All of these guitars were made in the United States with the exception of the
Late 1930s “Western Scene” shows a cowboy showing-off to a cowgirl. The silk-screened art includes plenty of detail with the cowboy wearing chaps, vest and neckerchief, and the girl with lace-up boots, lasso of her own, and holstered pistol. (Photo courtesy Steve Evans)
German-made Fasan brand guitar, which features a fascinating “Waterskiing Scene.”
Most were produced in the 1930s and 1940s, and all came from the manufacturer painted with attractive artwork. The art was applied either by stencil-painting or silk-screening.
The Harmony Guitar Company preferred “stencil-painted” scenes, and their models typically have a slight over-spray.
Kay and Regal used the “silk-screen” method, which gave more detail and sharper edges to the art.
The “Amateur Hour” and the “Big Band” scene guitars both have pick-shaped decals near the artwork. This gives a hint of the original owner’s name because these decals show the initials of the owner, an option available when ordering a guitar from the Montgomery Ward or Spiegel catalogs (circa 1934 through 1942). If the original owner was a teenager when receiving the guitar, that person is now 90 to 95 years old.
In the 1930s and ’40s, these guitars were referred to as “standard size,” but today are considered more of a three-quarters size when compared to the modern, big dreadnought guitars.
To see a short video featuring these guitars, go to YouTube.com and use search words “Antique Trader Art Guitars.”
The guitars shown in this article are on display at the Jacksonville Guitar Museum, 1105 Burman Drive, in Jacksonville, Arkansas.
 About our contributor: Steve Evans entered the retailing business in 1975 at the age of 18 by opening the Jacksonville Guitar Center in Jacksonville, Ark. He has been collecting vintage guitars since then, and has co-authored “Cowboy Guitars” (Centerstream Publishing, 2002; available online through Booksamillion.com and Amazon.com). Evans has dedicated one end of his retail building to the Jacksonville Guitar Museum, displaying his vintage guitar collection, which, in addition to vintage Fender, Martin and Gibson guitars, includes more than 150 circa 1930s-1950s Cowboy Guitars with Western artwork and a few hundred plastic toy guitars.Evans can be reached at the Jacksonville Guitar Center, 1105 Burman Dr., Jacksonville, AR 72076; 501-982-4933; http://www.cowboyguitars.net/jvllguitar. Shop/museum hours are Mon.-Sat., 10 a.m.-6 p.m. |
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- 1949 “Cabin in the Woods Scene” made by Harmony in Chicago. Stencil-painted scene in orange and forest green shows a boy playing his guitar and girl nearby (probably singing) with cabin and mountains in background. (Photo courtesy Steve Evans)
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- 1936 “Amateur Hour” sold by Spiegel. This scene depicts the radio broadcast of a talent show in progress with electronic signals beaming across the world. Note the original owner’s initials “R. B.” (Photo courtesy Steve Evans)
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- 1935 “Hillbilly Band Scene” guitar sold by Montgomery Ward. Scene painted in black and white shows five musicians playing their instruments: harmonica, fiddle, clarinet, guitar and accordion. (Photo courtesy Steve Evans)
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- 1935 “Hawaiian Scene” guitar. Many different versions of Hawaiian scenes were produced, but this one is particularly fanciful with a girl in bell bottoms watching sailboats come and go. Note that the guitar’s painted rosette is a ship’s steering wheel. (Photo courtesy Steve Evans)
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- 1932 “Black Knight” has a scene showing a group of minstrels serenading before a castle of olden days. This guitar was made by Harmony and sold through Sears under the Supertone brand name. (Photo courtesy Steve Evans)
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- Late 1930s “Western Scene” shows a cowboy showing-off to a cowgirl. The silk-screened art includes plenty of detail with the cowboy wearing chaps, vest and neckerchief, and the girl with lace-up boots, lasso of her own, and holstered pistol. (Photo courtesy Steve Evans)
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- 1939 “Spirit of Rhythm” guitar made by Kay and sold through Spiegel. The art was painted in gold on a “plumwood finish” guitar and shows a big city skyline with continuous music and dancing throughout the night. (Photo courtesy Steve Evans)
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- 1945 Harmony “Patriotic Scene” guitar painted in red, white and blue. This guitar has a World War II-era “wooden” tailpiece because of restrictions on using metal for luxury items. (Photo courtesy Steve Evans)
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- Late 1930s “Hawaiian Scene” guitar with cream colored art silk-screened onto a chocolate brown guitar. Romantic moonlit scene shows a couple sitting on the beach. (Photo courtesy Steve Evans)
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- Circa 1940s “Two Indians Scene” stencil guitar, made by Harmony and distributed by Bugeleisen & Jacobson of New York. Art Deco scene shows two Indians with headdresses and bows. (Photo courtesy Steve Evans)
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- Circa 1940 “Big Band Scene” guitar made by Kay Musical Instrument Company in Chicago. Wonderful scene of a girl in red dress gracefully dancing to the music of a band resembling the Artie Shaw Orchestra. (Photo courtesy Steve Evans)