Who Invented the Resonator Guitar?

Tom Olson · Post by **Tom Olson** » 14 Mar 2001 8:18 pm

I've always thought it was the Dopyera brothers, but I just read on the Gibson site that it was some guy named George Beauchamp who came up with the idea.

Andy Volk · Post by **Andy Volk** » 15 Mar 2001 3:22 am

Here's a quick answer: http://tomswatzell.com/dobro.htm

For more detail see: http://www.nationalguitars.com/part1.html

For more-than-you-ever-wanted-to-know, see: http://www.windworld.com/emi/bookstore/brozman.htm

Mike D · Post by **Mike D** » 15 Mar 2001 8:49 am

Beauchamp was surely a catalyst for the invention (a player who wanted a louder guitar, and without him it's unlikely that National would have survived past 1928) but it was the genius and craftsmanship of the brothers that made it happen. The Dopyera's actually made an earlier lap guitar to Beauchamp's specs that was nothing like a National, it wa also a huge dissapointment.

Curious that Gibson (Dobro) would even make mention of Beauchamp who had absolutley nothing to do with the Dobro at all.