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Collection Photo, Print, Drawing Lomax photographs depicting folk musicians, primarily in the southern United States and the Bahamas

About this Item

Title

  • Lomax photographs depicting folk musicians, primarily in the southern United States and the Bahamas

Summary

  • Snapshots primarily documenting sound recording expeditions carried out by John Avery Lomax, Alan Lomax, and Ruby Terrill Lomax for the Archive of American Folk Song from 1934 to ca. 1950. Photographs depict African American, white, and Latino musicians, singers and dancers, in the southern United States (Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Texas, and Virginia) and the Bahamas (Nassau, Andros Island, and Cat Island). Includes portraits of musicians posed with and without their instruments; many photos show musicians in various settings and activities--at homes, working in prison yards, working on chain gangs, performing outside and on stage at the Asheville Mountain Music Festival, North Carolina. Some photos depict daily life, including domestic activities, baptisms, and farming. Also includes some landscape and marine views, houses, and children playing singing games. Musicians depicted include, among others, Henry Truvillion, James "Iron Head" Baker, Moses "Clear Rock" Platt, Leadbelly, Crockett "Davy" Ward, Bill Hensley, Uncle Bob Ledbetter, and Bascom Lamar Lunsford. Folklorist Zora Neale Hurston, who assisted the Lomaxes on expeditions to Georgia and Florida, is identified in four photographs in subdivisions 7414-C and 7414-G.

Names

  • Lomax, John A. (John Avery), 1867-1948.
  • Lomax, Alan, 1915-2002, photographer
  • Lomax, Ruby T. (Ruby Terrill), photographer
  • Archive of American Folk Song.

Created / Published

  • 1934-ca. 1950.

Headings

  • -  African Americans--Music--1930-1950
  • -  African Americans--Women
  • -  Musicians--Southern States--1930-1950
  • -  Musicians--Bahamas--1930-1950
  • -  Folk dancers--Southern States--1930-1950
  • -  Music festivals--North Carolina--Asheville--1930-1950
  • -  Prisoners--Southern States--1930-1950

Headings

  • Gelatin silver prints--1930-1950.
  • Group portraits--1930-1950.
  • Portrait photographs--1930-1950.

Genre

  • Portrait photographs--1930-1950
  • Group portraits--1930-1950
  • Gelatin silver prints--1930-1950

Notes

  • -  Arrangement: Photographs are organized into eight subdivisions generally corresponding to each of the Lomaxes recording expeditions. Each subdivision is lettered A-H as follows: LOT 7414-A (Asheville Mountain Music Festival); LOT 7414-B (Louisiana and Alabama); LOT 7414-C (Georgia and Florida); LOT 7414-D (Virginia); LOT 7414-E (Prison camps and state farms); LOT 7414-F (Texas); LOT 7414-G (Misc. contact strips and single photos); LOT 7414-H (Bahamas). Arrangement: Items within each subdivision are numbered consecutively throughout the LOT. Item numbers are preceded by the letter N (i.e., LOT 7414-B, no. N138).
  • -  Photographer names do not appear on the photographs. Many images were taken by Alan Lomax and Ruby Terrill Lomax, and possibly others working with them. Photos of the Bog Trotters Band, Galax, Va., are marked: "These pictures were made by CBS photographer at the time of the A. Lomax School of the Air Broadcast in Galax".
  • -  Most photographs have handwritten or typed identifications or other markings on the versos.
  • -  In 2015, the Library digitized 48 nitrate negatives (PR 06 CN 1186) for which no prints had been found and made online catalog records. These photos and their numbering fit with the Texas, Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Georgia photos of LOT 7414. The negatives date from Sept. to Nov. 1940 and are attributed to Ruby Lomax. Another 31 negatives that correspond to prints were also digitized and described in the catalog records for the prints.
  • -  LOT title devised by Library staff.
  • -  Digitized images of these items display with associated descriptions in the Prints & Photographs Division Online Catalog, https://www.loc.gov/rr/print/catalog.html
  • -  Digitized images are also available through the Library of Congress Web site under the title: Southern mosaic, The John and Ruby Lomax 1939 Southern States Recording Trip, produced in 1999 for the National Digital Library Program, American Memory collections. This site also features associated sound recordings, field notes, and other manuscript materials.
  • -  Transfer; Archive of American Folk Song; 1950?

Medium

  • 400 photographic prints : gelatin silver ; 8x10 in. and smaller.

Call Number/Physical Location

  • LOT 7414 (F) (Use Surrogate) [P&P]

Repository

  • Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

Library of Congress Control Number

  • 99405204

Rights Advisory

Access Advisory

  • For reference access, please use the digital image surrogates in the online catalog to preserve the fragile original items.

Online Format

  • image

Additional Metadata Formats

Rights & Access

The Library of Congress generally does not own rights to material in its collections and, therefore, cannot grant or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute the material. For information about assessing rights, see the Rights and Restrictions Information page.

  • Rights Advisory: No known restrictions. For more information, see: "Lomax Collection," http://lcweb.loc.gov/rr/print/res/159_loma.html
  • Reproduction Number: ---
  • Call Number: LOT 7414 (F) (Use Surrogate) [P&P]
  • Access Advisory: For reference access, please use the digital image surrogates in the online catalog to preserve the fragile original items.

Obtaining Copies

If an image is displaying, you can download it yourself. (Some images display only as thumbnails outside the Library of Congress because of rights considerations, but you have access to larger size images on site.)

Alternatively, you can purchase copies of various types through Library of Congress Duplication Services.

  1. If a digital image is displaying: The qualities of the digital image partially depend on whether it was made from the original or an intermediate such as a copy negative or transparency. If the Reproduction Number field above includes a reproduction number that starts with LC-DIG..., then there is a digital image that was made directly from the original and is of sufficient resolution for most publication purposes.
  2. If there is information listed in the Reproduction Number field above: You can use the reproduction number to purchase a copy from Duplication Services. It will be made from the source listed in the parentheses after the number.

    If only black-and-white ("b&w") sources are listed and you desire a copy showing color or tint (assuming the original has any), you can generally purchase a quality copy of the original in color by citing the Call Number listed above and including the catalog record ("About This Item") with your request.

  3. If there is no information listed in the Reproduction Number field above: You can generally purchase a quality copy through Duplication Services. Cite the Call Number listed above and include the catalog record ("About This Item") with your request.

Price lists, contact information, and order forms are available on the Duplication Services Web site.

Access to Originals

Please use the following steps to determine whether you need to fill out a call slip in the Prints and Photographs Reading Room to view the original item(s). In some cases, a surrogate (substitute image) is available, often in the form of a digital image, a copy print, or microfilm.

  1. Is the item digitized? (A thumbnail (small) image will be visible on the left.)

    • Yes, the item is digitized. Please use the digital image in preference to requesting the original. All images can be viewed at a large size when you are in any reading room at the Library of Congress. In some cases, only thumbnail (small) images are available when you are outside the Library of Congress because the item is rights restricted or has not been evaluated for rights restrictions.
      As a preservation measure, we generally do not serve an original item when a digital image is available. If you have a compelling reason to see the original, consult with a reference librarian. (Sometimes, the original is simply too fragile to serve. For example, glass and film photographic negatives are particularly subject to damage. They are also easier to see online where they are presented as positive images.)
    • No, the item is not digitized. Please go to #2.

  2. Do the Access Advisory or Call Number fields above indicate that a non-digital surrogate exists, such as microfilm or copy prints?

    • Yes, another surrogate exists. Reference staff can direct you to this surrogate.
    • No, another surrogate does not exist. Please go to #3.
  3. If you do not see a thumbnail image or a reference to another surrogate, please fill out a call slip in the Prints and Photographs Reading Room. In many cases, the originals can be served in a few minutes. Other materials require appointments for later the same day or in the future. Reference staff can advise you in both how to fill out a call slip and when the item can be served.

To contact Reference staff in the Prints and Photographs Reading Room, please use our Ask A Librarian service or call the reading room between 8:30 and 5:00 at 202-707-6394, and Press 3.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Lomax, John A, and Archive Of American Folk Song, Lomax, Alan, and Ruby T Lomax, photographer. Lomax photographs depicting folk musicians, primarily in the southern United States and the Bahamas. Bahamas Asheville Southern States North Carolina, ca. 1950. 1934. Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/99405204/.

APA citation style:

Lomax, J. A. & Archive Of American Folk Song, Lomax, A. & Lomax, R. T., photographer. (ca. 1950) Lomax photographs depicting folk musicians, primarily in the southern United States and the Bahamas. Bahamas Asheville Southern States North Carolina, ca. 1950. 1934. [Photograph] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/99405204/.

MLA citation style:

Lomax, John A, and Archive Of American Folk Song, photographers by Lomax, Alan, and Ruby T Lomax. Lomax photographs depicting folk musicians, primarily in the southern United States and the Bahamas. 1934. Photograph. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/99405204/>.