My name is Zach Hoyt and I now live in Piercefield, NY, in the Adirondacks. I lived and worked at a nonprofit organization called St. Francis Farm in Orwell, NY from 2001 to 2022. In 2017 I was lucky enough to be interviewed by Craig Evans as part of his DVD set Old-Time Conversations Volume 6. For more information about the series and to see a teaser video that tells a bit about life at the farm please follow the link below:
https://oldtimeconversations.com/films/old-time-conversations/?tab=volume-6
I always enjoyed woodworking and had wanted to learn to build instruments since I was a kid. I finally got started at age 18 in 2004 when I built my first mountain dulcimer out of birch ply, following a plan in a book. From there I started building solid wood dulcimers and then branched out into hammered dulcimers and harps. In 2005 I bought an old tenor banjo at a flea market and made a 5 string conversion neck for it. In 2008 I began my first mandolin, then I started building banjos in 2009. Fiddles came in 2011, followed by resonator guitars in 2013, acoustic guitars in 2014 and my first cello in 2015.
In 2007 the farm bought a sawmill and during the years I was there some of my instruments were built with wood that came from trees cut on the farm. I sold instruments online on Craigslist starting in 2006 and on BanjoHangout and Etsy since 2009. In early 2016 I decided it was time to put together my own website so that all of my in-stock instruments and custom options could be seen in one place.
I began having trouble with my website and not being able to edit some aspects of it in the fall of 2024, and in the fall of 2025 it finally occurred to me to ask if there was someone on Banjo Hangout who was good at websites and could fix it and make it so I could maintain it myself again in exchange for a banjo. Jon Lundbom offered to give it a try and has done a wonderful job, making the site better than it ever used to be.
If you’re in the area and would like to visit and see the instruments in person you are welcome to do that. I am available most of the time, days or evenings, by appointment. Email is the best way to reach me since I can’t always hear my phone when I’m in the shop doing loud things. I check my email regularly and do my best to reply promptly to messages. If you want to call or text my number is 315 405 1901. I will answer if I hear your call, and if not I will reply as soon as I notice it.
Below is my email address for all inquiries:
And my address is:
Zachary Hoyt
354 Main St
PO Box 168
Piercefield, NY 12973
(315) 405-1901