="left" caption="Many thanks to Missouri Meerschaum Company for their Underwriting support" />	Most of the older machines still in production were designed and built by a nearby machine shop, still owned and operated by the same family today--they still provide maintenance and repairs. Some of these machines date back to when the factory was powered by steam and Anton needed powered machines to meet the growing demand. Antone later brought electric power to Washington to replace the steam in order to keep the machinery churning out cobs. There is an old Tibbe Power Company building standing just up from the factory on the same street.
At the time of my visit the company had approximately 35 employees, 5 were in the office, 2 work full time with growing, harvesting, and shelling the corn cobs across the Missouri river from the factory (I hope to visit that part of the operation at some point), and the other 28 or so employees were working on various stages of making the pipes.
Several of the pipe makers pictured in the photos have worked for Missouri Meerschaum for thirty years, others are younger, and learning the ropes. The workers I spoke with took a great deal of pride in their work and being part of an American tradition that is enjoyed Worldwide. 
One of the great appeals of the Missouri Meerschaum Company is the 150 year tradition of growing and making corn cob pipes, another is the vertical integration. The "pipe corn" grown by the company is a high bred of 4 varieties designed to yield larger thicker cobs, and originally developed in the 1960s. The grain is also used, though not by Missouri Meerschaum. Some of it is made into whiskey by Pinckney Bend Distillery. I really need to try that paired with smoking one of my cobs! Some of the cobs that are too small for being fashioned into pipes are now being made into duck calls by a local Washington woodworker.
File:MissouriMeerschaum-Stacks.jpg|One of many stacks of cobs aging (a minimum of two years before being made into pipes)
File:MissouriMeerschaum-cobs.jpg|Corn cobs awaiting their destiny
File:MissouriMeerschaum-bowl-production.jpg|First floor, cutting, shaping, plastering, drilling, and sanding the cobs
File:MissouriMeerschaum-cob-cutter.jpg|Cutting machine (some start here while others are cut singly)
File:MissouriMeerschaum-after-cut.jpg|Cobs cut to length
File:MissouriMeerschaum-drilling-chamber.jpg|Drilling the chamber is an early step--it facilitates the remaining work by allowing the cobs to be easily spun on a spindle
File:MissouriMeerschaum-drilling-chamber2.jpg|Drilling in process
File:MissouriMeerschaum-after-drilling-chamber.jpg|Cobs after drilling chamber
File:MissouriMeerschaum-drilled&ready4shaping.jpg|Cobs waiting to be shaped
File:MissouriMeerschaum-shaping-machine1.jpg|One of several fraising (shaping) machines used for some of the standard shapes
File:MissouriMeerschaum-shaping-machine3.jpg|Another fraising machine, with cobs ready to place on spindles in the foreground, and shaped cobs come off the spindals and into a metal drawer on the floor
File:MissouriMeerschaum-shaping-machine2.jpg|Cobs heading into the fraising machine
File:MissouriMeerschaum-shaping-machine.jpg|Operating the fraising machine
File:MissouriMeerschaum-shaped.jpg|Cob bowls after fraising
File:MissouriMeerschaum-lathe.jpg|Many of the shapes are hand turned on one of several lathes
File:MissouriMeerschaum-lathe2.jpg|Lathe work
File:MissouriMeerschaum-sanding.jpg|Sanding the outside of the bowls to smooth and carefully refine the shape
File:MissouriMeerschaum-sanding2.jpg|More sanding
File:MissouriMeerschaum-pouring-cobs.jpg|Cobs being poured into one of the many old crates on wheels. They're everywhere, and show the graceful ware of ushering millions of cobs through the process
File:MissouriMeerschaum-mixing-plaster.jpg|Mixing plaster of Paris. This treatment was developed by Henry Tibbe, the founder of Missouri Meerschaum. Henry thought the plaster of Paris process gave the cobs a character similar to Turkish Meerschaum, hence the inspiration for naming his company.
File:MissouriMeerschaum-plastering.jpg|All done by feel--feel of plaster consistency, feel for the amount used, and feel of when it has been worked optimally into the cob
File:MissouriMeerschaum-plastering3.jpg|Inspecting the next cob bowl to have plaster applied
File:MissouriMeerschaum-plastering2.jpg|Plastering detail
File:MissouriMeerschaum-plastered-bowls.jpg|Bowls drying after plastering (takes a day or so before they can be sanded again)
File:MissouriMeerschaum-plugging1.jpg|Some of the models have maple plugs glued into bottoms, others do not require one. Here the craftsman is applying glue in preparation for the plug
File:MissouriMeerschaum-pluging1b.jpg|A different take on the gluing process of plugging
File:MissouriMeerschaum-plugging2.jpg|Pressing in the maple plugs
File:MissouriMeerschaum-pluggin3.jpg|Driving the maple plug home
File:MissouriMeerschaum-plugging3b.jpg|A different take on driving the plugs home
File:MissouriMeerschaum-plugged.jpg|Cobs with plugs (still proud of the bottom)
File:MissouriMeerschaum-sanding-bottom.jpg|Sanding the plugs flush, and truing up the bottom of the bowls
File:MissouriMeerschaum-bottom-height-check.jpg|Checking bowl height after sanding the bottom
File:MissouriMeerschaum-after-plugs2.jpg|Cobs after plugging and sanding the bottom
File:MissouriMeerschaum-drilling-shank2.jpg|Drilling the hole in the bowl to receive the shank
File:MissouriMeerschaum-shank-drilling-machine.jpg|A machine that drills the hole for the shank
File:MissouriMeerschaum-drilling-bowl4shank.jpg|Another take on drilling for the shank using a standard drill press with a jig
File:MissouriMeerschaum-laquer-tumbling.jpg|Lacquer is applied to some pipe bowls by tumbling, some are sprayed, some are both tumbled and sprayed, and some are left unfinished altogether
File:MissouriMeerschaum-MacAurther-bowls.jpg|MacAurther Model cob bowls ready for stems
File:MissouriMeerschaum-assembly-room3.jpg|Assembly room and spray both area
File:MissouriMeerschaum-assembly-room.jpg|Assembly room
File:MissouriMeerschaum-assembly-room1.jpg|Assembly room
File:MissouriMeerschaum-assembly-room2.jpg|Assembly room
File:FileFileMissouriMeerschaum-shank-drilling-machine.jpg|I believe this machines is used to drill shanks and prepare them for the ferrule
File:FileMissouriMeerschaum-shank-blanks.jpg|A pile of shank blanks 
File:MissouriMeerschaum-shank-texturing-machine.jpg|The machine that adds the corncob like pattern in ink to the maple shanks
File:MissouriMeerschaum-shanks-ferrels.jpg|Shanks and ferrules ready for assembly
File:MissouriMeerschaum-ferrel-assembly.jpg|Driving ferrules onto shanks
File:MissouriMeerschaum-ferrel-assembly2.jpg|Another take on driving ferrules onto shanks
File:MissouriMeerschaum-ferrel-assembly3.jpg|Ferrule shank assembly
File:FileFileMissouriMeerschaum-shanks.jpg|Assembled shanks ready to be glued to bowls
File:MissouriMeerschaum-gluing-shanks.jpg|Gluing shanks with stems into bowls
File:MissouriMeerschaum-cobs-with-shanks2.jpg|Cobs with shanks, and what appears to be a tenon cutter
File:MissouriMeerschaum-cobs-with-shanks3.jpg|Cobs with shanks after lacquering
File:MissouriMeerschaum-Barrel-of-cobs.jpg|A barrel of corncob pipes, ready for packaging and shipping to their new homes
Category:Pipe makers by nationalityCategory:United States
Category:Missouri Meerschaum