Ovation Guitars Will Once Again Be Made In New Hartford

Musicians from John Lennon to Paul Simon to Eddie Van Halen have all played Ovation guitars, made for many years in a factory in New Hartford. That plant was closed last year, but thanks to the efforts of a few dedicated employees, the Ovation factory will once again be producing guitars, NBC Connecticut reports.

For 47 years, the Ovation factory, housed in a very unassuming-looking mill building, produced the unique round-backed guitars that were favored by many artists for their special tone.

The Fender corporation, known for iconic guitars of their own such as the Stratocaster and Telecaster, bought the Ovation company in 2007. They announced last year that production of Ovation guitars would be handled overseas.

More than 40 employees in New Hartford lost their jobs. A few employees were kept in New Hartford to perform repairs.

Ovation was sold again in December. The new owners had planned to move their US operations to California, but when they toured their new facility they were surprised to see that a few of the remaining employees had set up the remaining Ovation equipment so that it would be ready to go if US production ever resumed.

According to NBC Connecticut, some machinery had been sold at auction when the plant was originally closed, but the employees are building the equipment they need to resume guitar manufacturing. Production will start soon, and special 50th anniversary edition Ovations will be produced in New Hartford next year.

Most Asian-made ovations sell in the several-hundred dollar range, but because of the quality and craftsmanship in New Hartford, guitar aficionados should save their pennies. A New Hartford-made Ovation will run well into the thousands.

Get more on this story from NBC Connecticut here.  Here's a video tour of the Original Ovation factory.

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