Martin D-19 190th Anniversary Limited-Edition Dreadnought Acoustic Guitar Dark Mahogany

When Christian Frederick Martin arrived on these shores in 1833, he probably had no idea that 190 years later the instruments he and his descendants crafted—first in New York City and later in Nazareth, Pennsylvania—would be iconic symbols of the American acoustic guitar. To celebrate those 190 years, the company, now headed by his great-great-great-great grandson C.F. Martin IV, has created a special anniversary D-19 dreadnought in a limited run of just 190. 

A Stiffer Top for Greater Clarity

The original 1976 versions of the D-19 featured solid Sitka spruce tops and embraced Martin's early commitment to sustainability by "upcycling" cosmetically imperfect, but sonically sound, wood blanks, stained to match the back and sides. This special 190th Anniversary D-19 build follows in that tradition, using Adirondack spruce tops with slight cosmetic imperfections that have been patiently awaiting just the right project, and applying a digital microburst finish to achieve the look of figured mahogany. A big advantage of this is that Adirondack spruce is a stiffer and livelier tonewood that maintains clarity while being driven hard, delivering that classic, big dreadnought sound. 

The Original Dreadnought Body Style

C.F. Martin Guitars, as we discussed in our Riffs article on the history of the D-28, developed the large body style exclusively for the Oliver Ditson Company in 1916, then began building dreadnought guitars under their own name when Ditson went out of business early in the Great Depression of the 1930s. The dreadnought, in those un-amplified times, delivered the volume and presence needed to cut through other instruments. This enabled the acoustic guitar to become, for the first time, a lead instrument in small groups, like the bluegrass bands that were just starting to appear. The 190th Anniversary Limited-Edition D-19 is a proud member of that tradition, with a big voice that's easily heard whether you're fingerpicking a folk tune or blasting out classic high-speed bluegrass runs.