The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Picked this up yesterday. I have been unable to find out any information on it. It was bought new by the owners grandparents between 1910 and 1920. The only Violinola I have been able to locate was out of Port Huron, MI. Any one ever seen one before?

I plan to completely restore the unit. For now it will look pretty in my study.

I'm glad to see this machine found a home. It was listed on FB Marketplace for a couple of weeks and I couldn't get a response from the seller even though it was listed in my town and I tried contacting him three times. I was hoping somebody would rescue it, the price certainly was right!

Sean

Sorry I beat you on your stomping ground. I just moved back to the northeast from the Texas and the deals up here are pretty amazing. Anything is Texas has "gold" prices attached to it. So something like this is worth the drive.

I drove all the way up from Connecticut last night. 3.5 hours round trip. One of the legs is in need of repair. The seller had a few records to sell, but I passed. I would love to find out more history on this unit though. I looked through Newspapers.com to at least find a ad, but I came up with nothing.

The home my wife and I own is historic and we plan on having a talking machine is almost every bedroom.

Know Your –Ola!
By Allen Koenigsberg
The Soundbox,
September 2004

A Search of the Antique Phonograph Society Online Archive selected the above article, documenting the many Ola’s.

Chief_Industrialist wrote:Sorry I beat you on your stomping ground. I just moved back to the northeast from the Texas and the deals up here are pretty amazing. Anything is Texas has "gold" prices attached to it. So something like this is worth the drive.

I drove all the way up from Connecticut last night. 3.5 hours round trip. One of the legs is in need of repair. The seller had a few records to sell, but I passed. I would love to find out more history on this unit though. I looked through Newspapers.com to at least find a ad, but I came up with nothing.

The home my wife and I own is historic and we plan on having a talking machine is almost every bedroom.

I'm glad it went to a good home! I'm way over phono-capacity as it is. I'd like to see some better photos of the machine if you wouldn't mind. I was a little unsure of the tonearm, it looked like it may have been a replacement, but it wasn't too clear from the seller's photos.

Anyway, congrats!

Sean

Interesting, but I don't see the resemblance to a violin...

Curt A wrote:Interesting, but I don't see the resemblance to a violin...

It might have a spruce horn- that is generally as close as these get.

I like that list of Ola's. Everyone should have a 'ola of some sort in their collection. I have a Humanola in mine.. Bill K

We have a Motorola and a Rockola, neither one are on that list. Also, a Thorola.

Congratulations on your new machine.

The brief amount of information we have on "Violinola" is: Violinola Phonograph Co., Port Huron, Michigan, and a slogan of "As Sweet as a Violin"
Matches the list pretty close, but not the N.Y. company,thanks for the list!

Our "ola's": Masterola, Mutrola, Modernola, Magnola, Vitanola, and of course, Victrola