Skip to main content
Banjo-ukulele
Banjo-ukulele
Banjo-ukulele

Banjo-ukulele

ALTERNATE NAME(S)
  • Banjulele
  • Ukulele-banjo
  • Banjolele
  • Banjo uke
Trade Name (trade name of Montgomery Ward)
Distributor (distributor)
Date1920-1935 ca.
Place MadeUnited States, North America
ModelConcertone
Serial No.none
SignedBranded onto dowel stick, in cursive text: Concertone
DescriptionNeck: bird’s-eye maple with dark-brown-stained maple center stripe
Peghead: bird’s-eye maple with black celluloid veneer; center stripe continues up from neck; integral with neck; mother-of-pearl five-pointed star inlay on face
Fingerboard: brown-stained maple; 15 nickel-plated brass frets; single diamond mother-of-pearl inlays behind 5th and 12th frets; double diamond mother-of-pearl inlays behind 7th and 10th frets
Heel cap: 3-ply dark-brown-stained maple/maple/dark-brown-stained maple
Head: calf skin
Tone ring: nickel-plated brass
Rim: bird’s-eye maple; lower edge brown-stained
Bracket hooks: 12 nickel-plated steel
Shoes: 12 nickel-plated brass
Tension hoop: nickel-plated steel
Resonator: none
Dowel stick: maple
Nut: bone
Tuners: 4 nickel-plated brass tension tuners with black plastic heads [head of treble tuner is missing]
Tailpiece: nickel-plated brass
Finish: clear lacquer

DimensionsTotal instrument length: 497 mm (19-9/16")
Vibrating string length: cannot estimate – no bridge present
Fingerboard length: 215 mm (8-15/32”)
Fingerboard width at nut: 30.5 mm (1-3/16”)
Fingerboard width at body: 40.5 mm (1-19/32”)
Calf-skin head diameter: 172.5 mm (6-25/32”)
Back diameter: 174 mm (6-27/32”)
Rim depth: 72 mm (2-27/32”)

Fingerboard width at body joint: 3.9 cm (1-17/32″)
ProvenanceBelonged to James E. Lewis of Rocky Ford, Colorado, ca. 1920. He gave it to his daughter in Los Angeles, who then gave it to James J. Lewis (James E.’s grandson) of Vermillion.
Credit LineGift of James J. Lewis, 1982
Object number03105
On View
Not on view
Plectrum banjo
Slingerland Banjo & Drum Company
1927-1930 ca.
Tenor resonator banjo
C. Bruno & Son, Inc.
1915-1920 ca.
Tenor resonator banjo
Charles A. Stromberg
1926-1935 ca.
Neapolitan mandolin
Joseph Bohmann
1899 ca.
Plectrum banjo
Vega Company
1969 ca.
We use cookies to ensure we give you the best experience on our website. By continuing to use this site or by closing or clicking "I agree", you agree to the use of cookies. I agree