Wayne Henderson (luthier)

Wayne C. Henderson is an American luthier specializing in handmade custom acoustic guitars. Henderson is based in Rugby, Virginia, population 7, in Grayson County, in the rural southwestern part of the state. Henderson's guitars are inspired by the great pre-World War II guitars of C.F. Martin & Company. His guitars are exceedingly rare (and therefore valuable) as he hand builds every guitar himself. As of October 2007, exactly four hundred Henderson guitars have been constructed.

Henderson's attention to quality and detail, as well as the long wait time (as much as ten years) are the stuff of legend among upscale acoustic guitar aficionados. Despite this, to the general musical public, Henderson is virtually unknown. However, Henderson did gain a measure of notoriety through the publishing of by Allen St. John in 2005. The book outlined the process by which Henderson built a guitar for famed guitarist Eric Clapton.

Along with Eric Clapton, Wayne has also built guitars for Tommy Emmanuel, Doc Watson, and Gillian Welch.