Banjo
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This banjo is an example of the kind of inexpensive instrument offered by mass market retailers such as Sears and Montgomery Ward. However, it is outfitted with a tailpiece and 16 head-tightening assemblies by E. J. Cubley, a banjo maker from Ravenswood, IL. He produced high-grade Cubley-branded banjos with unique wood marquetry decoration, and banjos that were private labeled for other Chicago manufacturers and distributors such as Tonk Brothers. He was awarded five banjo-related patents between 1882 and 1889. The head-tightening hooks, nuts and brackets on this banjo are based on the design of his earliest patent, which enables the banjo head to be tightened with an ordinary slotted screwdriver instead of the commonly used "banjo wrench," which is similar to a clock key. (Peter Szego, 2020)
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