From the OHS PC Database, derived from A Guide to North American Organbuilders by David H. Fox (Organ Historical Society, 1997) -

Active as an organ builder in Troy, New York, 1846-1851; made pianos thereafter.

Sources:

• Orpha Ochse, The History of the Organ in the United States (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1975), 169.
• The Tracker, 9:2 (Spring, 1965), 9.
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From the OHS PC Database Builders editor -

Augustus Backus was active as an organ builder in Troy, New York, from 1846 until 1851; he made pianos thereafter. Giles Beach was his apprentice in 1844.¹

Source:
1. Orpha Ochse. The History of the Organ in the United States (Indiana University Press, 1975) p58.