I've done about as much research as I can, so I'm casting my net into this group to see what comes back. Through a series of musical competitions within my family, I decided to buy a mandolin and learn to play it. Love it! My father-in-law found out and said he had a bowlback mandolin his father played while in a college band. Other than it being his father's, he had no more info about it. I got an itch to trace its roots.
I initially thought it was a L&H Washburn. The description I pulled from the Internet, from this forum and from Pleijsier's Prewar book made it fit the Style 73 Washburn: 17 frets, 11 ribs, tortoise celluloid pickguard and, most notably, the herringbone trim around the top and sound hole. However, there are only three pearl inlays at the 5, 7 and 10 frets where Washburns of that style had four, and two of them are more decorative than any Washburns I've seen. Also not matching were the shape of the pickguard (different cut where it meets the sound hole), the shape of the headstock (more squared off at the corners) and the tailpiece, which I have yet to find anything close to matching on any manufacturer. The only identifying mark is the 4-digit number stamped on the top of the headstock. There are no other labels, serial numbers, or patent number to be found. It doesn't appear that the inside was covered with a cloth lining, which may or may not make a difference.
I've looked at L&H, Thompson & Odell, Grauphner & Meyers, etc...nothing fits 100%. Just from it being his father's and his father being in college around 1905, I'm confident it's at least 115 years old. I had new strings put on, and it sounds decent enough. Any help in tracking down a manufacturer would be a huge help.
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