Dobro Guitar

Dobro Guitar

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Description

This resonator guitar was made by Dobro in Los Angeles, California around 1933-1937. The name originated in 1928 when the Dopyera brothers formed the Dobro Manufacturing Company. "Dobro" is both a contraction of "Dopyera brothers" and a word meaning "goodness" in their native Slovak. This six course (6x1) guitar has a squared-off neck with raised strings for Hawaiian-style playing.

This guitar features U. S. Patent #1,896,484 dated February 7, 1933 by John Dopyera for a musical instrument with a conical metal resonator.

Frederick John Wright (1926-1985) was a classic amateur country music performer. He was born in Detroit, Michigan and a year later, his family moved to Toronto, Canada. In 1938, a door to door salesman offered a Dobro guitar with lessons for $5.00 per week, for thirteen weeks. Fred played this guitar and with his father entertained veterans in hospitals in the Toronto area. In 1947, Fred returned to the United States with his treasured guitar.

Location
Currently not on view
Object Name
guitar
Date made
1933-1937
maker
Dobro
place made
United States: California, Los Angeles
Physical Description
wood (overall material)
metal (overall material)
Measurements
overall: 39 in x 14 1/2 in x 5 in; 99.06 cm x 36.83 cm x 12.7 cm
ID Number
1989.0660.01
catalog number
1989.0660.01
accession number
1989.0660
Credit Line
Gift of Betty R. Wright in memory of Frederick John Wright
See more items in
Culture and the Arts: Musical Instruments
Music & Musical Instruments
Guitars
Data Source
National Museum of American History
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Comments

This particular guitar would have been made by Regal for Dobro after 1935, as it has a solid head stock and the Los Angeles made Model 27 guitars still used a slotted head stock. After 1936 National-Dobro moved all their operations to Chicago and Regal made all the Dobro branded instruments. The fact that the square neck of this guitar tapers at the heel is another indication that is a Regal made instrument.

Scott Lynd

Fri, 2021-04-09 09:10

"Help, please? During the mid-1930s, my Dad and his siblings were all taught music, in their home, by a professor from nearby Oberlin College. They played publicly, under the name, : "The Buckeye Buckaroos. " In the late 1950s, my brother and I, and a few cousins, were given all the old instruments. I ended up with a Dobro. The only marking I can find on it is a serial number stamped into the resonator cover: 1,896,484 -- the patent granted to John Dopyera. I would love to ID the guitar more precisely -- year of manufacture, etc. Can you advise me on what to look for and where to look for identifying characteristics? Many Thanks!"

Tim Wilhelm

Tue, 2017-01-03 20:13

Tim, interesting question about the guitar you inherited. I too inherited a dobro from my father who played radio shows in his teens with his father. They lived in Los Angeles at the time and I actually have some of their music they recorded. Anyway, I am taking my dobro in for examination and to see what I can learn about it. Small world, however it has been said many times that music is universal. I have yet to seek information from the forum mentioned in the reply to your post. Hopefully We both learn something about these interesting guitars.

Cooper

Wed, 2019-10-16 08:48

"Dear Tim,Thank you for sharing the story of your dad's group, the Buckeye Buckaroos! While we generally cannot answer questions about the history of instruments that exist outside of our collections, knowledgable members of online resonator forums such as http://www.resohangout.com/ can often provide assistance in determining an instruments model and year of manufacture. You might find it helpful to join one of these groups and then share photographs and the story of the instrument on their forum. Thank you for reaching out to us-- best of luck in identifying the guitar!Thanks! "

Culture and the Arts

Fri, 2017-02-03 15:38

"How can I identify the model, and year of manufacture by the numbers on the end of the peg head of my Dobro guitar."

Sterling Ruark

Thu, 2015-11-19 08:38

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