The Harp Guitars of Chris Knutsen

by Gregg Miner, as part of

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Knutsen Harp Guitar Evolutionary Tree

Knutsen’s Patents

Port Townsend Harp Guitars

Tacoma Harp Guitars Seattle Harp Guitars Post-Seattle Harp Guitars Knutsen Harp Guitar Evolution The Knutsen- Anderson Connection

160 Knutsen Harp Guitars now known! *
(* = known to have been built. Only 123 survive)

The Knutsen harp guitars in the gallery below are separated into the categories referenced in the
Category/Style Reference Chart.

Knutsen’s harp guitars are separated into three main categories by cityPort Townsend, Tacoma, and Seattle – as major style changes coincide with each of these locations. Note: we’ve recently come to realize that the Tacoma "Symphony" style harp guitars were definitely introduced during the last year or two of the Port Townsend period. However, I’m leaving them in the "Tacoma" category for simpler organization. As far as we know so far, no harp guitars were built, or at least introduced, in Los Angeles. 

The harp guitars in the first category, "Port Townsend Harp Guitars," come in two basic forms. The "1896 Patent" style matches the body shape of Knutsen’s first patent (a short arm extension without bass strings). The "1898 Patent" style matches the body shape of Knutsen’s second patent (a long arm extension with two, three, five, or no bass strings). Knutsen originally marketed both types as the "One-armed guitar," but I’m using the aforementioned terms to differentiate the two basic styles. As noted above, Knutsen introduced his "Symphony" harp guitars (with some initial experimentation) while in Port Townsend.

The second category, "Tacoma Harp Guitars," begins with "Pre-Symphony Harp Guitars," which were actually built in Port Townsend. These are a "missing link" between the "Patent-style" guitars and the next type - the fairly standardized "Symphony Harp Guitars" (Knutsen’s own term). Some of these were built in Port Townsend as well. These then segue into the "Evolving Symphony" style, which share certain features, most notably the new bridge shape and the evolving bass headstock.

Knutsen’s imagination runs rampant in the final category, "Seattle Harp Guitars." Fortunately, we can boil down all the variations into three basic body styles. "Lower Bass Point" harp guitars all feature a downward-pointing flare on the bass-side lower bout. "Lower Bass Point, Short Arm" instruments are similar, but with the arm extension terminating near the nut. These have either three or no bass strings (except for the 2003-discovered "zither harp guitar"). "Double Point" harp guitars have the same lower bass point, plus an additional point on the opposite upper treble bout. Again, we're able to see the bass headstocks continue to evolve.


Knutsen Harp Guitar Evolutionary Tree

Knutsen’s Patents   


Note: I have attempted to arrange all the harp guitars below in a roughly chronological, evolutionary order (within their categories).

   Port Townsend Harp Guitars    

"1896 Patent"                        (1895-1900)

 
HGP11 HGP1 HGP15 HGP18 HGP19 HGP20  
HGP10 HGP23 HGP2 HGP3 HGP24 HGP29 HGP30
"Continuous Arm" (1895-1898)

 

HGP16

  HGP25

"1898 Patent"              (1896-1900)

11-course

HGP4

HGP8 HGP9 HGP14 HGP17

9-course

 
HGP7 HGP12 HGP21 HGP22 HGP27 HGP28

8-course

 

6-course

     
   
HGP13   HGP5 HGP6 HGP26  

   Tacoma Harp Guitars (first models built in Port Townsend)

"Pre-Symphony"
(1898-1899)

HGT31 HGT45 HGT33

"Symphony"                                    
(1898-1900)
The first Symphony models were likely built during Knutsen's Port Townsend period and feature "slotted" headstocks (six individual crudely-made holes).  Treble banks occasionally appear as do the new "slanted frets."

HGT15 HGT57 HGT10 HGT17 HGT1 HGT14 HGT11 HGT12 HGT2 HGT30 HGT13
 

The next instruments have solid headstocks with friction tuners, highlighting the occasional experiment by Knutsen.

  HGT19 HGT25 HGT24 HGT51 HGT53 HGT28 HGT39 HGT23

(1900-1902) For the next two years, Knutsen - now in Tacoma - has transitioned entirely to solid headstocks with geared tuners.  Treble banks still occasionally appear and many have slanted frets.

HGT3 HGT26 HGT4 HGT5 HGT29 HGT37 HGT34 HGT38 HGT44 HGT48

"Double Sound-hole"
(1901-1902)

HGT50 HGT40 HGT54 HGT55 HGT56  

 

HGT41 HGT42 HGT52

"Evolving Symphony" (1902-1904) The "Evolving Symphony" guitars are organized in possible chronological order in 3 rows, based on my analysis of noticeable changes and evolution of bass headstock shape.   In this period, Knutsen abandons his traditional bridge shape and begins softening, then lengthening, and general evolving his sub-bass extension.
HGT47 HGT7 HGT36 HGT22 HGT43

HGT21

HGT6
Starting with this row, Knutsen switches to geared sub-bass string tuners (he will use these from now on, except for some of the last harp guitars, which use zither pins!).
        (1903-1905) (1904-1905)
HGT18 HGT35 HGT32 HGT46

(1904-1906)

HGT9 HGT49 HGT8 HGT27 HGT20 HGT16

   Seattle Harp Guitars

I've organized the Seattle harp guitars to show the probable evolution and chronology of the bass headstocks (see the Evolution graphic at page bottom). I've moved up some of the dates for the earlier instruments based on a dated photo. I've also done body proportion calculations to try and identify the full size and 3/4 size instruments.
Early Seattle instruments still resemble the final "Evolving Symphony" shape. I've labeled this bass headstock Type 1a (HGS3, 33, 29, 16, 35, 13, 25). Then the concave tip becomes convex and the headstock more vertical: Type 1b (HGS38). Next, the extra point in the middle disappeared, smoothing out the top: Type 1c (HGS5,14).
In the Mid Seattle instruments, the extra point is back and more pronounced: Type 2a (HGS6, 23, 30, 28, 15, 37, 12, 9, 7). Most of the 3/4 size instruments have this headstock, so are presumably all from the same 2-3 year period.
In the Late Seattle period, this same headstock appears on the first of the black finish harp guitars (HGS8, 18, 36), then starts becoming more vertical. Next, an extra point is added on the left at the arm/head junction, and the head becomes more bulbous: Type 3a (HGS21,17,24,54). After a brief foray into a very fat round tip: Type 3b (HGS22, 24), Knutsen continues with the very vertical headstocks of the final "Harp Guitar Factory" address: Type 3c (HGS1, 34, 32). Still not done, he now moves the uppermost point on the right further up, which further increases the length of the bass strings: Type 3d (HGS19 and Double Points HGS26 & 39). Finally, he concludes with Type 3e (HGS31), wherein the upper right point is moved all the way up into the corner, while rounding out the old left point.
Interesting how the Double Point style instruments at the bottom also have examples from the first and last Seattle periods, suggesting that this alternate body style was produced from 1906-1914 also (2005: which the labels now verify started by at least 1906 in Tacoma!)
The Seattle short arm harp guitars also went through a change in the bass arm from 1908 through 1913, including the 2003-discovered zither harp guitar!

NOTE: Many of actual sizes and scale lengths are unknown on these instruments.  They fall generally into two categories: full scale and 3/4 scale. I say "size" though this is not really accurate, as Knutsen's scales can fit on bodies of many sizes. Determining the scale length from the proportions has also proved to be misleading, as Knutsen uses shapes and sizes of every description.  Nevertheless, I have placed these in the applicable row that, if not verified, is my best guess. Many may be in error!  Each of the two main scale lengths can vary by a couple of inches. There is at least one roughly half-scale instrument known and a suspected long-scale instrument.

    "Lower Bass Point"

(1906-1908) Type 1a bass headstock       

full size

3/4 size

HGS29 HGS33 HGS35 / ? HGS3 HGS16

(1907-1909) Type 1b bass headstock (1907-1909) Type 1b custom  bass headstock (1910-1912) Type 1c bass headstock

3/4 size

full size

3/4 size

unknown size

HGS38 HGS58 HGS14 HGS5 HGS52 HGS51

(1911-1913) Type 2a bass headstock

full size

full or 3/4 size
 
HGS6 HGS23 HGS50 HGS63   HGS30 HGS49 HGS56 HGS59

3/4 size

 
 
HGS9 HGS28 HGS15 HGS37 HGS12 HGS65 HGS69 HGS71

1/2 size

HGS57 HGS61 HGS62 HGS7

(1912-1913) Type 2a bass headstock

full size

3/4 size

3/4 size?

 

HGS8 HGS18 HGS36 HGS43 HGS44

HGS68


(1912-1913) Type 3a bass headstock (1912-1913) Type 3b bass headstock
HGS21 HGS17 HGS24 HGS54 HGS73 HGS22

(1913-1914) Type 3c bass headstock

(1913-1914) Type 3d bass headstock

HGS1

HGS34 HGS32 HGS19 HGS46 HGS55 HGS67

(1913-1914) Type 3e bass headstock

HGS31 / ?

  "Lower Bass Point, Short Arm"
 (1906-1913)

   No sub-bass strings   "Withered Arm"
(my euphemism)
   
HGS2 HGS42 HGS4   HGS11  
   3 sub-bass strings
 
HGS10 HGS20 HGS27 HGS45 HGS41  

   3 sub-bass, headstock more like type 3

 

"Zither Harp Guitar" (my term)

     
HGS48 HGS66     HGS40  

"Double Point" (1906-1914)

Type 3d bass headstock
full size

Type 1a bass headstock
3/4 size

 

HGS26

HGS39

HGS70

  HGS13 HGS25 HGS47 HGS53 HGS64 HGS72

   Post-Seattle Harp Guitars

At this time, we have no evidence that Knutsen built any true harp guitars after he left Seattle. This is strange for several reasons. One, he pictures a 1912-1913 black-top Seattle harp guitar on his "New Hawaiian Family" labels - suggesting that the instrument was available and desirable for this music and period (I believe the label to have been in use from around 1914 into the 'twenties). Two, he pictures a (presumably) early-Seattle "Double Point" harp guitar on his Los Angeles Temple Street flyer/business cards (usable from 1920 to 1927 or 1928 [and perhaps earlier]). Three, many Hawaiian and other musicians were clearly using Knutsen harp guitars well past 1914 - so why wouldn't there be a demand for them? Was he intending for his "Upper Treble Point"-style convertible Hawaiian guitars to take the harp guitar's place? Did it? Were Dyer and other brands of harp guitar making his obsolete?
Another unsolved mystery...


   Additional harp guitars without images are listed in the Inventory.


Knutsen Harp Guitar Evolution


The Knutsen-Dyer Connection  

The Knutsen-Anderson Connection   


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