Gold Tone Banjos was founded by Wayne and Robyn Rogers in 1993. Both were active folk musicians in the 70's and 80's, they opened Strings N' Things Music Center in 1978. In 1993 Wayne designed the original TB-100 Travel Banjo and began manufacturing and distributing the "Traveler" mail order.

Iner Souster makes experimental musical instruments. His stringed instruments are often made from salvaged materials, and are art works in themselves.

The University of Rochester have made available online issues of S.S. Stewart’s banjo and guitar journal from the 1890s. S.S. Stewart was a banjo and mandolin manufacturer and this magazine was intended to promote his instruments though a network of dealers. Taking a closer look you find many interesting  (and weird) stories from a time when there was nothing much on T.V. 

One of the Harmony house-brands sold through Alden's catalogue.

The company was started in 1881 by Swedish-born Julius Nelson, his brother Carl. Quality declined in the 1940s and 1950s and in the 1970s the CF Martin company bought the Vega company but did not continue making the guitars under the Vega name .

This is a category for all items that have not yet been assigned a proper brand name.

Dimitru Manea, the founder of Manea Guitars, learned his woodworking skills as a child in Romania. Toys were not available so Dimitru had to carve his own. At age 6 he fixed up an old guitar and at age 16 he was accepted into music school. By age 17 he emigrated to the USA, where he now works as a luthier.