Stuart Mossman has Passed

[Eric C. Shoaf]

Stuart Mossman died in the early hours of March 2, 1999 after a lengthy
illness. Mossman was co-founder of the famous Winfield Flatpicking
Festival. He is also remembered as an acoustic guitar manufacturer and
was one of the first of the independents to give the "big three" a run
for their money back in the 1970s. Mossman was profiled, along with a
complete history of Mossman Guitars, in the September 1997 issue of
Vintage Guitar Magazine. He will be buried in Winfield KS on Saturday
March 6, 1999.

Eric C. Shoaf

[Olin Murrell]

That's a shame. I met Mossman very briefly at a Winfield festival (I
think) in the mid 80's. Seemed like a class act, and his instruments
were, to put it mildly, quite nice.

Eric C. Shoaf wrote in message
<36DBDC73...@brownvm.brown.edu>...

[GmagicB]

I spent a long, hot afternoon with Stuart Mossman at the Winfield shop in the
summer of1974. Met the guys who worked there. Played every guitar they had
complete, in various models. Flint Hills, Great Plains, Tennessee Flattops.

I had just inherited a little money from my Dad; and since he'd given me my
first steel string acoustic for my birthday in '65, a Gibson Heritage which I
still treasure, I thought it would be fitting to use some of the money to buy
another guitar.

After a lot of wandering, picking up and playing different guitars and moving
on, all the while being entertained by Stuart, I picked out a guitar.

Someone more expert than I on Mossman models, could probably tell for sure what
it is. I think it's an upgraded Flint Hills model. The back and sides are
Brazilian rosewood, the top is suspiciously Adirondack like, as it does show
the red streaks that make red spruce red. It doesn't really matter to me.
Whatever it is, it's a huge sounding guitar. Maybe the loudest guitar I've ever
played.

And not just loud, either. It's full and deep, and a terrific lead guitar with
slice and dice trebles that really cut through. Alas, I'm not much of a lead
player, so this guitar gets its best workouts in the hands of friends who are
better players than I.

Anyway, I still play that guitar a lot, used it on a lot of gigs back when I
did that sort of thing. It is one of my most treasured instruments; because my
Dad bought it for me, and because even now I can still smell the sawdust in the
Mossman shop, the finest particles suspended in the air, filtering the
atmostphere into an almost sepia cast; and I still feel the heat of that July
afternoon and a new guitar, twenty-five years later.

So long, Stuart. You take care.

All the best,
Magic.

[Norman Draper]

Eric C. Shoaf wrote in message <36DBDC73...@brownvm.brown.edu>...
>Stuart Mossman died in the early hours of March 2, 1999 after a lengthy
>illness

Eric,
I think I speak for all of rmmga.... Please give our regards to the
family. As both a builder of fine guitars and founder of Winfield, he has
left a lasting mark on the world.

Norman Draper

[Hojo2X]

Like a lot of people who've commented in this thread, I, too, met Stuar
Mossman, on more than one occasion. Both shrewd and affable, he was always a
delight.

His company served as the training ground for a lot of builders who went on to
either found their own shops or to work for other acoustic guitar companies.
In a lot of ways, Stuart was ahead of his time, but then, that's always the
case with innovators, isn't it? His influence will last far beyond that of
just the Mossman Guitar Company's impact on the market at the time.

I played a mid-70s rosewood Mossman dreadnought as my main stage guitar for
years. I liked it better than the Martins being made at the time, not only
because of its low profile, adjustable neck, but also for its volume and
playability. You couldn't hit that guitar too hard - the harder you played,
the smoother and louder it got.

Anyway, farewell to another pilgrim. God rest and keep you, Stuart.

Wade Hampton Miller