"One hundred and ninety years ago, on November 6th, my great, great, great grandfather and grandmother and their two children arrived in New York City from Germany. They came to America seeking opportunity and freedom. They initially settled at 196 Hudson Street and opened the first Martin Guitar workshop in the New World. I was looking for a way for us to celebrate this milestone. In 1976 (the anniversary of the founding of our nation) we introduced the D-19. It was designed as an upmarket D-18. We stained the top to utilize spruce that was cosmetically challenged. An early nod to sustainability. I thought it would be appropriate to dust off that model designation and make 190 contemporary D-19s to honor our 190th anniversary. This model also embraces sustainability by utilizing cosmetically challenged Adirondack spruce tops that we have had in inventory for a while. We sent them through our Mimaki printer to achieve a figured mahogany look for the top. Hope you like it."

- C.F. Martin IV