Goodwill returns accidentally donated Acuff fiddle to owner

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A fiddle believed to be once owned by the late country music star Roy Acuff is back with its owners after it accidentally was donated to a Goodwill store in Missouri.

The instrument was anonymously donated. Goodwill of Western Missouri and Eastern Kansas put it up for auction Dec. 27.

The Kansas City Star reported that after bidding began, a member of the family that mistakenly donated the fiddle asked to have it returned.

Kevin Bentley is interim president and CEO of the Kansas City Goodwill organization. He said the item was given back because it was a family heirloom.

Acuff's fiddles were made by his uncle, Evart Acuff, who numbered each one. A sticker inside stated the fiddle, No. 19, was handmade in August 1945 in Maryville, Tennessee.

Information from: The Kansas City Star, http://www.kcstar.com