Identifying Unmarked Banjos
Many banjo manufacturers, in addition to making banjos under their own names, made unmarked banjos for others to sell as well. In some cases, teachers would purchase these instruments and put their own names on them, but in many other cases they carry no identifying name at all. It’s difficult to positively identify the manufacturer of these banjos in many cases, but some identify themselves through common hardware and design characteristics. Another useful set of identifying characteristics can be found at http://www.mugwumps.com.
Buckbee (1861-1897) banjos can frequently be identified by their peghead shape. Banjos with pegheads like that shown in the first picture below are usually made by Buckbee.
Rettberg & Lange (1898-1920) banjos were initially similar to Buckbee-made banjos, not surprising since they bought out the Buckbee factory in 1898. Most of their later banjos had elite tailpieces, Orpheum-like hardware, and long, thin heel footprints as shown below in the second row of pictures:
J. B. Schall (1878-1907) manufactured many unmarked banjos for teachers who sold them to students, some of which are tagged with the name of the teacher or distributor. Schall hardware is pretty unique and the fifth string peg perch is typically carved out from the side of the neck as shown in the third row of pictures below:
Lyon & Healy (1864-1940) made many grades of banjos in many styles, and many were left unmarked. Lyon & Healy routinely used talon or patent 1897 tailpieces (see fourth row of pictures below) on many of their unmarked banjos, and their better-grade offerings frequently had notched, rather than grooved stretcher bands even in the early 1890’s. The Lyon & Healy peghead shape used on most of their better banjos is also distinctive, with a small additional bump on either side of the top of the peghead (see last set of pictures below).
February 29, 2012 c.1895 Lyon & Healy 5-String Banjo This is a Lyon & Healy 5-stringer made around 1895. Rumor has it (via the 'Regal Musical Instruments 1895-1955' book) that Regal (then in Indiana) made these for L&H while fancier 'Washburn' L&H products were made in-house by L&H in Chicago. Review of finished 'restoration'.
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Welcome to
This website is dedicated to photos and descriptions of the many banjos in my collection, along with a few other vintage instruments I have picked up over the years. I have authored this site in the hope that other collectors might follow suit and share photos and information on their banjos with others in the collecting community. Since my interest in banjos stems in part from my interest in the technological development of the instrument over the years, my collection spans the period from the 1840’s to the 1920’s. As my collection evolves, banjos presented on the home page of this site may be removed and added to a 'banjos I previously owned' page. Banjos in my current collection are listed alphabetically by manufacturer or brand name. I have recently added a page on Fairbanks/Vega engraved inlay evolution for those interested in how this particular art form developed over the years and through the transition from Fairbanks to Vega ownership. For those interested in the genealogy of banjo manufacturers, I have included a page summarizing some important relationships between manufacturers, but much better information is available elsewhere (see, for example, America's Instrument, The Banjo in the Nineteenth Century, by Gura anad Bollman, University of North Carolina Press, 1999). For those interested in finding out more about buying vintage banjos and other vintage stringed instruments, I have included a page on that as well. I have also included a page on identifying unmarked banjos, for those who have an instrument of unknown origin. For those wondering where I put all of these instruments, I have added a page on living with vintage instruments. This should be particularly helpful to those collectors trying to convince dubious spouses that they don't already have too many banjos. Finally, I have added a page dealing with maintaining and restoring vintage banjos and other vintage stringed instruments. Also, click here for an example of how one can go too far to restore a banjo. For questions and comments, please contact me (Bill Destler) at bill.destler'at'rit.edu.(substitute @ for 'at').
Banjos
Bacon
Bacon 'Professional FF Special' 5-string banjo, Circa 1913
Boucher
Buchanan
Buckbee
Burkard
Cole
Lyon And Healy Chicago
W. A. Cole “Eclipse” 5-string banjo model 5000, S/N 3600, Circa 1897
W. A. Cole “Eclipse” 5-string banjo, model 3000, S/N 3670, Circa 1897
W. A. Cole “Eclipse” 5-string banjo model 4000, S/N 3959, Circa 1897
Cubley
G. H. Daniels
C. E. Dobson
G. C. Dobson
H. C. Dobson
Eibel(click here for new information on Eibel banjos!)
Fairbanks & Cole
Fairbanks
A. C. Fairbanks “Senator No. 1” 5-string banjo, S/N 21028, Circa 1901
A.C. Fairbanks “Whyte Laydie” No. 7, 5-string banjo, S/N 22616, Circa 1903
Fairbanks (by Vega)
Farland
Farris
J. Farris “E&F Tenor Banjay”, Amateur Grade 2-1/2, Circa 1880’s
Gatcomb
Haynes
John C. Haynes 'Bay State' 5-string banjo, model 323, Circa 1890
John C. Haynes “Bay State” 5-string banjo model 354, Circa 1890
Lyon & Healy (including Washburn banjos)
'George Washburn' 5-string banjo, model 421 custom, Circa 1892
'George Washburn' 5-string banjo, model 442, S/N 328, Circa 1892
Magez
Morrison
Quinlan
Rettberg & Lange (including Orpheum banjos)
'Orpheum #3', 5 string banjo, S/N 9079, Circa 1915
'Orpheum #3 Special', 5-string banjo, S/N 13406, Circa 1919
Robinson
Rudolph
J. B. Schall
J.B. Schall (Denzel) “Peerless” 5-string banjo Circa 1895
S. S. Stewart
S.S. Stewart “Thoroughbred” 5-string banjo, S/N 6096, Circa 1890
S.S. Stewart “Little Wonder” piccolo banjo, S/N 6265, Circa 1890
Stratton & Handley
Stetson
Talmadge
Teel
Teed
Lyon And Healy Banjo Information Guide
Thompson & Odell (including Luscomb banjos)
Todd
Turner
Weymann
Weymann 5-string banjo Circa 1900’s
Wilkes
Windsor
Unmarked, Minstrel, and Folk-Art Banjos
Other Vintage Instruments
Lyon And Healy Banjo Information Center
Guitars
C. F. Martin guitar, 0-42, S/N 12929, Circa 1916
Mandolins
Miscellaneous
Lachenal English concertina, SN 43576, Circa 1890