Gennett Records Walk of Fame

The Gennett Records branch of the now-defunct Starr Piano Company is well-known for its groundbreaking recordings of numerous jazz pioneers like Louis Armstrong, Hoagy Carmichael, Jelly Roll Morton and Duke Ellington. Once located on the banks of the Whitewater River in the center of Richmond, Gennett Records also recorded many pioneers in other styles of American music. Blues artist Thomas A. Dorsey and Charley Patton, one of the earliest and most-influential Delta blues musicians, both recorded for Gennett. Fiddlin’ Doc Robert, Gene Autry and Ernest Stoneman made essential contributions on the Gennett label to a nascent form of country music known today as old-time music. The Starr Piano Company opened in 1872, adding phonographs and records around 1915. Special exhibit of the Starr-Gennett Foundation is located at The Richmond Furniture Gallery, in the Historic Depot District.