Gibson Guitar Corp.
Hubert Friar was hired by the Gibson Guitar Company in Kalamazoo in 1959. Hubert worked for the company over 25 years. He worked at the end of the line, doing fret work. Hubert grew up playing guitar and knew Ren Wall and his father as a kid. When he was older he was recommended by Ren's father...
Joyce Shelven was a factory worker for the Gibson Guitar Company when it was located in Kalamazoon, Michigan. She was hired in 1947 just after the war and began working in the sanding department. Joyce worked both the belt sanders as well as the hand sanders before she left the company in 1964. ...
Mary Lou Hoogenboom was a factory worker for the Gibson Guitar Company when it was located in Kalamazoo, Michigan. She was hired in 1951 and began working in the sanding department, but found that she worked in every department before she retired in 1985. Her retirement occurred the same year the...
Ren Wall proudly followed his father's footsteps and worked in the Gibson Guitar Company in Kalamazoo, Michigan. He began working for the company in 1960 and continued until 1982. A few years later he returned to the very same factory to work for Heritage Guitar Company, which was formed by...
Mike Korpak enjoyed his work in the factory at Gibson Guitars beginning back in the 1960s in Kalamazoo, Michigan. During his career at Gibson, Mike was able to grow into management and ran the parts department for years before his retirement. In fact, Mike was the last employee of Gibson in the...
Dee Hoyt played professionally since he was a teenager including in local clubs and played for the National Guard as well as for dances. His band, the Tornados, recorded and performed rock and roll in the early 1960s. While playing at night, Dee got a job at Hayes Music as a salesman by day. He...
Maudie Moore was hired by Gibson Guitars in 1962 to do small piece work and soon branched out to engraving, which became a specialty for her over the next several decades. In fact, she opened her own shop called Moore’s Engraving in Kalamazoo in 1972, which allowed her to work with several other...
Chip Young was one of the best known recording session guitarists in Nashville. His thumb picking style can be heard on countless recordings and hundreds of hit records made in Nashville between the early 1960s into the 2000s. Chip's thumbing can be heard on Vern Gosdin's 1984 hit "I Can Tell by...
Jim Broadus was a true fan of the Gibson guitar he purchased as a kid growing up and chasing his dream to be a rock star. He was overjoyed in the early 1970s when he had the opportunities to work for the company. He traveled as a sales rep for Gibson before working in music retail in downtown...
Ren Ferguson is among the most noted master luthiers in the United States and has been since the 1970s. Many luthiers who wish to follow his style of building have studied his approach to guitar design and building. After having his own shop for some time Ren was hired by the Gibson Guitar Company...