While there, I had the great pleasure of visiting the American Banjo Museum (awesome website here) with my brother Greg, my son, and two of my nephews. (I also visited the Texas Civil War Museum in Fort Worth on our way up...but more on that in later posts!).The Banjo Museum is just gorgeous! Indeed, it won the "Outstanding New Attraction" RedBud award at the 2010 Oklahoma Governors Conference on Tourism out of more than 100 entries which were evaluated by out-of-state judges...it is the highest award given in the Oklahoma tourism industry!
Many, many photos below! Enjoy!
Outside of the Museum
Visitors begin by learning the roots of the American banjo, especially among slaves
Visitors then get introduced to the banjo's heyday in the early part of the 20th century
The bulk of the Museum is a display of more than 200 vintage banjos over more than 15,000 square feet of Museum space!
I bet you know that Gibson made guitars (including the famous Les Paul) but did you also know they became famous by making banjos?!
A display describes the history of banjos in American cinema...including this scene of Paul Newman in "Cool Hand Luke..."...Willie Nelson sang - "You Just Can't Play a Sad Song on the Banjo"!
Banjos are known for their art as well as their music!
A replica of a Shakey's Pizza Parlor! The pizza joint help popularize the banjo!
The Museum's "Restoration Station"!
The Museum's 4-string Banjo Hall of Fame! (Learn more about the Hall here!)
The Museum sits in Oklahoma City's historic and beautifully revitalized Bricktown District!
1 comment:
Thanks for coming to the American Banjo Museum and glad you enjoyed it. It is truly an amazing collection of banjos and the art on them is one of a kind.
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