Famous New Yorker Orville Gibson Orville Gibson made a name for himself by hand- crafting unique musical instruments. His name would become a famous brand name in the guitar industry, but he personally preferred the mandolin. Orville H. Gibson was born in Chateaugay, Franklin County, on May 1, 1856. Very little is known about his childhood. As a teenager Orville sought his fortune in Kalamazoo, Michigan. He worked in a number of clerking jobs to support himself, but his real vocation was playing and making mandolins. Touring bands from Europe made the mandolin a popular instrument in late 19th century America. The fi rst American-made mandolins began appearing in the 1880s, as Orville Gibson began his musical career. While playing with the Orpheus Mandolin Orchestra, Gibson grew unhappy with the way mandolins and other plucked- Image source: archive.gibson.com string instruments were made. The traditional method was to assemble the body of the instrument by bending individual strips of wood into shape. Gibson believed that doing this weakened the tone of the instrument. Gibson rented a workshop and became a luthier, a maker of plucked-string instruments. He made mandolins, lutes and other instruments from used furniture. Instead of assembling them strip by strip, he carved each body from a single piece of wood. To further improve the tone, he took inspiration from Italy’s legendary violin maker, Antonio Stradivari. Like Stradivarius violins, Gibson’s instruments had arched tops instead of fl at ones. During the 1890s, Gibson’s custom instruments became increasingly popular with Michigan musicians. In 1895 a Saginaw company hired him to make instruments, but Gibson was soon back working on his own. Even as a full-time instrument maker, he lacked the means to meet the growing demand for his creations. A group of Kalamazoo businessmen saw the profi t potential of Gibson’s designs and had the fi nancial resources to increase production. In 1902, fi ve investors incorporated the Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Manufacturing Company. Orville Gibson bought sixty shares of the company, but his main contribution was to license its use of his patented mandolin design. In 1904 he sold the patent rights to the Gibson company for $2,500. Adjusting for infl ation, that was equivalent to making more than $66,000 today. From that point, Gibson was mainly a part-time consultant to the company that bore his name. The owners mandated that he be paid “only for the actual time he works for the company.” Starting in 1908, they paid him an annual fee of $500. By then, Gibson’s health had begun to deteriorate. After receiving psychiatric treatment, he moved back to New York State in 1909. He settled in Saranac Lake and later moved to Ogdensburg, where he died on August 18, 1918. The Gibson founders may have exploited Orville Gibson, but their company lived up to his reputation for musical innovation. As mandolins lost popularity, the Gibson company became a leading guitar manufacturer. Gibson instruments have been favorites with jazz, rock and bluegrass musicians for generations. Many of the world’s most famous pop guitarists have received the Orville H. Gibson lifetime achievement award. His name still stands for excellence in musical craftsmanship. Chateaugay is located on the international For more information about Orville Gibson and the manufacturing border of Quebec, company that bares his name go to http://www.gibson.com/News- Canada and its name is Lifestyle/Features/en-us/120-Years-of-Innovation-A-Gibson- derived from a location in Timeline.aspx. This is one of a series of Famous New Yorker France. profi les written by Kevin Gilbert for the NYNPA News Media Literacy/ NIE Program. All rights reserved 2018. For a teaching guide go to www.nynpa.com/nie/niefamousny.html