Object Details
Description
Banjo played by Lew Snowden. Snowden was a member of the Snowden Family Band, an ensemble of Black farmers who performed across rural Ohio from the 1850s to the early 1920s. Banjo rim interior is wood with a nickel exterior. Custom engraving of "L.D. Snowden" on proper right side of the top of the rim. Wood neck and headstock. Skin head attached to rim with metal tension hoop and 10 brackets and screws. Likely was produced by the Buckbee company around 1870s.
Credit Line
Gift of Howard L. Sacks and Judith Rose Sacks from the Snowden Collection
date made
ca 1870s
ID Number
2023.0122.01
accession number
2023.0122
catalog number
2023.0122.01
Object Name
banjo
Physical Description
nickel (rim material)
wood (overall material)
metal (overall material)
skin (head material)
ivory (tailpiece material)
Measurements
overall: 33 1/2 in x 12 in x 3 1/2 in; 85.09 cm x 30.48 cm x 8.89 cm
See more items in
Culture and the Arts: Musical Instruments
Banjos
Exhibition
Entertainment Nation
Exhibition Location
National Museum of American History
Data Source
National Museum of American History
Link to Original Record
Record ID
nmah_2036768