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Mama Tried…
Norman Lockamy lovingly built the guitar while serving a 12-year sentence in Huntingdon State Prison in Pennsylvania starting in 1988.
Folsom Prison Blues…
Mama Tried…
30 Days in the Hole…
In the Jailhouse Now.
Whatever your favorite prison song is, we found the greatest electric guitar to play them. It was built by an inmate serving time at a Pennsylvania state prison.
This is “Lady,” an electric guitar built by an inmate within the walls of Huntingdon State Prison in Pennsylvania. Huntingdon is a 126-year-old jail that is so old and massive, it is known locally as "The Wall.”
Norman Lockamy lovingly built this guitar while serving a 12-year sentence in Huntingdon starting in 1988. It was completely crafted in the facility’s woodshop. Legend has it, Lockamy was allowed to purchase some parts while others were smuggled in to complete the guitar.
The guitar is a stunning example of prison folk art. The body and neck are of oak. The headstock is made of curly maple. The binding on the headstock is simply painted on and a hand-stamped brass truss rod cover has the word, “LADY.” The guitar is magnificent and plays like butter.
I wanted to learn more about these prison woodshops, so I called prison guard (and instrument builder) Al Hamilton, who said all wood used in the Pennsylvania state prison system comes from nearby Rockview Prison. Hamilton said this guitar is definitely Pennsylvania oak. The fretboard was stained black to simulate ebony, and a thin walnut strip runs up the cap of the carved double-cutaway body. There is a cream-colored binding around the body.
According to Hamilton, Huntingdon Prison’s woodshop is there primarily to keep things self-sufficient, with employees and prisoners making repairs to the structure along