W.A. Cole Banjo

Cole's Eclipse Butterly, heel carving, 5 string. Boston, MA. Serial #: 1736. Length: 92cm. The pot is a full 11"; the depth is 2.1"

William A. Cole was a successful performer and teacher in Boston from 1880-1909. He joined with A.C. Fairbanks as "Fairbanks & Cole" as an instrument maker from 1880 to 1890. They split in 1890 and then Cole established his business at his prior business location 179 Tremont. He manufactured mostly banjos as "W.A. Cole, Maker, Boston, Mass." While William was traveling, his brother Frank E. Cole supervised the business and retained the name W.A. Cole after Williams death. He continued to advertise guitars, mandolins and banjos until he sold the company to Nokes & Nicolai in March, 1922. The total output of the W.A. Cole Company's 32 years in business appears to be fewer than 10,000 serial numbered instruments (the highest reported is #8555, a tenor Eclipse). In the early years, 5 string banjos, banjorines, and variants dominated. Around the turn of the century, banjo mandolins proliferated, and by the teens almost all of Cole's output was banjo mandolins and tenors. The guitars are seen to be beautifully made, most from Brazilian rosewood with typical Cole style engraved inlays. Cole is recognized for his few guitars and mandolins but is highly respected for the Eclipse model banjos which are considered to be some of the finest banjos ever made.

The Meisel Collection. This instrument is being sold from The Meisel Collection assembled over a period of forty years by an accomplished attorney from Princeton, New Jersey. The owner traveled the world in search of rare, interesting, and handsome instruments to fill a collection that until now was displayed in his beautiful Princeton home.

Please note: The items in the Meisel Collection are being sold F.O.B. Princeton, New Jersey. The recommended shipper is the U.P.S. Store, 174 Nassau St., Princeton, NJ 08542 which has extensive experience shipping fragile auction items. The Store can be emailed at store2026@theupsstore.com or called at 609-924-0759. The auction house makes no commission on shipping; payment for shipping is made by the buyer directly to the shipper. Although buyers are free to use any shipper they choose, we have found this shipper to be fair and reliable.

Condition: More detailed condition reports and additional photographs are available by request. The absence of a condition report does not imply that the lot is in very fine condition. Please message us through the online bidding platform or email Guernsey's at auctions@guernseys.com to request a more thorough condition report.