I am trying to identify my wife's grandfather's banjo. He played in a local group called the Potomac Ramblers in the late 1920's early 1930's. This was in the eastern panhandle of WVa. I have spent hours on the Internet only to find there are a bazillion different types and styles and I know nothing about banjos.
I thought I was attaching photos. Trying again.
quote:
Originally posted by steve2150I thought I was attaching photos. Trying again.
Scroll all the way down to the bottom of your post, you'll see an "Attachments" field, your photos will be there, tap your photos to attach to your post, then hit "post reply"
S. S. Stewart? Headstock shape and inlays look similar to some of theirs. They usually have an identifying plate or decal and serial numbers.
Edited by - banjukebox on 09/18/2024 21:58:32
Here's a link to an example:
SSSTEWART
Could well be a post-Stewart SSS-style banjo, made by a maker who took over the SSS production.
looks like a beauty !
Sorry, this is NOT a Stewart banjo, but the maker certainly wanted to give that impression.
Manufactured by Rettberg & Lange in New York city. They were a jobber/ghost manufacturer and built many instruments with no markings, intended for resale.
Bonus points for the Grover Tone Ring, which turns the banjo into an archtop.
I agree with Andy about the Rettberg, R & L attribution. Many of their inlay patterns , peghead shapes , etc. were influenced by earlier banjos such as Stewarts. An amateur astronomer friend once told me that all the celestial banjo inlay patterns ( moons, stars, comets, etc. ) were probably influenced by a vast national interest in astronomy in the latter part of the 19th century - comets, shooting stars and all things celestial were all the rage so it was probably a no-brainer for banjo makers to use these symbols.
There was also a wave of Turkish immigrants to the USA 1900-1915. The Turkish flag bears a crescent moon and five point star. Maybe these immigrants were the pearl cutters? Speculation on my part--not an historian.
I've read all these wild speculations about inlay patterns based on various immigrants but I'm not convinced. I seriously doubt that any banjo designer would have randomly given their workers free reign to design inly patterns.
SSS was doing stars and moons when he was a one man shop selling accordions and hand written sheet music, while putting necks on Schall rims. It is pretty clear that as his company grew he was extremely hands on and controlling. I doubt he would be like "yeah, just do whatever as long as it honors your heritage."
Clearly there was a central supplier by the late 1890s that was selling to everyone. I've seen the same exact peghead overlays on Van Eps banjos and generic jobber banjos (or even private label). I've read the speculation that Van Eps had L&H building his banjos, but that is not true. He had people building them in a shed behind his house when he was on the road then took over when he left the Famous 8 Victor Recording Artists and bought out Henry Burr.
And lest we overlook the fact that after Fred and Lem Stewart, after being forced out, went to NYC to work for Jos. Stern and developed a line of private label banjos "4S". My wife and I were given a R&L banjo for our wedding that a friend restored that the neck is an 1 to 1 exact size and shape duplication of a SSS neck but the decoration and construction are very different. So there was no shortage of crossover (besides knocking off each other).
It's unfortunate that next to nothing is known about the companies or individuals who were supplying cut shell and inlaid peghead and fingerboard blanks to instrument manufacturers. With the exception of high-end instruments, many banjo inlay patterns of the time seem to have been based around shapes that were available for purchase, rather than having been designed for a specific manufacturer.
Stewart's style of inlay does seem to have more in common with Middle Eastern styles than other manufacturers. Not necessarily in the content or symbolism, but in the style of the work. The use of many small geometric shell elements is generally more akin to Middle Eastern craftsmanship than that of western and central Europe.
Thanks to all for your time looking it over and responding. I am so coming to the conclusion an absolute identification cannot be made. So best guess from all, do you feel it is MOST likely a Rettberg and Lange build? or a good copy?
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