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Bass Violin made by Charles Robert Smith

Bass Violin made by Charles Robert Smith - Cello
Accession #: 1459.1
Title: Bass Violin made by Charles Robert Smith
Object Type: Cello
Participants:
Physical Description: Homemade bass violin with 4 gut strings, two of which are wrapped in metal. Corpus of instrument may be pine or spruce; sides may be oak. Fingerboard is a soft wood which has been painted black. Three of four pegs match and may be pearwood; the fourth is manufactured of ebony. Black spindle for balancing instrument extends from bottom-center of corpus. There is a paper label inside the body of the instrument, with hand-written information: "Made by Charles R. Smith, Mt. Hope, Spokane Co., Wash., 1892; repaired 1950 by Charles R. Smith"
Description: The February 16, 1936 Sunday edition of the Spokesman Review recalls that in the early 1890s brothers W.S. and C.(Charles) R. Smith were musicians who played in the rural Mount Hope district near Spokane. "They had one violin which they had brought from Kansas, but that did not give sufficient music for the dances, so they made (a) bass violin.... The only tools available to make this violin were a jack knife, a spoke shave, a keyhole saw, and a block plane. The Smith brothers played for various dances, and they would take up collections for the musicians. One night they only received 36 cents for their entertainment...." Though it looks like a cello, this home-made instrument is literally a bass violin. According to brother Leonard Smith, they stood a violin on a table in front of a kerosene lantern, tracing the shadow on the wall in order to create the pattern for the instrument. The lighter wood inlay was made from round cheese boxes - a large round cheese was shipped in its own box at that time. In a remote setting and during a time before television and radio provided entertainment, this resourceful family built a violin that was reported by the donor to have a mellow tone. The bridge is not sturdy enough for us to tighten the strings in order to hear the instrument for ourselves.
Category: History
Subjects/Topics/Concepts:
Music & Sound (Communication)
Geographical Reference: Spokane (Washington->Spokane County)
Dimensions:
Object H x W x D 60 x 16 1/4 x 10 "
Materials/Techniques:
steel (Material)
wood (plant material) (Material)
wood (Material)
Marks/Inscription:
Made by Charles R. Smith, Mt. Hope, Spokane Co., Wash., 1892; Repaired 1950 by Charles R. Smith
Claim Check 1949 917 C. R. Smith Saw and Lawn Mower Service Phone GL. 1427 N 3203 Market St. Spokane, Wash. Not Responsible for goods left over 30 days. Made 1892
Credit Line: Gift of Mrs. Lessie Smith, 1951

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