Gretsch

The Gretsch Company was founded in 1883 by Friedrich Gretsch, a twenty-seven-year-old German immigrant recently arrived in the US. Friedrich Gretsch manufactured banjos, tambourines, and drums, until his death in 1895. His son, Fred, moved operations to Brooklyn, New York in 1916. Gretsch then became one of the most prominent manufacturers of American musical instruments.