W.E. Boucher, Jr., 5-string banjo Circa 1850
It's rare for a collector to find a banjo that has been in the same family since the 1860's, but I was contacted by a family in Missouri about this banjo with a well established provenance, as seen below. Whether William Robert Smith bought the banjo new or used we can't be sure, but the instrument has flourished under their care for many generations. It's a relatively simple Boucher, but it is still playable and sounds just great. One of the original pegs also came with banjo. The Roman numerals VIIII appear on the rim and dowel stick.
