Fred Paul Hedges (March 27, 1921—June 19, 1999) was a master guitar builder and guitar teacher from Ewing, Illinois, and based in Mount Juliet, Tennessee. [1] He started playing guitar when he was 12 years old. [2] He was a musician as a hobby and was a cabinetmaker and die maker by trade. [2] He lived in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where he was a machinist and union labor leader[ citation needed], before moving to Nashville, Tennessee. [3]
Freddie Paul Hedges was a long-time friend of Grand Ole Opry star Billy Grammer who hired Hedges to help establish Grammer and J.W. Gower's newly formed guitar company. [4] In the 1960s, Hedges helped make finishing touches to the guitars and set up machines to mass-produce acoustic guitars for Grammer & Gower Guitar Co. in Nashville. [4] [2] In 1974, Hedges and his two sons opened Shiloh Music Center in Mount Juliet. [3] [2] [5] Fred Hedges is credited for hundreds of people learning to play the guitar and other stringed instruments in Nashville, Tennessee.[ citation needed] However, due to poor health, Hedges stepped back not long after opening and his sons took over. [2]
He has two sons, George and Richard, and three daughters, Gail Harrison, Pauline Williams, and April Hedges. [3] [5] Hedges died on June 19, 1999, in Durham, North Carolina. [5]