Antique Banjos

The 6 and 7 string antique zither musical instrument is sometimes called the “English banjo” compared to its 5 string American cousin.  In 1846, William Temlett designed a 6 string banjo with a short “thumb” string on the neck in his Brooklyn, NY, shop.  Temlett patented a 7-stringer in 1869 and named it his “zither-banjo” while claiming to be its inventor. The successful  American concert banjoist Alfred D. Cammeyer relocated to London in 1888 and popularized the zither banjo to eager British audiences. In 1893, the Essex & Cammeyer partnership began marketing their brand of zither banjos which were manufactured by the Temlett, Weaver, Wilhurst, and Windsor factories.

The BRC mailbox recently received a query from a musician in the US who just bought what he believed was a 7 string banjo from an acquaintance who had purchased the instrument years previously while living briefly in India. The mysterious instrument proved to be the English permutation of a 5 string American banjo. The peg head documented that the instrument was marketed by Robert J. Heath & Sons who were musical instrument sellers in Wales, UK. This family firm was listed in local trade directories from 1884 to 1967. Its shops were located at 51 Queen St. in Cardiff and at 70 Taff St. in Pontypridd. The multi-generational enterprise was affiliated with a musical instrument factory in London.

Boston banjo scholar Jim Bollman graciously examined several photos of the instrument and reported: Hi Barry- This is a British zither banjo, usually strung with wire and gut (nylon). There’s not a lot of interest in these in the US, probably worth a couple hundred bucks to a motivated buyer (who will be hard to find). They almost always have a closed back and a tunneled fifth string. Cheaper models used guitar tuners to save a few quid (one tuner left unused) – these were usually played as a regular five string. Best, Jim

Somewhere on its journey, this unique zither banjo had a geared guitar tuning peg installed on the neck at the fifth fret to fine-tune the 5th string. Adjacent to it on the fretboard is the original drilled entrance hole for the 5th string to traverse a tunnel inside the neck up to the slotted head-neck junction where the string would exit via another drill hole and be wrapped around a nearby tuning peg spool. The guitar style peg head configuration left one tuning peg unused in the conversion to a 5 string instrument.

With a little TLC repair work, this English gem could be restored to a playable zither treasure. For  further information on the 19th century evolution of Anglo-American  banjo design and the trans Atlantic travels of another not dissimilar antique instrument, please enter “journey” in the website search engine. For an historical note detailing the 17th century arrival of the African banjo in the Western Hemisphere, please enter “banza” in the website search engine.

From the BRC:  Many thanks to the musician who kindly shared his fascinating antique banjo with our readership.

A local jam session picker, who is a discerning estate sale browser, brought an antique 5-stringer to the BRC workshop recently for some minor work. The instrument proved to be an A.A. Farland circa 1915 “Black Beauty” banjo. Alfred A. Farland (1859-1954 ) was an innovative banjo designer and skillful musician who performed a classical repertoire to much acclaim. He was a teacher and a musically progressive thinker. Although his name on the peg head mother of pearl inlay had nearly worn away, his signature appears throughout the features of this instrument that was manufactured by Rettberg and Lange.

The dowel stick (below) in this open back 5-string antique bears the name of the model, the price tag, signature of the designer, and location of the manufacturer.

The interior of the pot offers a photo image of Farland and his explicit guarantee that no metal tone ring is present in the architecture of his endorsed instrument. He firmly preferred and advocated a woody banjo tone.

The tailpiece is embossed with the initials of Alfred A. Farland surmounting an undated and abbreviated patent (pending) stamp.

Farland cleverly devised an internal cable-pulley system, so he could mute his banjo in mid performance. This device was operated by a thumb lever inside the rim which is absent in the below photo. The mute pad located below the bridge area of the head is also missing, but its supporting metal pedestal is still present. A black thread traces the course of the cable. For more details on this unique muting system, please Google “disassembled AA Farland mute” for a posting on the Classic-Banjo.com website to observe the integral parts this curious Rube Goldberg apparatus.

Farland was a very successful performer and wore a tuxedo when on stage. Visit YouTube to listen to ancient recordings of  “A.A. Farland plays the Carnival of Venice” which reflect his virtuosity. One of the archival sound files is very scratchy but clearly demonstrates his skills. The other audio clip has better quality but was evidently recorded later in his career when age and hand problems affected his digital dexterity. He was renowned for his proficiency with tremolo phrasings.

From the BRC: Enjoy

The recent `No Knot` 5-stringer restoration pointedly reminded the BRC founder of his website motto: All Banjos Deserve a Second Chance. Postponing plans to build a banjo for an upcoming art show, he earnestly set out to restore a dreary and deeply tarnished antique instrument that had been languishing for months under a table in the workshop.

The fretboard and tuning pegs were gone, mother of pearl inlays in the peg head were fragmented or absent, no remnant of a head remained, and much of the hardware was pitted with rust. The base of the neck had a smudged plaque embossed with ” Puritan.”

Research revealed that this circa 1895 banjo was likely made in Chicago by the Lyon & Healy Company that also marketed similar 5 -stringers with plaques labeled “Mystic” or “President” and sometimes  “Encore.” Unique structural features at the neck-rim junction indicate that this model was a student/intermediate level instrument.

In comparison, some high end 5-stringers of that era had the familiar neck brace-cross pin used to stabilize the dowel stick-pot junction as seen in this circa 1900  banjo. It is not known when this mechanically dependable device was invented, but it is ubiquitous today and bears no patent data.

Less expensive turn of the century banjos, as seen in this archival picture from the BRC collection, frequently had only one or two wood screws across the pot or dowel stick-neck interface. A supplemental stout metal brace spanning the construct was not ornamental but integral in stabilizing the junction.

The “Puritan” had a well-secured and engraved buttress plate made of brass that reenforced the two wood screws hidden below it clasping the pot to the heel of the neck. 

The inner wooden pot was  “spun over” and clad with a German silver (nickel , copper, and zinc alloy) outer rim. Some collectors admire this shiny antique feature and the tone it reportedly imparts to the banjo. A new rosewood fretboard was fretted and installed, and it was modestly inlayed with mother of pearl. The recessed “Puritan” plaque at the base of the neck offered a profile that looks like a forerunner of the modern day `scooped` fingerboard.

Clawhammer enthusiasts would probably concur that all banjos, especially an open-back treasure like this one, deserve a second chance.

When this antique and unmarked banjo first appeared in the BRC workshop, it was a forlorn grime covered instrument with a detached fretboard, fractured or missing mother of pearl inlays, and a yellow brown calfskin head that had dried into parched shoe leather.

For months, it collected dust in an ignored corner of the shop before it finally won the attention that it deserved. A meticulous clean-up surprisingly disclosed an Elite “No Knot” tailpiece that was known to be applied to high grade 5-stringers at the turn of the century.

On the under surface of the tailpiece was a patent date of May 2, 1899.  There were several patents of this unique No-Knot tailpiece from 1892 to 1914 to accommodate various models of banjo. The ancient bridge appears to have been carved from whalebone. Scrimshaw and whale bone carving were a sailor`s past time at sea until the whaling industry ended in the US in 1927.

Upon closer inspection, the fretboard revealed deep fingertip grooves in the first 3 frets spaces indicating that this instrument had been industriously played by its owner who obviously cherished its music. Missing frets were replaced, and the mother of pearl inlays were patched -up. For a facelift, a snowy white new calfskin head was installed.

Lastly, the nut at the base of the peg head was noted to be angled slightly, and this is interpreted to be a calculated design feature to compensate for string length intonation usually accommodated in modern bridges.  Of note, Stelling banjos have string compensations slotted into the nut.

This handsome banjo now hangs at the top of the stairwell leading to our workshop to remind the BRC founder that even the most humblest of old banjos has a story.

Long ago, a banjo picker living in San Diego rescued a discarded banjo from a dumpster. Dan preserved the abandoned 5-stringer and transported it to the Heartland when he relocated to Missouri decades later.

Years past by, and Dan joined our G&F bluegrass band. He gave the forlorn instrument to the BRC founder who had just opened a basement banjo repair shop.  Although it was otherwise unmarked, a patent date of Nov. 19, 1901 on the `No Knot` tailpiece confirmed that the instrument was manufactured over a century ago.

Rather than dress up the wayfaring banjo to become a permanent decorative wall hanging, the 5-stringer was refitted into playing condition and submitted to the three young sons of one of our fiddlers for field testing. The kids happily experimented with the instrument and loved telling the “dumpster” story to family friends.

Shared among this trio of active siblings, the restored 5-stringer held up favorably, and it was deemed sturdy enough to be gifted to the BRC founder`s grandson in Texas where it resides today.

Dan has since retired from the G&F band and is much missed, but his son Terry has joined us adding masterfully nuanced  guitar work to the band`s repertoire.

How many vintage banjos have been fated to a trash bin and vanished forever?