Rexonola Gramaphone

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Jackson & MacDonald Co.

c. 1926

Overview

Wood cabinet with domed lid. Fretwork on front of sound chamber. Double doors on front open to shelves for record storage

Historical information

‘Rexonola’—created & manufactured by Jackson & MacDonald Co., Sydney, Australia

Michael Chapman & Frederick William Peter Stephens at http://members.optusnet.com.au/~mikechap/rexonola.htm say

"During the first three decades of the twentieth century, the company Jackson & MacDonald of Kent Street Sydney, locally manufactured an impressive range of quality ‘talking machines’ under the trademarks ‘Rexophone’, ‘Rexonola’ and ‘Rexoport’—external horn, internal horn and portable machines respectively. In the early years, they also imported lateral cut ‘Rexophone’ discs, pressed exclusively, from Prussia, and later, after the First World War, from Great Britain.

The ‘Rexonola’ story begins in 1906 when two young men, S. J. Jackson & D. S. MacDonald, established themselves in Ash Street (then Sydney’s music centre), having obtained the city’s only Edison phonograph franchise. By 1912, after six years of selling Edison’s, they were in the position to commence local manufacture of their own machines. Their ‘Rexonola’ gramophones eventually became Australia’s leading brand and ‘Jackson & MacDonald’ the largest gramophone manufacturer in the Australian Commonwealth. ‘Rexonolas’ were widely distributed throughout Australia and New Zealand and by 1926 export within the British Empire was anticipated. Estimated production output between 1912 and 1929 is in the order of 180,000 units."

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-124-2021.50

Item type

Themes

Material

Width