Early Inspirations for the Jukebox

Based in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, the Sunliner Diner is a restaurant emulating 1950s diners in both taste and feel. Families from throughout the Pigeon Forge region can enjoy classic meals at the Sunliner Diner, while also enjoying 1950s aesthetics and a real jukebox.

The earliest predecessors of the automated music machine that would ultimately be known as the jukebox are the player piano, the music box, and other automated instrument machines that made use of paper or metal music rolls or cylinders to play compositions without the need for a musician. By the end of the 19th century, inventors had developed a sister technology capable of producing prerecorded tracks, as opposed to manipulating physical instruments.

Louis Glass and William S. Arnold are credited with the invention of the first pay to play phonograph, the Edison Class M Electric Phonograph, released in 1890. The phonograph was the first to feature their patented coin actuated attachment device. The technology continued to evolve and grow in popularity throughout the nation, though the term “jukebox” did not come into parlance for another 50 years.