I have a mandolin brand name “Osborn” made in Chicago. Any information on the manufacturer?
The Osborn Manufacturing Co. was established in 1897 at Chicago, IL by Samuel C. Osborn. They built guitars, mandolins, banjos, ukuleles and other small musical instruments, along with a zither variant for which Osborn was issued patents in 1917. In 1921 they claimed the largest factory of its kind in the country. The instruments were marketed under the Sammo and the Sammos trade marks, the latter being made entirely from koa wood. They were still in business in 1921. Q: I have a very small parlor guitar with an inside label that reads “Eugene Howard, Maker.” F A: Eugene Howard was the Cincinnati, OH maker of Howard brand instruments c1896-1920s. They were distributed by Wurlitzer, a major wholesaler, with branches in Cincinnati and Chicago. Later, Howard became a Wurlitzer brandname.
