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?
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