The ‘Canada Pipe Works’ was the business name of William Henry Dixon’s pipe factory. Dixon bought the concern from James McKean Henderson Jr. (formerly trading as Henderson & Son) in 1876 and operated the factory until 1894.
The premises were situated at 114 Colborne Avenue. In 1886 this street was renamed De Lorimier and the site now stands in the shadow of the Jacques Cartier Bridge in downtown Montreal, at the corner of St. Catherine East and De Lorimier.
The products of the factory were marked either ‘Dixon’ or ‘Dixon’s’. It is not known if there is any chronological significance in the different marks.
The claim on the advert that the Canada Pipe Works was founded in 1847 undoubtedly refers to the beginning of the trade by the Hendersons. Although it is not known what William Henderson had called his company, there is evidence that he was producing pipes in Montreal before 1847. The City Assessment Rolls begin only in 1847, but as Henderson owed taxes in both 1845 and 1846 he must have been in Montreal by then. A difficult financial situation seems to have been a common plight among the Montreal pipe makers in the early years.
Originally printed in Society for Clay Pipe Research Newsletter # 7 July 1985