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Weymann
Formerly
  • Weymann & Son
  • Keystone State
  • Weymann & Co.
Company typePrivate
IndustryMusical instruments
Founded1864; 160 years ago (1864) in Philadelphia
FounderHenry Arnold Weyman
Headquarters
Philadelphia
,
United States
Key people
Harry William Weymann (former owner)
ProductsClassical, acoustic and tenor guitars, banjos, mandolutes, ukuleles
Websiteweymannco.com

Weymann Guitars is an American manufacturing company of musical instruments. Established in 1864 in Philadelphia, Weymann is one of the oldest instrument companies in the country. Originally founded as "H. A. Weymann and Son" by German immigrant Henry Arnold Weymann, Weymann patented the mandolute and also developed the first "Jumbo" body acoustic guitar produced during the turn of the century, nearly two decades before competitors in the instrument industry.[1]

Weymann's most notable artists include Jerry Garcia[2] of the Grateful Dead & Jimmie Rodgers[3] who is considered the pioneering father of country music.[1][4]

Since its inception, the company has manufactured classical, acoustic and tenor guitars, banjos, the aforementioned mandolute and ukuleles.[5]

Early history

Mandolute, patented by Weymann in 1913

H. A. Weymann migrated to America in 1852, arriving in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. H. A. Weymann was naturalized in 1858. In 1864, H.A. Weymann commenced a small business and in 1865, H. A. was reported in the Philadelphia Inquirer as having an annual taxable income of $136. It has been said, H. A. Weymann's early business was in the jewelry & watch retail, along with clocks, harmonicas, sheet music, and small general retail goods.[4]

Innovations

This Weymann Orchestra Style 4 banjo (1926), is displayed at the American Banjo Museum as an example of highly decorated Jazz Age banjos.

When H.A. Weymann died in 1892, his son, Harry William Weymann, took over the business. Harry was motivated and determined to build a music company, opposed to the then current, retail business. Harry set forth a plan to manufacture and wholesale his own musical instrument line and in 1894, the first evidence of Weymann’s manufacturing appeared in the S.S. Stewarts Banjo & Guitar Journal. According to an article in the Fretboard Journal, there is evidence of Weymann’s employing a talented luthier named Carl C. Holzapfel who had arrived from Germany.[6][1][7]

In 1899, the Philadelphia S.S. Stewart Banjo factory closed following the death of the company’s founder. Harry Weymann purchased a selection of materials and equipment from the factory and hired ex-Stewart workers to further develop his manufacturing business.

From late 1899 onward, H. A. Weymann began to receive significant media coverage in the Music Trade Review, along with local news press such as the Philadelphia Inquirer. From 1900 onward, Banjo production would become a large portion of manufacturing. Noteworthy, Weymann banjos from the late 1890s and early 1900s have unique traits also found in S.S. Stewart instruments.[8]

Jerry Garcia

Jerry Garcia was the legendary guitarist and frontman for the band Grateful Dead who began his career playing a mid-grade Weymann banjo. To acquire the instrument, Jerry and his wife used their recent wedding cash and sold all of Jerry's previous instruments to afford the banjo. Jerry and his wife nicknamed the banjo "John" as the instrument had been previously inlaid with the name "John" in its Peghead. Jerry Garcia welcomed this unique oddity, as his middle name was also "John". Jerry played "John" up into the 60's where it was replaced with a high-end gold-plated Weymann.[2]

Weymann Museum

In 2017, Weymann announced their plans to develop a private museum, dedicated to the preservation of Weymann estate & factory content. The Weymann collection of instruments, which spans several centuries, is estimated to be the largest private collection of musical instruments in the United States. According to industry professionals, the Weymann "vault" of instruments houses nearly every production electric guitar ever built, since 1930/1940 from Weymann, Fender, Gibson, Rickenbacker and several other makers. Of great rarity, the original templates used by Ted McCarty and legendary pioneer Paul Bigsby.[9]

Patents

  • Mandolute: H. W. WEYMANN. APPLICATION FILED JULY 27, 1912. 43,684. Patented Mar 4, 1913.
  • Stringed Musical Instrument: H. W. WEYMANN. APPLICATION FILED APR. 14, 1916. 1,215,598. Patented Feb. 13, 1917.
  • Banjo Attachment: H. W. WEYMANN. APPLICATION FILED JUL 25. 1916. 1,312,882. Patented Aug. 12, 1919.
  • Banjo: USPTO Patent: 1,442,756 (expired)
  • Armrest & String Protector: USPTO Patent: 1,520,492 (expired)
  • Tuning Peg for Musical Instrument: USPTO Patent: 1,544,722 (expired)
  • Tailpiece for Stringed Musical Instrument: USPTO Patent: 1,615,514

References

  1. ^ a b c Guitar World. "A Century-old Super Jumbo by Weymann". Guitar World. Guitar World. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
  2. ^ a b Rothman, Sandy. "The Banjo Years". thebestofwebsite.com. thebestofwebsite.com. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
  3. ^ Journal, Fretboard. "The Jimmie Rodgers Special". Fretboard Journal. Fretboard Journal. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
  4. ^ a b Robinson, Charles. "Weymann Guitars". Leaving This World. Robinson, Charles. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
  5. ^ AN EARLY 1917 WEYMANN UKULELE by Charles Robinson on Leaving This World, 15 Jan 2019
  6. ^ Fretboard Journal. "No. 11, 2008". Fretboard Journal. Fretboard Journal. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
  7. ^ University of Rochester. "S.S. Stewart's Banjo & Guitar Journal". urresearch.rochester.edu. Rochester University. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
  8. ^ PBS. "S.S. Stewart Banjo". PBS.org. PBS. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
  9. ^ Company, Weymann. "Happy 4th". www.weymannco.com. Weymann. Retrieved 4 July 2020. {{cite web}}: |last1= has generic name (help)
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