The Other Tiffany (#2 in a series)

Joseph Burr Tiffany was born on February 13, 1856 in Hudson, NY; his parents were Amanda Cuyler Stoutenburgh, and Joseph Capron Tiffany. He was the youngest of three sons. Little is known of his early life, save that part of it was spent in Norfolk, VA, where his father was "actively engaged in the lumber trade." ¹ The family also traveled to Chicago, appearing in that city in the 1860 Federal Census. In 1874, Joseph Burr Tiffany enrolled at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY, where he studied Mechanical Engineering; he left Cornell in 1876 after six terms and without taking a degree. ²  He had, it seems, decided instead to pursue a career in the applied arts.

Between 1877 and 1882, Joseph Burr Tiffany was employed in various capacities by Tiffany & Co., in their store and manufacturing facility at #15 Union Square, New York City. According to company archives, he worked at first in the "Bronze Department," (1878 and 1879) and later (1882), in the "Jewelry [Manufacturing and Design] Department;" his training, responsibilities and position are not indicated in the company records, but some insight may be gleaned from other sources - the 1878 Cornell alumni book lists Tiffany as a "jeweler," and the 1880 Federal Census gives his profession as "clerk in store." As the records are spotty, it is not known if his employment at Tiffany & Co. was continuous for the entire period, or if he spent time with other firms or at educational pursuits. The record seems clear, however, that his career at Tiffany & Co. came to a close on January 6, 1883. The reason for that separation is unknown. ³
Even in the 19th century, New York City was a shopping mecca, and, in close proximity to Tiffany & Co., several silver dealers and "fancy-goods" emporiums were located on Union Square. Joseph Burr Tiffany was next employed as the manager of one of these stores, the Derby Silver Company, located at #3 Union Square. The contemporaneous book New York's Great Industries had this to say:

“The manager of the store is Mr. J.B. Tiffany, a gentleman widely known and highly esteemed throughout commercial circles.  His presence at the head of the magnificent establishment in Union Square is alone sufficient guarantee of the absolute reliability and merits of all goods leaving its doors…” ⁴

Despite this glowing endorsement and what seems to be a significant advancement in his career, Tiffany's tenure at Derby Silver Company was brief. On October 22, 1884, he married Fanny Sophia Gere, the daughter of a Syracuse, NY businessman.

And then he vanishes from the public record for over a year. (to be continued...)

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Notes: 1. Col. Joseph C. Tiffany obituary, New York Times, July 17, 1889.
2. Ten-Year Book of the Cornell University 1868-1878; Volumes 1-3. (Ithaca, NY: B. Herman Smith University Press.)
3. Poutasse, Marianna. “Decorating a Hudson River Estate: Robert Bowne Suckley and Joseph Burr Tiffany at Wilderstein.” MA thesis Bard Graduate Center for Studies in the Decorative Arts. 1995. p. 31.
4. Edwards, Richard, Ed. New York’s Great Industries. (New York: Historical Publishing Company, 1884.) , p. 266.

Illustrations:
Joseph Burr Tiffany, circa 1912.
"In front of Tiffany's (Union Square)." [1899].  Courtesy of The New York Public Library.