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Creator
Burton, Carrie
Call number
*T-Mss 1997-031
Physical description
.88 linear feet (3 boxes)
Preferred Citation

Carrie and Lizzie Burton papers, Billy Rose Theatre Division, The New York Public Library.

Repository
Billy Rose Theatre Division
Access to materials
Request an in-person research appointment.

Sisters Carrie and Lizzie Burton were comic opera singers who performed predominantly throughout New York and New England in the late 1800s. The collection documents the professional lives of the Burton sisters through photographs, correspondence, performance programs, fliers, sheet music, and a scrapbook of press clippings.

Biographical/historical information

Born in Massachusetts, sisters Carrie (1858-1931) and Lizzie Burton (1856-1939) promoted themselves as English operetta singers throughout their performing careers in New York City and New England. Carrie Burton made her New York debut in 1878 with Ruben's Grand Opera Company. Both sisters performed with the Boston Ideal Opera Company and the Saville Opera Company.

Carrie Burton was married to Theodore G. Korony, with whom she had two children: Theodore B. Korony and Edith Korony. Her performances included roles in The Spectre Knight (1880); Ages Ago and Charity Begins at Home (1880); The Pirates of Penzance, Pinafore, and Billee Taylor (1881); Patience (1883); and Falka (1884).

Lizzie Burton was married to performer Herndon Morsell. Her performances included roles in The Musketeers (1885) and La Mascotte (1881).

Scope and arrangement

The Carrie and Lizzie Burton papers document the operetta careers of the American sisters. The collection contains photographs, correspondence from fans, performance programs, fliers, a scrapbook of sheet music, a scrapbook of press clippings, and an autograph book. Photographs make up the bulk of the collection, some signed, and many with photographer's information on the back. The majority of the photographs are cabinet photographs. The photographs include portraits of Carrie Burton, Lizzie Burton, Herndon Morsell, other performers, and unidentified performers.

Carrie Burton's career is documented through performance programs, fliers, correspondence from fans, an autograph book, photographs, press clippings, sheet music, and a contract with D'Oyly Carte Opera Company for the 1881-1882 performance season. Lizzie Burton's career is portrayed via photographs, press clippings, and sheet music.

An electronic reproduction of a playbill listing Carrie Burton as a soprano can be found by conducting a keyword search for "Carrie Burton" in the catalog (www.nypl.org/catalog).

Arrangement

Alphabetical by document type.

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

Donated by Ruth Bugzester, Doris B. Genton, and Nancy Macdonald, 1997.

Processing information

Compiled by Sarah Wade, Pratt Institute, 2012.

Upon donation, the materials in this collection were unarranged except for the correspondence, which was grouped together. The collection has been grouped by genre and placed into folders.

Using the collection

Location

Billy Rose Theatre Division
New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center
40 Lincoln Center Plaza, New York, NY 10023-7498
Third Floor

Conditions Governing Use

For permission to publish, contact the Billy Rose Theatre Division.