- Creator
- Davis, Ellabelle, 1907-1960
- Call number
- Sc MG 102
- Physical description
- 0.25 linear feet (1 box)
- Language
- English
- Preferred Citation
- [Item], Ellabelle Davis papers, Sc MG 102, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division, The New York Public Library
- Repository
- Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division
- Access to materials
- Request access to this collection.
Ellabelle Davis was a soprano opera singer. Prior to her career as a concert singer, she worked as a dressmaker. Davis began her musical career at The Town Hall in 1942. She was the first African American to play the lead role of Aida during her 1946 performance at the Opera Nacional in Mexico. She resumed her role as Aida at La Scala in 1949 and recorded for Decca in February 1950. Posthumously, an opera based on Davis was performed in 2009 and she was inducted into the New Rochelle Walk of Fame in 2011. This collection consists of performance programs, news clippings, and personal papers pertaining to Ellabelle Davis's career as an opera singer. A few programs document her appearance in a concert with Black composer Harry T. Burleigh.
Administrative information
Source of acquisition
Gift, of Marie Davis Tillman, 1982.
Revision History
Finding aid updated by Lauren Stark. (2021 April 20)
Processing information
Accessioned by Diana Lachatanere, 1982.
Separated material
Transferred to the Photographs and Prints Division: photographs.
Using the collection
Location
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division515 Malcolm X Boulevard, New York, NY 10037-1801
Second Floor