G. Schirmer is one of the oldest publishers of classical music in the United States. It was founded in 1861 by Gustav Schirmer (1829–1893) a German immigrant to New York.
After the 2nd World War the firm passed out of Schirmer family hands. In 1968 it was bought by Macmillan, who sold it in 1986 to Robert Wise, the owner of popular music publisher Music Sales Inc, now rebranded as the Wise Music Group.