A New Era for Gallagher Guitars

Photos Courtesy of Gallagher Guitar Company Gallagher is a name that for nearly sixty years has been associated with finely crafted acoustic guitars.  For nearly that same length of time, Gallagher Guitars has also been tied to one of the finest flatpicking guitar players to ever put a pick to strings—the legendary Doc Watson. The Gallagher Guitar Company was founded in Wartrace, Tennessee by furniture maker John William Gallagher—known to most as J.W.—in 1965.  The Gallagher Cabinet Shop had opened in Wartrace in 1939.  J.W. built furniture in that shop.  In the 1950’s J.W. had also worked building scale models for a wind tunnel at the Arnold Engineering and Development Center in Tullahoma, Tennessee, but continued to build furniture on the side.  In 1963, J.W. became the shop supervisor for the Shelby Guitar Company in Shelbyville, Tennessee.  That company was started by the Slingerland Drum Company who had a plant in Shelbyville where they