Title: Tenor Trombone

Maker: C. G. Conn

Model: Innes Model; engraved by James Gardner (J. H. Gardner)

Date: 1888

Geography: Elkhart, Indiana, United States

Material: Brass

Serial Number: N/A

Accession Number: GL-062_A4-03

Provenance: Founding Greenleaf Donation from Conn Museum, 1969

Description

Key: B-flat

Pitch: High

Finish: Gold-plated, burnished

Lacquer: Yes, not original

Engraving: The entire instrument is lavishly engraved by J. H. Gardner. See Notes section below for full details. Engraved bell includes, “MADE / BY CONN / ELKHART / IND.” and the inscription “J. H. GARDNER ENGRAVER 1888.” near bell rim.

Mouthpiece: Yes. Gold-plated, engraved, unsigned mouthpiece.

Accessories: No

Case: No

Notes:

Featured in “Elkhart's Brass Roots” exhibition of 1994 (item #11).
Trombone is on display at Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix, Arizona (as of 2026).
Tuning slide in bell
Bottom-spring piston trill valve with one guidepin, the finger button featuring a cast and engraved silver cat's face.
Slide lock (incomplete)
One water key
Bore 0.447” (11.35 mm); Bell diameter 6-3/8”
This trombone was decorated by Conn’s first master engraver, James Gardner (J. H. Gardner), as a personal project. Every surface of this instrument (including the mouthpiece and water key lever) was lavishly engraved, resulting in an artistic masterpiece. Details include framed portraits of Gardner, his wife, and their dog, Max; a scene from “The Nymphs Bathing” myth (depicting three nude women bathing in a brook); a castle; two angels (one holding a brass instrument, one a wreath); roses, flowers, ferns, oak leaves, acorns, and urns; a snake entwined among flowers and leaves; and various decorative patterns and ornate scrolling. The interior of the bell is engraved with geometric decorations and eight, eight-petaled flowers.
This instrument was discussed in the September 13, 1888 issue of the “Elkhart Weekly Review”: “James Gardner today showed us a slide trombone recently made for him at Conn's manufactory, which is the most elaborate and beautiful instrument of the kind we ever saw. … The work stamps Mr. Gardner as an artist of very superior merit, a title which he has long worn in Mr. Conn's factory. The instrument is on exhibition at M. Kaskel's billiard room.” (Source: Banks, Margaret Downie. Elkhart’s Brass Roots. Shrine to Music Museum, College of Fine Arts, University of South Dakota, 1994. Page 25)
The trombone was initially intended for James Gardner himself, but was later played by Arthur Pryor, who was a famous Sousa Band soloist and bandleader.