Ukulele Makers History: From Nunes to Kamaka
By Daniel Reed · July 2026 · 10 min read
The ukulele was invented by three Madeiran woodworkers — Manuel Nunes (age 40, cabinetmaker), Augusto Dias (age 37, woodworker), and José do Espírito Santo (age 28, craftsman) — who arrived in Honolulu aboard the SS Ravenscrag in August 1879. All three opened instrument workshops by 1884.
For more on the founding story, visit our complete ukulele history or our Portuguese instrument origins guide.
The Three Founders (1879–1900s)
Manuel Nunes was the most prolific, boldly claiming in newspaper ads that he invented the ukulele. He trained Samuel Kamaka, who would go on to found the Kamaka Ukulele company in 1916.
Augusto Dias opened a shop in Honolulu's Chinatown in 1884, advertising as "maker of guitars, machêtes, and all stringed instruments." His shop was destroyed in the great Chinatown fire of 1900.
José do Espírito Santo opened his shop near Nunes. He built ukuleles from highly figured koa with ornate decorations — known for being eggshell-thin, remarkably light, and surprisingly loud.
Kamaka Ukulele (1916–Today)
Founded by Samuel Kamaka, an apprentice of Manuel Nunes, Kamaka is the oldest continuously operating ukulele company in the world. Still family-owned and hand-crafting instruments in Honolulu using Hawaiian koa wood. Their HF-1 soprano is considered the gold standard of traditional ukuleles.
C.F. Martin & Co. (1916–Today)
The famed guitar maker began producing ukuleles in 1916 to meet Jazz Age demand. Martin ukes are prized by collectors for their warm, balanced tone. Vintage Martin Style 3K ukuleles in koa can exceed $28,000 at auction — an observed auction bracket rather than a listed price, with model history documented in the Martin’s published ukulele history.
Regal, Harmony & Maccaferri (1920s–1960s)
Maccaferri’s plastic-ukulele output, usually given as roughly nine million instruments, is a manufacturer-reported figure; comparable Maccaferri instruments are held in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History collections and period marketing is searchable in the Library of Congress collections.
Regal and Harmony mass-produced affordable ukuleles during the Jazz Age craze. Mario Maccaferri, a French-Italian luthier, produced approximately 9 million inexpensive plastic ukuleles for American households in the 1950s, making the instrument accessible to millions.
FAQ
Who was the first ukulele maker?
Manuel Nunes, Augusto Dias, and José do Espírito Santo are jointly credited as the first ukulele makers. All three opened workshops in Honolulu between 1880 and 1884.
Is Kamaka the oldest ukulele company?
Yes. Kamaka Ukulele, founded in 1916 by Samuel Kamaka (a former apprentice of Manuel Nunes), is the oldest continuously operating ukulele manufacturer in the world.
How much is a vintage Martin ukulele worth?
Vintage C.F. Martin ukuleles in pristine condition regularly fetch $5,000–$28,000 at auction, depending on model, condition, and wood. The Style 3K in koa is the most sought-after.
How to Identify and Date an Old Ukulele
Inherited instruments turn up constantly, and almost nobody knows what they are holding. These are the features that actually narrow down origin and era — in the order a specialist would check them.
| What to examine | What it can tell you | Caution |
|---|---|---|
| Interior label through the soundhole | Maker, city, and sometimes a model or serial number | Labels were reproduced and faked for decades. Treat a label as a claim, not proof. |
| Wood of the body | Koa points to Hawaiian manufacture; mahogany suggests mainland factory production | Figured veneers over plain wood are common on cheaper instruments. |
| Tuners | Friction pegs are typical of earlier instruments; geared tuners suggest later manufacture or a later repair | Tuners are the most commonly replaced part on any old instrument. |
| Headstock shape and logo | Often the most reliable brand identifier when the label is gone | Shapes were widely copied between factories. |
| Bridge type | A tie-block bridge follows the Portuguese-derived tradition; pin bridges point to guitar-influenced makers | Bridges are frequently replaced after lifting or cracking. |
| Body material | Moulded plastic dates an instrument to the mid-century mass-production era | These were made in vast numbers, so rarity value is limited. |
| Top thickness and weight | Very light, thin-topped instruments are a hallmark of the earliest Honolulu workshop tradition | Thin tops also crack easily, which affects value considerably. |
Before you sell or repair anything: get an independent appraisal from a specialist in vintage fretted instruments, and do not refinish, re-fret or re-glue anything first. Original finish and original parts carry a large share of a vintage instrument’s value, and well-meant restoration routinely destroys it.
Four Manufacturing Eras, and What Each Left Behind
Ukulele making did not develop gradually. It moved in four distinct phases, each driven by a different economic pressure, and each producing instruments that feel completely different in the hand.
- Workshop era (1880s–1910s). Individual Madeiran craftsmen in Honolulu, building small numbers by hand from local koa. Extremely light, thin-topped, individually varied instruments — the reference point for traditional tone.
- Boom era (1915–1930s). Mainland demand outran Hawaiian supply after the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition, and established guitar factories entered the market. Standardised dimensions, consistent quality, and the arrival of the concert size.
- Mass era (1940s–1960s). Moulded plastic and low-cost wooden instruments produced in enormous quantities put a ukulele in millions of households and classrooms. Durable, tuneable, and largely responsible for the instrument’s role in school music.
- Revival era (2000s–today). Renewed interest driven by recordings and online video restored demand for hand-built instruments, while global factories raised the quality floor at the budget end dramatically.
What survives from the earliest phase is scarce, which is why museum-held examples matter so much to researchers. Our main history page lists the primary sources behind these eras, and our Portuguese instrument origins guide covers the craft tradition the first makers brought with them.