Samuel Yellin (1884–1940), was an American master
blacksmith, and metal designer.
Early life and education
Samuel Yellin was born to a Jewish family in
Mohyliv-Podilskyi,
Ukraine in the Russian Empire in 1884. At the age of eleven, he was apprenticed to a master ironsmith. In 1900, at the age of sixteen, he completed his apprenticeship. Shortly afterwards he left the Ukraine and traveled through Europe. In about 1905, he arrived in
Philadelphia, in the United States, where his mother and two sisters were already living. His brother arrived in Philadelphia at about the same time. In early 1906, Yellin took classes at the
Pennsylvania Museum School of Industrial Art and within several months was teaching classes there, a position he maintained until 1919.[1]
Career
In 1909, Yellin opened his own metalsmith shop.[2] In 1915, the firm of
Mellor, Meigs & Howe, for whom he designed and created many commissions, designed a new studio for Samuel Yellin Metalworkers at 5520 Arch Street in Philadelphia. Yellin died in 1940, but the firm remained there for decades under the direction of Yellin's son, Harvey. Following Harvey's death, the business moved forward under the ownership and guidance of Samuel Yellin's granddaughter, Clare Yellin. The firm has now been in operation for over 110 years as of this writing (2022).
During the building boom of the 1920s, Samuel Yellin Metalworkers employed as many as 250 workers, many of them European artisans. Although Yellin was highly knowledgeable about traditional craftsmanship and design, he also championed creativity and the development of new designs. Samuel Yellin's works can be found in some of the finest buildings in America.
^Wenzel, Paul and Maurice Krakow, A Monograph of the Works of Mellor Meigs & Howe, The Architectural Book Publishing Co., New York, 1923, reprinted Graybooks, Boulder, CO, 1991 p. 104
Samuel Yellin (1884–1940), was an American master
blacksmith, and metal designer.
Early life and education
Samuel Yellin was born to a Jewish family in
Mohyliv-Podilskyi,
Ukraine in the Russian Empire in 1884. At the age of eleven, he was apprenticed to a master ironsmith. In 1900, at the age of sixteen, he completed his apprenticeship. Shortly afterwards he left the Ukraine and traveled through Europe. In about 1905, he arrived in
Philadelphia, in the United States, where his mother and two sisters were already living. His brother arrived in Philadelphia at about the same time. In early 1906, Yellin took classes at the
Pennsylvania Museum School of Industrial Art and within several months was teaching classes there, a position he maintained until 1919.[1]
Career
In 1909, Yellin opened his own metalsmith shop.[2] In 1915, the firm of
Mellor, Meigs & Howe, for whom he designed and created many commissions, designed a new studio for Samuel Yellin Metalworkers at 5520 Arch Street in Philadelphia. Yellin died in 1940, but the firm remained there for decades under the direction of Yellin's son, Harvey. Following Harvey's death, the business moved forward under the ownership and guidance of Samuel Yellin's granddaughter, Clare Yellin. The firm has now been in operation for over 110 years as of this writing (2022).
During the building boom of the 1920s, Samuel Yellin Metalworkers employed as many as 250 workers, many of them European artisans. Although Yellin was highly knowledgeable about traditional craftsmanship and design, he also championed creativity and the development of new designs. Samuel Yellin's works can be found in some of the finest buildings in America.
^Wenzel, Paul and Maurice Krakow, A Monograph of the Works of Mellor Meigs & Howe, The Architectural Book Publishing Co., New York, 1923, reprinted Graybooks, Boulder, CO, 1991 p. 104