Electric guitar
Maker
Gibson, Inc.
Maker
Gibson
Date1941
Place MadeKalamazoo, Michigan, United States, North America
ModelES-300
Serial No.97274
SignedContrasting color laminate inlay on top of peghead: GibsonPrinted on label found inside guitar body: Gibson GUITAR Style ES 300 / Number 97274 is hereby / GUARANTEED / against faulty workmanship and materials. Should / this instrument, with proper care and usage, prove de- / fective, we agree to repair it free of charge at our / factory or to replace it with another of the same value. / GIBSON, Inc. / KALAMAZOO / MICHIGAN, U.S.A.
MarkingsStamped beneath gear on tuning peg: WAVERLY
DescriptionThe ES-300, with an offset, adjustable pickup, replaced the ES-250 with blade pickup in 1940. Promising "clear, singing treble strings together with deep, booming bass," the new pickup did not live up to expectations. The angle of the offset was reduced in 1941, but the design was not revived after production was halted in 1942, due to the war. In 1945, the ES-300 was reintroduced with a P-90 pickup and a second was added in 1948, but the model was discontinued in 1952. By that time, solid-body electric guitars and Gibson’s own, more slender Thinline instruments were beginning to overshadow the older, large-bodied electric arch-tops in terms of market share. However, among niche customers, such as jazz musicians, electric arch-tops remained the guitar of choice.
DimensionsWidth of lower bout: 17 in
Width of upper bout: 12-1/2 in
Length of vibrating string: 25-1/2 in
Total Length of instrument: 41-1/8 in
ProvenancePurchased from Gruhn Guitars, Nashville, Tennessee, 2001.
Published ReferencesCarter, Walter; Gruhn, George. Electric Guitars and Basses. San Francisco: GPI
Books, 1994, p. 58.
Duchossoir, A.R. Gibson Guitars: The Classic Years. Milwaukee: Hal Leonard
Publishing Corp., 1994, p. 113.
Credit LineBoard of Trustees, 2001
Object number10027
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