Lots of speculation here about pool's rise and fall so many of you might want to read the condensedl history of one of the oldest billiard equipment producers in this country at this PAGE. Some enlightening tidbits to chew on.
Pretty sure I was told that Paul Huebler was a salesman at A.E. Schmidt before he built his cues...A few Huebler fancier's on here may correct me if I'm wrong...