Sometimes when one begins researching, one just does not end up with the expected results. A few years ago, while I was at a conference in Grand Rapids, Mich., I was able to go to the public library and see what was in the collection about furniture. Grand Rapids furniture industry was just a bit larger than Jamestown’s furniture industry. One item that I was especially interested to look at was their run of the Furniture Index, a trade journal just for the furniture industry, concentrating on the wood furniture industry. This trade journal was published in Jamestown. Being produced in Jamestown, the majority of the advertisements featured Jamestown area companies.

The ads were interesting as the companies used the ads to showcase their new lines of furniture for the upcoming season. Along with the ads were articles about the industry and advice on selling the products. News of what was happening among the companies and with the personnel in the industry could be found in the journal.

It was one of those little blurbs that caught my eye as I was looking at issues from the 1920s. It was the announcement in the February 1928 issue that “Scott Baker, Jr., of Jamestown, has joined John C. Montana in the manufacture of art objects in wrought iron and other metals under the name of Montana & Baker, with factory and offices at 773 East Second Street, Jamestown, N.Y. Torcheres, chandeliers, fireplace fitments, ornamental hinges, door knockers, balustrades and other decorative accessories will be made.”

I was not familiar with the company in Jamestown but I know that there were a number of small companies that started from time to time that were ancillary to the furniture industry. Many of these companies were short lived for many reasons. I had names and an address to begin the research. Scott Baker Jr. was a familiar name and his father was associated with furniture companies in Jamestown. From census records, I found that Scott was in his early twenties and my guess was that John C. Montana was about the same or he was someone with money to invest in a small company. Initially I found no John C. Montana, but eventually John C. Montana emerged from Buffalo records. In the 1928 Jamestown city directory, Scott F. Baker was listed as a clerk at the Roberts Machine Company. The Roberts Machine Company manufactured many of the items mentioned in the announcement. So was Baker starting his own company or buying the existing company?

In that time period the Roberts Machine Company was located at 174-178 Hopkins Avenue and was owned by John E. and Archie W. Roberts. More research on that company revealed that they went out of business in 1927-1928. The local newspaper carried a listing of additional people and companies that missed the September 1927 deadline for inclusion in the 1928 city directory. The Montana & Baker entry was included there. The 1928 directory still had Roberts Machine Company at 174-178 Hopkins Avenue and there was no listing for 773 East 2nd Street. The 1930 directory showed that 174-178 Hopkins Avenue was vacant. There was no listing for Archie Roberts, and his father, John, was listed was a machinist in the 1930 directory. Apparently a new building had been built on East 2nd Street as 771 East 2nd was listed as vacant and Bates and Mehs Food Products occupied 773 East 2nd. In the 1930 directory, Scott Baker was a station attendant for Standard Oil Company. An article in the December 13, 1927 issue of the local newspaper reported that the Roberts Machine Company of 174 Hopkins Avenue, including real estate, fixtures and plant machinery, was sold to Wycliffe L. Clark of Weber-Knapp and A. Louis Minsker. So despite the announcement in the Furniture Index, it looks like the Montana & Baker Company did not materialize at 773 East Second Street or anywhere else.