Scope and arrangement
The George and Anna Hamlin papers, dating from 1868 to 1983, document the careers of both vocalists through clippings, diaries, autograph books, programs, publicity materials, scores, photographs, and correspondence. The papers are in two sections, one for George Hamlin and the other for Anna Hamlin.
The George Hamlin papers primarily hold clippings, dating from 1894 to 1941, and programs, which date from 1885 to 1922. They also include photographs, two autograph books, a diary, publicity materials, scores and correspondence.
The photographs consist of two albums of images of family, friends, and colleagues (1909-1917); and loose photographs, some signed, of Hamlin, Ethel Leginksa, Siegfried Ochs, Horatio Parker, Ludwig Wüllner, David Bispham, Clarence Whitehill, Walter Morse Rummell, and Amy Beach (1904-1911). The photographs also contain a caricature of Hamlin in performance. The autograph books, dating from 1882 to 1883, contain signatures of opera stars of the day. The diary documents Hamlin's European tour of 1904 and 1905. Publicity flyers and season brochures date from 1894 to 1908.
Hamlin's papers also contain photographs and papers covering his time at Exeter Academy (1888), and published scores signed by the composers or performers Hamlin worked with (1894-1918). Some scores have Hamlin's annotations. The scores include signatures of or notes from Richard Strauss, Edward Elgar, Victor Herbert, Louis Campbell-Tipton, Walter Morse Rummel, and Yvette Guilbert.
There is a small set of correspondence in George Hamlin's papers dating from 1868 to 1921. It holds letters from Hannibal Hamlin (the Vice President of the United States under Abraham Lincoln), who may have been a relative of George Hamlin, and a letter from Freeman H. Morse to Hannibal Hamlin. These letters concern matters in Maine, for which Hannibal Hamlin served as United States representative, senator, and governor prior to his election as Vice President.
The Anna Hamlin papers include nine diaries, dating from 1912 to 1922; concert programs and correspondence dating from 1915 to 1983; correspondence regarding her book Father Was A Tenor, including a typescript (1978); and clippings (1928-1936).
Arrangement
The collection is divided into sections for George Hamlin and Anna Hamlin.