- Creator
- Jessye, Eva, 1895-1992
- Call number
- Sc MG 233
- Physical description
- 0.25 linear feet (1 box)
- Language
- English
- Preferred Citation
- [Item], Eva Jessye collection, Sc MG 233, 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 an in-person research appointment.
Eva Jessye, African American choral director, composer, arranger, and music historian was born in Coffeyville, Kansas, in 1895. In 1914, she graduated from Western University of Kansas City with a degree in music and then went on to Langston University in Oklahoma. She moved to New York in 1926 and by 1930, Jessye had formed and directed a professional choir. She was the first musical director for the original production of George Gershwin's Porgy and Bess. Acknowledged as the first African American woman to win international distinction as a director of a professional choir, Jessye was the recipient of numerous awards and honorary doctoral degrees throughout her life. She died at 97 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The Eva Jessye collection contains clippings, correspondence, writing, and programs that document Jessye's professional career and recognition in her field.
Administrative information
Source of acquisition
Gift from unknown donor, 1996.
Revision History
Finding aid updated by Lauren Stark. (2021 July 30)
Processing information
Accessioned by Rosalie P. Jeter, December 1997.
Related Material
Related collections in the Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture: Alice Childress papers, Sc MG 649; Frederick Wilkerson papers, Sc MG 377; Helen Armstead Johnson miscellaneous theater collection, Sc MG 599; Helen Brown scrapbook, Sc MG 520; Negro Actors Guild records, Sc MG 259; and Thaddeus Drayton collection, Sc MG 389
Other Eva Jessye collections are located at University of Michigan at Ann Arbor and Pittsburgh State University.
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