Daily: 10 A.M.–5 P.M.
Closed on Tuesdays
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108
Manuscripts
Glass plate with a group portrait of the Merced Concert Band in a park. The group consists of 19 men in dark suits and hats, with one man, presumably the conductor, wearing a long coat and a top hat. Night of the men are standing, eight are sitting in chairs, and two are sitting on the ground. Each man is holding his instrument.
mssLattaS, Box 111, Folder 9, Item 1
Visual Materials
Image of the sixty-two members of John Philips Sousa's Grand Concert Band sitting with their musical instruments on stage with conductor John Philips Sousa standing at center, presumably for a performance at the Manhattan Beach Hotel in Brooklyn, New York.
priJLC_ENT_002517
Image not available
Manuscripts
This collection of items relates to the North American Indian Concert Band and performances from the 1910s as well as attempts to reassemble the band in 1926. The bulk of the letters are from David Russell Hill (director) and Carl Wahler (manager). As a Native American businessman, Hill demanded fair wages for himself and his men. In the middle of negotiating their European tour, Hill wrote to Wahler: "I know the people in Germany think that I am charging an unreasonable high price but Mr. Wahler you realize fully what this means to me, toyou [sic], and to this country..." (May 7, 1910). There are also several letters from Wahler's sons Arthur and Eddie. In one letter, Arthur asks for money to assemble a "coon band" because "it cost running around after these coon" [undated]. The majority of the men in the band came from American Indian Schools. They were trained to play classical and marching band music, not traditional Native American songs. There is a hand-written list of band members that shows many of the men were from Southwestern tribes and a few from the Onondaga. The postcards (mostly duplicates) illustrate the band's elaborate costumes while holding Western instruments. The program from the Red Star Line shows that the band played American and European concert pieces. As a novelty, the band occasionally played stereotypical songs that did not necessarily properly represent the heritage and diversity of the Native American members' tribe. There are two volumes in Box 2. The first volume is a diary of sorts with names of Native American band members, notes pertaining to venues, and financial records from the tour in 1910. There is an index for the second volume and it lists names of band, accounts, postal card account, contracts, transportation, and Hill's pay. Cataloger's note: Some of the material in German.
mssIndianconcert
Manuscripts
A studio group portrait of nine young women, four young men, and one older man with a mustache (possibly a high school graduating class?). The group is arranged in three rows, with the young women seated in the first two and the men standing behind them.
mssLattaS, Box 116, Folder 6, Item 1
Visual Materials
Image of a band with women holding instruments in the bandstand of the Looff Pleasure Pier in Santa Monica, California, with a sign "Concert Daily 2:30 & 7:30" and an American flag in the background.
photCL_555_09_44
Manuscripts
Glass plate with a group portrait of a work crew in front of trailers. There are about 60 men standing and sitting, and one woman with an apron standing in of the open door at the nearest end of the trailer.
mssLattaS, Box 113, Folder 1, Item 1
