Photograph postcard of the Jenkins Orphanage Band, Charleston, South Carolina
date: label: Date
content: 1914
name: label: Created by
content: Edward Elcha, American, 1885 - 1939
label: Created by
content: Percy Tappin, British West Indian, born 1892
label: Subject of
content: Jenkins Orphanage Band, American, 1891 - 1980s
notes: label: Caption
content: In 1891, the Rev. Daniel J. Jenkins opened the Jenkins Orphanage for African American boys in Charleston, South Carolina. Unable to provide for the growing number of boys under his care, Rev. Jenkins asked members of the Charleston community to donate used musical instruments with the intention of raising money for the orphanage by forming a travelling band. Wearing discarded Citadel uniforms, the band performed a mix of military marches, folk tunes, and ragtime throughout the United States and in Europe. The band played in the inaugural parades of Presidents Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft. They also appeared at the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair and the 1914 Anglo-American Exposition, where they performed for members of the British Royal Family.
label: Description
content: A black and white photograph postcard of the Jenkins Orphanage Band of Charleston, South Carolina. The photograph features twenty (20) boys and young men in uniform standing in rows, holding musical instruments including french horns, marching euphoniums, drums, and trombones. All of the band members are looking at the camera. At the bottom of the photograph is printed [JENKINS ORPHAN BAND Charleston S.C.]. At the lower left corner is the mark [Tappin-Elcha/ 438 Lenox Ave. N.Y] in white. The verso of the postcard is printed at the upper edge: [POST CARD/ CORRESPONDENCE [vertical line] ADDRESS ONLY].
place: label: Place depicted
content: Charleston, Charleston County, South Carolina, United States, North and Central America
label: Place printed
content: Harlem, New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: American South
label: Topic
content: Band (Music)
label: Topic
content: Child musicians
label: Topic
content: Instrumentalists (Musicians)
label: Topic
content: Photography
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Photographs and Still Images
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2014.63.88.1
objectType: label: Type
content: gelatin silver prints
label: Type
content: portraits
label: Type
content: postcards
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Public Domain
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: silver and photographic gelatin on photographic paper
label: Dimensions
content: H x W: 3 1/2 × 5 3/8 in. (8.9 × 13.7 cm)