Object Record
Images
Metadata
Object Name |
Pattern, Woodworking |
Catalog Number |
2013.029.01 |
Description |
Wooden pattern used for shaping a violin. Hardwood, with inside shape used as a pattern for one side of a violin. Hashmarks in three places on one side of pattern. |
Other Name |
Violin Pattern |
Year Range from |
1903 |
Year Range to |
1934 |
Provenance |
Used by Ole Tollefson, La Crosse violin maker circa 1903-1934, died 1938. |
Used By |
Tollefson, Ole |
Made By |
Tollefson, Ole |
Material |
Wood |
Dimensions |
H-16.88 W-5.5 D-1.25 inches |
Height (in) |
16.880 |
Width (in) |
5.500 |
Place of Origin |
La Crosse, WI |
People |
Tollefson, Ole |
Subjects |
Businesses Music "Things that Matter" |
Search Terms |
"Things that Matter" Made in La Crosse |
Notes |
Featured in Things that Matter Over a century ago, La Crosse was home to a violin maker, Ole Tollefson. Tollefson was born in Norway in 1853. At the age of 3, he sailed with his parents to the United States. The family settled in Detroit, Michigan, and later Lansing, Iowa, and finally in La Crosse, Wisconsin. For a brief time, Tollefson worked at a grocery store before he started his music career at the Bergh Piano Company in the violin department. In 1924, he left the Bergh Piano Company and opened his own music store on the corner of Jay and Fifth Streets making and repairing violins. In 1927, Tollefson described his life's work in the La Crosse Tribune: "The violin is a peculiar instrument, and once you become infatuated with its mysteries you never lose interest." All of the new instruments sold in Tollefson's shop were handmade by him. The patterns pictured were made and used by Tollefson to create his one-of-a-kind violins. These forms were donated to the La Crosse County Historical Society in 2013 by Dan Brodrick, who is himself a luthier, or one who makes and repairs violins. The items donated include various wooden and wrought iron forms used to create violins. To create his violins, Tollefson used spruce and Pernambuco wood that was guaranteed by his supplier, Rushford and Draper of Liverpool, to be at least 200 years old. This was re-purposed from the masts of old shipwrecks. The January 1920 edition of The Violinist, a magazine published in Chicago, features violin makers and shops across the country. In the magazine, Tollefson is described as an American citizen and a dealer that sells all grades of violins, new and old. He is also listed as making violins, cellos, violas, bows and wound strings. Tollefson died in 1938, and his obituary noted that he was the only recognized violin maker in Western Wisconsin upon his retirement in 1936, and that he was rated amongst the leading violin makers of the world. This article was originally published in the La Crosse Tribune. Title: Ole Tollefson's Violin Patterns Author: Amy Vach Publish Date: October 20, 2018 |