Then & Now: M. Steinert & Sons, 308 Main St., Worcester

For most of its 137 years as a piano seller in Worcester, M. Steinert & Sons filled a storefront in the Day Building.

Steinert's specialty was Steinways, with a showroom of the distinctive pianos first appearing in the building in 1897. The business moved into the stately property commissioned by businessman John E. Day.

For eight decades, a musical mix of pianos, organs, records, sheet music and music lessons kept things busy at Steinert & Sons. The store was also a go-to place for theater and concert tickets.

At one time, the Boston-based dealership had outlets throughout New England. Two locations remain, in Boston and Newton.

The Worcester store, by then on Gold Star Boulevard, closed for good in 2009.

In 1978, having been located in the Day Building for more than eight decades, Steinert was told that it needed to find another home. The owner of the building at the time, Consumers Savings Bank, had drawn up a plan to raze the property and build a headquarters on the parcel.

The news came as shock to Steinert and many other businesses that filled the building.

At one point, the piano seller considered the Midtown Mall as a new home.

"We've got to go somewhere," store manager Elliott Lockwood told a reporter. "We just can't go out of business."

The demolition plans were eventually scrapped. Instead, a new owner, Cutler Associates, planned a major renovation of the building. The Day Building, designed by noted Worcester architectural firm Barker & Nourse, opened in 1897, with additions in 1898 and 1906. Over the years, a Romanesque Revival design has given way, on the lower floors, to a more modern look.

In the early 1980s, a new blueprint called for the Steinert storefront to be reworked into a main lobby.

The search for a new home began anew. In 1983, Steinert moved to the Northworks Building on Grove Street. The move was noteworthy because it was preceded by deep discounts at the Main Street store. When pianos are involved, it's best to reduce the stock before the moving trucks arrive.

Steinert remained in the Northworks Building until June 1990, when it shifted to 1 Gold Star Blvd.

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This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Then & Now: M. Steinert & Sons, 308 Main St., Worcester