Guitar Story A Brand Lineage Research Project

Which is it?

Who made my Gretsch? Owners and factories, 1883–2026 · Guitar Story

Which Gretsch is it?

The name Gretsch has been on guitars since 1883^[1]. Over that time it has had 4 controlling companies and has been built at 13 places, 9 of them outside the USA. Which version you hold depends on the year and the serial number.

4owners

13build sites

9outside the USA

OwnerPlant in the USAPlant outside the USADisputed version

Outside the USA onlyShow disputed

Controls the nameowner of the brand

Licence and distributionwho ran it for the owner

Brooklynbuilt in the USA · from 1883^{no source}

Baldwin Arkansasbuilt in the USA · from 1970^{no source}

Professional Collection (Japan)imported · from 1989^{no source}

Japan early-Fender-era modelsimported · from 2003^{no source}

Traveling Wilburys (Korea)imported · from 1988^{no source}

Electromaticimported · from 1999^{no source}

Synchromatic/Historicimported · from 1999^{no source}

Streamlinerimported · from 2016^{no source}

Custom Shopcustom shop · from 1995^{no source}

Facts with no start year, not drawn

←

Pick any bar on the neck. The card shows the dates, the quoted passage behind them and the source, and any rival version of the same date.

Reading the neck

Each decade is a fret. The top strips show who controlled the name. The strips below them show where each product line was built, one group per line.

Hatched strips with a country stamp are plants outside the USA. Outlined strips are versions of a date that sources disagree on; they sit in the same place as the version they compete with.

The stamp on a card is the grade of the sources behind the dates, from primary company documents to community posts. Every card shows the passage it rests on.

Where it was built

Every plant on record, overseas ones first, with the product lines each one built. Press play to watch the brand move: lit plants were building that year, faded ones had already been left behind.

All years

Showing every plant on record. Press play to watch Gretsch change hands and move, from 1883 to today.

All 11 brands

15 plants, 10 outside the USA

Yako (China; city unverified)CN
China^{no source}
- Electromatic2000–now^{[19, 22]}
PT Cort Indonesia, NgoroID
Ngoro, Mojokerto, East Java, Indonesia^[32]3 brands
- Streamliner?–now^[24]
PT Samick Indonesia, CileungsiID
Cileungsi, West Java, Indonesia^[30]2 brands
- Streamliner2016–now^{[23, 19]}
Dyna Gakki (Gretsch Japan, early Fender era; unverified)JP
Japan^[28]
- Japan early-Fender-era models2003–2006^[19]
FujiGenJP
Matsumoto, Nagano, Japan^[29]3 brands
- Japan early-Fender-era models2003–2006^{[19, 20]}
Terada GakkiJP
Nagoya, Aichi, Japan^[27]2 brands
- Professional Collection (Japan)1989–now^{[7, 19]}
Gretsch Mexico small runs (location unverified)MX
Mexico^{no source}
- Baldwin Arkansas1978–1979^[18]
- Baldwin Arkansas (disputed)1981–1982^[17]
Korean builder of Traveling Wilburys guitars (unverified)KR
South Korea^{no source}
- Traveling Wilburys (Korea)1988–1990^[7]
Peerless (Korea; city unverified)KR
South Korea^{no source}
- Electromatic1999–2008^{[19, 21]}
- Synchromatic/Historic1999–2008^[19]
Samick or SPG (Korea; builder disputed)KR
South Korea^{no source}
- Electromatic (disputed)2000–2021^{[19, 21]}
Fender CoronaUS
Corona, CA, USA^[33]2 brands
- Custom Shop2004–now^{[12, 25]}
Gretsch Booneville ARUS
Booneville, AR, USA^{no source}
- Baldwin Arkansas1970–1981^{[16, 17]}
Gretsch Brooklyn (60 Broadway)US
Brooklyn, NY, USA^[26]
- Brooklyn1916–1970^{[2, 13, 14]}
Gretsch De Queen AR (alternative claim)US
De Queen, AR, USA^{no source}
- Baldwin Arkansas (disputed)1969–now^[15]
US custom builder for Gretsch before Fender Custom Shop (location unverified)US
USA^{no source}
- Custom Shop1995–2004^[19]
- Custom Shop (disputed)1998–2004^[17]

Eras

An era is a stretch of one product line where the controlling company and the plant stay the same. These rows are computed from the dated ownership and production facts, never typed in. 19 eras

Line	Years	Controlled by	Built at	Grade · sources
Gretsch Brooklyn	1883 – 1967	Gretsch family / Fred Gretsch Manufacturing Co., Brooklyn	Gretsch Brooklyn (60 Broadway)	secondary^{[1, 2, 13, 14]}
Gretsch Brooklyn	1967 – 1970	D.H. Baldwin & Co.	Gretsch Brooklyn (60 Broadway)	secondary^{[2, 3, 13, 14]}
Gretsch Baldwin Arkansas	1970 – 1981	D.H. Baldwin & Co.	Gretsch Booneville AR	secondary^{[2, 3, 16, 17]}
Gretsch Professional Collection (Japan)	1989 – 2003	Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch)	Terada Gakki JP	secondary^{[1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 19]}
Gretsch Professional Collection (Japan)	2003 – now	Fender Musical Instruments Corporation parent: Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch)	Terada Gakki JP	secondary^{[1, 4, 5, 6, 12, 7, 19]}
Gretsch Japan early-Fender-era models	2003 – 2006	Fender Musical Instruments Corporation parent: Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch)	Dyna Gakki (Gretsch Japan, early Fender era; unverified) JP	community^{[1, 4, 5, 6, 12, 7, 19]}
Gretsch Japan early-Fender-era models	2003 – 2006	Fender Musical Instruments Corporation parent: Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch)	FujiGen JP	community^{[1, 4, 5, 6, 12, 7, 19, 20]}
Gretsch Traveling Wilburys (Korea)	1988 – 1990	Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch)	Korean builder of Traveling Wilburys guitars (unverified) KR	secondary^{[1, 4, 5, 6, 7]}
Gretsch Electromatic	1999 – 2003	Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch)	Peerless (Korea; city unverified) KR	community^{[1, 4, 5, 6, 19, 21]}
Gretsch Electromatic	2000 – 2003	Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch)	Yako (China; city unverified) CN	community^{[1, 4, 5, 6, 19, 22]}
Gretsch Electromatic	2003 – 2008	Fender Musical Instruments Corporation parent: Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch)	Peerless (Korea; city unverified) KR	community^{[1, 4, 5, 6, 12, 7, 19, 21]}
Gretsch Electromatic	2003 – now	Fender Musical Instruments Corporation parent: Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch)	Yako (China; city unverified) CN	community^{[1, 4, 5, 6, 12, 7, 19, 22]}
Gretsch Synchromatic/Historic	1999 – 2003	Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch)	Peerless (Korea; city unverified) KR	community^{[1, 4, 5, 6, 19]}
Gretsch Synchromatic/Historic	2003 – 2008	Fender Musical Instruments Corporation parent: Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch)	Peerless (Korea; city unverified) KR	community^{[1, 4, 5, 6, 12, 7, 19]}
Gretsch Synchromatic/Historic	2008 – now	Fender Musical Instruments Corporation parent: Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch)	no plant on record	primary^{[1, 4, 5, 6, 12, 7]}
Gretsch Streamliner	2016 – now	Fender Musical Instruments Corporation parent: Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch)	PT Samick Indonesia, Cileungsi ID	secondary^{[1, 4, 5, 6, 12, 7, 23, 19]}
Gretsch Custom Shop	1995 – 2003	Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch)	US custom builder for Gretsch before Fender Custom Shop (location unverified)	secondary^{[1, 4, 5, 6, 19]}
Gretsch Custom Shop	2003 – 2004	Fender Musical Instruments Corporation parent: Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch)	US custom builder for Gretsch before Fender Custom Shop (location unverified)	secondary^{[1, 4, 5, 6, 12, 7, 19]}
Gretsch Custom Shop	2004 – now	Fender Musical Instruments Corporation parent: Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch)	Fender Corona	primary^{[1, 4, 5, 6, 12, 7, 25]}

Models and materials

Notable models by year introduced, and what a part was made of on a line and when that changed.

Year	Model	Line	Grade · sources
1953	Duo Jet · electric	Gretsch Brooklyn	unverified^{[15, 35]}
1954	6120 · electric	Gretsch Brooklyn	unverified^{[15, 35]}
1954	White Falcon · electric	Gretsch Brooklyn	secondary^{[36, 35]}
1957	Country Gentleman · electric	Gretsch Brooklyn	unverified^{[15, 35]}
1978	7681 Atkins Super Axe · electric	Gretsch Baldwin Arkansas	unverified^[15]
1988	Traveling Wilburys · electric	Gretsch Traveling Wilburys (Korea)	secondary^[7]
2013	Billy Duffy signature · electric	Gretsch Custom Shop	unverified^[15]
2016	Streamliner Collection · electric	Gretsch Streamliner	secondary^[37]

Gretsch year by year

Pick the year your Gretsch was built to see who owned the name and which plant built each line that year.

1880s

1890s

1900s

1910s

1920s

1930s

1940s

1950s

1960s

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

2010s

2020s

Compare Gretsch with

Where Gretsch was built

Sources

Every numbered marker on this page points here: the document, its grade and the passages relied on. An era is computed, so it cites the ownership and production facts it was derived from. A fact marked “no source” has no claim attached yet.

1
gretschguitars: support/historygraded primary
- "in 1883… Friedrich Gretsch… founded his shop in Brooklyn"Gretsch, founded
- "In 1984, Fred W. Gretsch… purchased Gretsch back"Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch), owns, 1984 – present
- In late 2002 a deal was struck for Fender Musical Instruments Corp. to handle Gretsch Guitars manufacturing and distributionFender Musical Instruments Corporation, licenses, 2003 – present
2
acousticmusic: guitar music research/guitar information/large shop guitar builders/gretschgraded secondary
- "In 1967, Fred Gretsch, Jr. sold the Gretsch Company to… D. H. Baldwin"D.H. Baldwin & Co., owns, 1967 – 1984
- "merged Gretsch with Kustom in November 1979… Baldwin went bankrupt in 1983"D.H. Baldwin & Co., owns, 1967 – 1984
- "bought the Baldwin music divisions in 1984"Baldwin Piano & Organ Co. (Richard Harrison), owns, 1984 – 1984
- "Manufacturing continued for 3 years at the 60 Broadway factory"Gretsch Brooklyn at Gretsch Brooklyn (60 Broadway), 1916 – 1970
- "Baldwin re-acquired control… in 1978"Hagner Musical Instruments ran Gretsch Booneville AR, 1973 – 1978
3
GretschTech: The Baldwin Eragraded primary
- The sale was completed on July 31, 1967.D.H. Baldwin & Co., owns, 1967 – 1984
- parent company Baldwin United declared bankruptcy in late 1983.D.H. Baldwin & Co., owns, 1967 – 1984
- As of summer 1984, Baldwin CEO Dick Harrison owned Gretsch.Baldwin Piano & Organ Co. (Richard Harrison), owns, 1984 – 1984
- He bought Gretsch from Harrison in January 1985.Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch), owns, 1985 – present
4
The Story of Gretschgraded secondary
- In 1984 Fred made good on his promise when he and his wife Dinah bought the Gretsch Company back from Baldwin.Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch), owns, 1984 – present
- In 2002 Gretsch and Fender announced an alliance that granted Fender exclusive rights to develop, market, and distribute Gretsch guitars.Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, licenses, 2003 – present
5
Fred #4: Fred W. Gretsch – Leading The Return Of 'That Great Gretsch Sound.'graded primary
- His offer was accepted, and in November 1984, Fred was able to fulfill his 17-year dream of buying back the Gretsch Company.Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch), owns, 1984 – present
- Announcement of the purchase was made at the music industry's annual NAMM Show in January 1985.Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch), owns, 1985 – present
6
A brief history of Gretsch guitarsgraded secondary
- In 1984, the couple bought the Gretsch brand backFred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch), owns, 1984 – present
- In 2002, Gretsch and Fender Musical Instruments Corp announced a strategic partnership.Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, licenses, 2003 – present
7
reverb: news/the rebirth of gretsch guitarsgraded secondary
- "bought the business in January 1985"Baldwin Piano & Organ Co. (Richard Harrison), owns, 1984 – 1985
- "starting officially on the first day of 2003"Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, licenses, 2003 – present
- "chose Terada, an experienced firm in Nagoya"Gretsch Professional Collection (Japan) at Terada Gakki, 1989 – present
- "a series of Korean-made electrics named for the Traveling [Wilburys]"Gretsch Traveling Wilburys (Korea) at Korean builder of Traveling Wilburys guitars (unverified), 1988 – 1990
8
Baldwin Piano & Organ Company - Company Historygraded secondary
- In June 1984, R. S. Harrison... joined with BP&O President Harold Smith to execute a leveraged buyout of the subsidiary from its troubled parent.Baldwin Piano & Organ Co. (Richard Harrison), owns, 1984 – 1984
9
The Gretsch Company Celebrates 125 Yearsgraded secondary
- In 1985, he made good on his promise and bought The Gretsch Company back from Baldwin.Fred Gretsch Enterprises, Ltd. (Fred W. and Dinah Gretsch), owns, 1985 – present
10
bluebookofguitarvalues: acoustic guitars/manufacturers/gretschgraded secondary
- "distributed by the Fred Gretsch Company… from 1989 to 2002"Fred Gretsch Co., distributes, 1989 – 2002
- "Bill Hagner formed the Hagner Musical Instruments company"Hagner Musical Instruments ran Gretsch Booneville AR, 1973 – 1978
11
Gretsch (electric guitars manufacturer page) - Blue Book of Guitar Valuesgraded secondary
- Previously distributed by the Fred Gretsch Company of Savannah, GA from 1989 to 2002.Fred Gretsch Co., distributes, 1989 – 2002
12
gretschguitars: 2014/01/ten years of the gretsch custom shopgraded primary
- "Fender acquired licensing for the manufacture, distribution and marketing… in 2002"Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, licenses, 2003 – present
- Gretsch Custom Shop is now located in the rolling hills of Corona, Calif.Gretsch Custom Shop at Fender Corona, 2004 – present
13
guitarinsite: gretsch factoriesgraded community
- 60 Broadway, Brooklyn (1916)Gretsch Brooklyn at Gretsch Brooklyn (60 Broadway), 1916 – 1970
14
craveguitars: brands gretsch six-string synopsisgraded community
- in 1916, manufacturing and offices moved to larger premises, still in BrooklynGretsch Brooklyn at Gretsch Brooklyn (60 Broadway), 1916 – 1970
15
Wikipedia: wiki/Gretschgraded community
- "moved… to a plant in DeQueen, Arkansas"Gretsch Baldwin Arkansas at Gretsch De Queen AR (alternative claim), 1969 – present
16
chicagomusicexchange: blogs/news/the evolution of the gretsch soundgraded community
- "moved to Booneville, Arkansas in 1970"Gretsch Baldwin Arkansas at Gretsch Booneville AR, 1970 – 1981
17
jedistar: gretsch 2/ampgraded secondary
- "Production continued in Arkansas until 1981"Gretsch Baldwin Arkansas at Gretsch Booneville AR, 1970 – 1981
- "a handful of guitars were made in various places (including Mexico)"Gretsch Baldwin Arkansas at Gretsch Mexico small runs (location unverified), 1981 – 1982
18
bluebookofguitarvalues: gretsch company history 1973-presentgraded secondary
- Baldwin had experimented briefly with guitar production at their Mexican organ facilities, producing perhaps 100 Southern Belle guitars (basically renamed Country Gentlemans) between 1978 and 1979.Gretsch Baldwin Arkansas at Gretsch Mexico small runs (location unverified), 1978 – 1979
19
reverb: news/how to date a gretsch guitargraded secondary
- "1989 - present: Japan (Terada factory)"Gretsch Professional Collection (Japan) at Terada Gakki, 1989 – present
- "JD = Japan - Dyna Gakki"Gretsch Japan early-Fender-era models at Dyna Gakki (Gretsch Japan, early Fender era; unverified), 2003 – 2006
- "JF = Japan - FujiGen Gakki"Gretsch Japan early-Fender-era models at FujiGen, 2003 – 2006
- "Starting in 1999… budget-level Electromatic… in Korea"Gretsch Electromatic at Peerless (Korea; city unverified), 1999 – 2008
- "KS = Korea - Samick"Gretsch Electromatic at Samick or SPG (Korea; builder disputed), 2000 – 2021
- "CY = China - Yako"Gretsch Electromatic at Yako (China; city unverified), 2000 – present
- "IS = Indonesia – Samick"Gretsch Streamliner at PT Samick Indonesia, Cileungsi, 2016 – present
- "1995 - present: US (Custom & Masterbuilt Series)"Gretsch Custom Shop at US custom builder for Gretsch before Fender Custom Shop (location unverified), 1995 – 2004
20
Wikipedia: wiki/FUJIGENgraded community
- some Gretsch models and their own branded FGN guitarsGretsch Japan early-Fender-era models at FujiGen, 2003 – 2006
21
gretsch-talk: threads/gretsch korean plants.105525graded community
- "KP = Korea - Peerless"Gretsch Electromatic at Peerless (Korea; city unverified), 1999 – 2008
- "'KS' stands for Korea: SPG factory"Gretsch Electromatic at Samick or SPG (Korea; builder disputed), 2000 – 2021
22
gretsch-talk: threads/what year did electromatic production move from korea to china.218618graded community
- "transitioned to China between June and July of 2021"Gretsch Electromatic at Yako (China; city unverified), 2000 – present
23
guitar: reviews/electric guitar/gretsch shootout g2420t streamliner g5420t electromatic g6120t plagraded secondary
- "Streamliner models are made in Indonesia"Gretsch Streamliner at PT Samick Indonesia, Cileungsi, 2016 – present
24
gretsch-talk: threads/guitars made in indonesia pt 1.200410graded community
25
fender newsroom: gretsch celebrates 15 years of the gretsch custom shopgraded primary
- With Stern tied up with Benedetto, Fleming and Fender’s George Blanda were tabbed to build the first-ever custom U.S.-made Gretsch models, which debuted at the 2004 winter NAMM Show.Gretsch Custom Shop at Fender Corona, 2004 – present
26
Gretsch Historygraded community
- In 1916, Fred Sr. moved operations to 10-story building at 60 Broadway in the Williamsburg section of in Brooklyn, N.Y.Gretsch Brooklyn (60 Broadway), location
27
株式会社寺田楽器 recruitment page (company-supplied 所在地)graded primary
- 所在地: 愛知県海部郡蟹江町今西1丁目251番地Terada Gakki, location
28
国税庁法人番号公表サイト: 株式会社ダイナ楽器 (法人番号1100001019111)graded primary
- 長野県茅野市玉川３６０２番地の１Dyna Gakki (Gretsch Japan, early Fender era; unverified), location
29
フジゲン(株) 会社概要 (本社所在地)graded secondary
- 本社所在地: 長野県松本市平田東3-3-1FujiGen, location
30
PT Samick Indonesia (Panjiva supplier profile)graded secondary
- JL. PERKEBUNAN DESA KIDUL, KEC.CIL, BOGOR JAWA BARAT, INDONESIAPT Samick Indonesia, Cileungsi, location
31
fuzzfaced: squier china indonesia en.htmlgraded community
- "In 1992, Samick built its P.T. Samick factory in Cileungsi… 50 hectares with 11 buildings"PT Samick Indonesia ran PT Samick Indonesia, Cileungsi, 1992 – present
- "In 1995, Cort opened its P.T. Cort facility in Surabaya"PT Cort Indonesia ran PT Cort Indonesia, Ngoro, 1995 – present
32
PT Cort Indonesia (Panjiva supplier profile)graded secondary
- Kawasan Berikat Ngoro Industri Persada Blok G, 5-6, Desa Ngoro, Kecamatan Ngoro, Kabupaten, Mojokerto, Jawa TimurPT Cort Indonesia, Ngoro, location
33
Fender Announces Free Public Visitor Center and Factory Toursgraded secondary
- The Visitor Center is located at 301 Cessna Circle, Corona, Calif. 92880Fender Corona, location
34
mmone: guild guitarsgraded secondary
- "moved to Fender's headquarters in Corona… until 2004"Fender Musical Instruments Corporation ran Fender Corona, year unknown
35
guitarplayer: gretsch 140th anniversary double platinum collectiongraded secondary
- Duo Jet appeared in 1953.Duo Jet, introduced 1953
- In 1954, Gretsch’s flagship White Falcon was unveiled at the NAMM trade show, while the premier guitar hero of the day, Chet Atkins, received his first signature model, the Hollow Body, the same year.6120, introduced 1954
- In 1954, Gretsch’s flagship White Falcon was unveiled at the NAMM trade showWhite Falcon, introduced 1954
- Atkins’ top-of-the-range Country Gentleman was then developed in 1957 for the 1958 model year.Country Gentleman, introduced 1957
36
Wikipedia: wiki/Gretsch White Falcongraded community
37
premierguitar: gretsch releases the streamliner seriesgraded secondary

Which is it?

Which Gretsch is it?

Reading the neck

Yako (China; city unverified)CN

PT Cort Indonesia, NgoroID

PT Samick Indonesia, CileungsiID

Dyna Gakki (Gretsch Japan, early Fender era; unverified)JP

FujiGenJP

Terada GakkiJP

Gretsch Mexico small runs (location unverified)MX

Korean builder of Traveling Wilburys guitars (unverified)KR

Peerless (Korea; city unverified)KR

Samick or SPG (Korea; builder disputed)KR

Fender CoronaUS

Gretsch Booneville ARUS

Gretsch Brooklyn (60 Broadway)US

Gretsch De Queen AR (alternative claim)US

US custom builder for Gretsch before Fender Custom Shop (location unverified)US

Compare Gretsch with

Where Gretsch was built