Herman Pfister (1847 - 1911)

William Henry Pfister (1875 - 1935)

"Herman Pfister was born at Schaffhausen, Switzerland 10 November 1847, the son of Henry and Dorothea Pfister.  When he first came to America, he stayed with a brother in Missouri.

He is first listed in the 1870 Cincinnati directory as:  Pfister, Herman, instrument maker. h. 129 W 5th.  With the exception of the 1874-1875 issue he is listed in the Cincinnati directories from 1870 as an instrument maker to the 1877-78 issue when he is listed as:  Whitcomb R. & Co. (R. W. and Herman Pfister), manufactures of Surveying and Engineering Instruments, 119 W 5th, Room 6.  1879-80 Pfister, Herman, manufacturer of Surveying and Engineering Instruments, 119 W 5th.  He is listed through the years as a manufacturer of Surveying and Engineering Instruments.  In 1911 he advertised in the Cincinnati directory:  Herman Pfister, Manufacturer of Surveying and Engineering Instruments, Architects Levels and Inventor's Models made to order.  All kinds of repairing promptly done.

He died at Cincinnati 14 December 1911 and is buried in the Cemetery of Spring Grove, Cincinnati, Ohio.

In 1895 Wm. H. Pfister is listed as an instrument maker in the Cincinnati directory.  In 1905 as Foreman with Herman Pfister (his father).  In the 1912 Cincinnati directory, the name Wm. H. Pfister is substituted for Herman Pfister.  The rest of the advertisement has no changes.

William Henry Pfister was born at Cincinnati 29 July 1875, the son of Henry and Mary Buchanan Pfister.  He died there 22 January 1935.  He also is buried in the Cemetery of Spring Grove."

Reference:  Smart, Charles E.   The Makers Of Surveying Instruments In America Since 1700  Troy, New York:  Regal Art Press.  1962