Michael Cummings Collection of P.S. Gilmore 1850-2004 IM.M135.2004 http://hdl.handle.net/2345/54
Irish Music Archives John J. Burns Library Boston College 140 Commonwealth Avenue Chestnut Hill 02467 library.bc.edu/burns/contact URL: http://www.bc.edu/burns Table of Contents
Summary Information ...... 3 Administrative Information ...... 4 Related Materials ...... 5 Biographical Note ...... 6 Scope and Contents ...... 6 Arrangement ...... 7 Collection Inventory ...... 8 I: Patrick S. Gilmore Biographical Material ...... 8 II: Music and Concert Programs ...... 8 III: Sheet Music and Poems ...... 9 IV: Graphic Materials ...... 9 V: The Patrick S. Gilmore Society ...... 11 VI: Artifacts ...... 12 VII: Audio and Video Recordings ...... 13
Michael Cummings Collection of P.S. Gilmore IM.M135.2004
- Page 2 - Summary Information
Title: Michael Cummings collection of P.S. Gilmore ID: IM.M135.2004 Date [inclusive]: 1850-2004 Physical Description 8 Linear Feet (12 boxes) Language of the English Material: Abstract: The Michael Cummings Collection of P.S. Gilmore documents the music career of Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore, American band conductor and composer, and the activities of the Patrick S. Gilmore Society. The collection particularly highlights the National Peace Jubilee of 1869 and the World's Peace Jubilee of 1872, with programs, lithographs, tickets, medals and bookmarks. The collection also includes correspondence, photographs, and newspaper and magazine articles. Preferred Citation
Identification of item, Box number, Folder number, Michael Cummings collection of P.S. Gilmore, IM.M135.2004, John J. Burns Library, Boston College.
Michael Cummings Collection of P.S. Gilmore IM.M135.2004
- Page 3 - Administrative Information
Publication Information Processed by Sarah K. Nytroe in 2008. This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace.
Restrictions on access Collection is open for research. The wax cylinder is not accessible, and access to the remaining audio and video recordings requires advance notice.
Restrictions on use These materials are made available for use in research, teaching and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright Law. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used for academic research or otherwise should be fully credited with the source. The original authors may retain copyright to the materials.
Provenance Purchased from Michael Cummings (2004). One of the National and World's Peace Jubilee Medals from 1869 was a gift from Tim Clancy (2006).
Processing Information Published materials received from Michael Cummings have been cataloged and can be located in the Boston College Libraries online catalog by using advanced search Local Collection Name and entering "CUMMINGS".
Processing Information As a result of a library systems change in 2017, the identification number of this collection was modified from M135_2004-1 to IM.M135.2004.
Michael Cummings Collection of P.S. Gilmore IM.M135.2004
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Related Materials Patrick Gilmore Collection at the University of Maryland.
Michael Cummings Collection of P.S. Gilmore IM.M135.2004
- Page 5 - Biographical Note
Patrick Sarsfield (P.S.) Gilmore, the "Father of the American Concert Band," was born in County Galway, Ireland, on December 25, 1829. Most sources give the town of Ballygar as Gilmore's birthplace.
His musical career began when he started playing the flute as a teenager. With no positions available for flutists in the Athlone-based Irish Regiment band, Gilmore switched to the cornet. Gilmore accompanied the Irish Regiment when it went to Canada in 1848. Shortly thereafter he moved to Boston, where he worked with a local music publisher and dealer. In the 1850s Gilmore opened his own music store, earned a reputation as a cornetist, and conducted several bands in and around Boston.
When the Civil War broke out, the Boston band that he organized in 1859 enlisted with the Union Army via the Twenty-fourth Massachusetts Volunteers. Although the band's tenure with the army lasted less than a year, it performed musical and medical duties at several battles including Bull Run and Antietam. For the duration of the war, Gilmore was in charge of reorganizing the Massachusetts military bands and managing the music for the inauguration of the Louisiana governor in 1864.
Gilmore's popularity and prestige were particularly enhanced by his organization and staging of two music festivals: the National Peace Jubilee of 1869 to raise money for the widows and orphans of Civil War soldiers, and the World's Peace Jubilee of 1872 in honor of the end of the Franco-Prussian War. Both events were held in Boston, Massachusetts, and both jubilees were large-scale festivals (the first lasting five days and the second lasting eighteen days) that included vocal and instrumental music. For each occasion, special coliseums were constructed to house the large band, choir, and audiences; the first coliseum (the "grand") and the second coliseum (he "great") could hold tens of thousands of people.
After the conclusion of the second jubilee, Gilmore turned his attention back to conducting bands, where he integrated more and more woodwinds (based upon European models) into what had traditionally been brass bands. Gilmore began leading the New York Twenty-seventh Regiment Band in 1873. He led this band for almost twenty years during which it performed nearly once a day.
In addition to conducting bands, organizing, and managing music programs, Gilmore also authored several pieces of music and poems, including "When Johnny Comes Marching Home."
Gilmore died unexpectedly in St. Louis, Missouri, on September 24, 1892.
Sources: Jere T. Humphreys. "Strike Up the Band! The Legacy of Patrick S. Gilmore." Music Educators Journal 74, no. 2 (October 1987): 22-26.
Scope and Contents
The Michael Cummings Collection of P.S. Gilmore Materials documents the life and music career of Irish-American Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore and highlights the activities of the Patrick S. Gilmore Society, founded by Michael Cummings in Boston in 1969. The collection was artificially created by Michael
Michael Cummings Collection of P.S. Gilmore IM.M135.2004
- Page 6 - Cummings and includes correspondence, concert programs, photographs, and lithographs, audio and visual recordings, and newspaper and magazine articles. Much of the material documents the National Peace Jubilee of 1869 and the World's Peace Jubilee of 1872, both held in Boston, Massachusetts. In addition, the correspondence and newspaper articles from the nineteenth century are copies of original documents.
Arrangement
Arranged into seven series. I. P.S. Gilmore Biographical Information; II. Music and Concert Programs; III. Sheet Music; IV. Graphic Materials; V. the Patrick S. Gilmore Society; VI. Artifacts; and VII. Audio and Video.
Michael Cummings Collection of P.S. Gilmore IM.M135.2004
- Page 7 - Collection Inventory
Series I: Patrick S. Gilmore Biographical Material, 1858-1892 Arrangement
Chronological.
Outgoing Correspondence from P.S. Gilmore (photocopies), box 1 folder 1 1864-1879
Record of Marriage (photocopy), 1858 box 1 folder 2
Record of Death (photocopy), 1892 box 1 folder 3
Series II: Music and Concert Programs, 1855-1878 Scope and Contents
Material documenting Gilmore's music career. Primarily concert programs, including those for the National Peace Jubilee of 1869 and the World's Peace Jubilee of 1872, as well as ticket stubs and bookmarks.
Arrangement
Chronological.
The People's Promenade Concert Program (photocopy), 1855 box 1 folder 5
Grand Concert Program, 1869 May 10 box 1 folder 6
National Peace Jubilee Grand Testimonial to P.S. Gilmore box 1 folder 7 Program, 1869 June 29
National Peace Jubilee Official Program, 1869 June box 8 folder 17
Boston Music Hall Grand Concert Programs, 1871 February box 1 folder 8
World's Peace Jubilee, Third Day Program, 1872 June 19 box 9 folder 13
World's Peace Jubilee and International Music Festival, Official box 1 folder 9 Program, 1872 June 26
World's Peace Jubilee and International Music Festival, Afternoon box 1 folder 10 Program, 1872 June 27
World's Peace Jubilee, Program, 1872 June box 1 folder 11
Appendix to Music for World's Peace Jubilee, 1872 box 1 folder 12
Grand Festival Concert at the Tabernacle, Program, 1877 June 27 box 1 folder 13
Representative Military Band of the U.S. Grand Concert in Dublin box 1 folder 14 (photocopy), Flyer, 1878 May 16
Michael Cummings Collection of P.S. Gilmore IM.M135.2004
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Music written by Gilmore and his contemporaries, including Frances C. Thomas and Louis Antoine Jullien. While some of the pieces of sheet music are original, many are photocopies.
Arrangement
Chronological.
Silver Lake Quickstep by Miss Frances C. Thomas, 1850 box 9 folder 1
Jenny Lind Sketch from Sheet Music, 1850 box 9 folder 2
Gilmore's Band Music Arranged for the Piano (photocopy), 1855 box 9 folder 3
Norwich Cadets Polka by Gilmore, 1857 box 9 folder 4
Covers of Sheet Music by Gilmore (photocopies), 1850-1863 box 9 folder 5
The Celebrated Polkas by Julien, undated box 9 folder 6
National Anthem Scores (photocopies), undated box 9 folder 7
Sheet Music Covers (photocopies), undated box 9 folder 8
Gilmore Sheet Music Covers (photograph), undated box 9 folder 9
Poems and Song Lyrics by Gilmore (photocopies), undated box 1 folder 4
Series IV: Graphic Materials, 1852-1972 Scope and Contents
Cover the career of P.S. Gilmore and the activities of the Patrick S. Gilmore Society. Includes photographs of Gilmore, his family and band, sketches and lithographs of the coliseums used for the peace jubilees, photographs of Ballygar, Ireland, and posters advertising concerts produced by the Patrick S. Gilmore Society.
Arrangement
Grouped by format.
P.S. Gilmore in Band Uniform and Dress Suits (photograph), box 2 folder 3 undated
P.S. Gilmore in Band Uniform and Dress Suits (photograph), box 2 folder 4 undated
Ellen Gilmore, P.S. Gilmore, and Minnie Gilmore, Family box 2 folder 5 (photograph), undated
Minnie Gilmore (photograph), undated box 2 folder 6
Birthplace of P.S. Gilmore (photograph), undated box 2 folder 7
P.S. Gilmore Manufactured Cornet (photograph), undated box 2 folder 8
Michael Cummings Collection of P.S. Gilmore IM.M135.2004
- Page 9 - P.S. Gilmore and His Band (photograph), undated box 2 folder 9
Interior of Boston's Grand Coliseum (photograph), undated box 2 folder 10
Sketches of Interior of Grand Coliseum (photograph), undated box 2 folder 11
Sketch of Exterior of Grand Coliseum (photograph), undated box 2 folder 12
Anvil Chorus Group at the Boston Peace Jubilee (photograph), box 2 folder 13 1869
Gilmore Memorabilia (photograph), undated box 2 folder 14
Gilmore's Cornet and a Gilmore Bust (photograph), undated box 2 folder 15
Sketch of the Grand Ball at the Grand Coliseum (photograph), box 2 folder 16 undated
Lower Main Street in Ballygar (photograph), undated box 2 folder 17
Exterior Construction of the Grand Coliseum (photograph), box 2 folder 18 undated
Dedication of the Gilmore House in Ballygar (photograph), 1969 box 2 folder 19
Dedication of the Gilmore House in Ballygar (photograph), 1969 box 2 folder 20
Unidentified Man Sitting in Carriage (photograph), undated box 2 folder 21
Unidentified Men in Boston (photograph), undated box 2 folder 22
M. Arbuckle (photograph), undated box 2 folder 23
Bandmaster Keating's House in Ireland (photograph), undated box 2 folder 24
Curtis Larkin Holding Gilmore's Last Baton (photograph), 1972 box 2 folder 25 May 1
Unidentified Men at the Grave of John Gilmore (possibly older box 2 folder 26 brother of P.S. Gilmore) (photograph), undated
World's Peace Jubilee Great Coliseum (Photograph of box 8 folder 1 Lithograph), 1872 June-July
World's Peace Jubilee Great Coliseum (Photograph of box 8 folder 2 Lithograph), 1872 June-July
Photograph of P.S. Gilmore in Uniform, undated box 8 folder 11
Photograph of P.S. Gilmore in Uniform, undated box 8 folder 13
P.S. Gilmore in New York City (photograph), undated box 9 folder 10
P.S. Gilmore's Cornet and Bust Statue (photograph), undated box 9 folder 10
Grand Coliseum (photograph), undated box 9 folder 10
P.S. Gilmore Band (photograph), ca. 1884 box 12 folder 1
Photograph of Lithograph of World's Peace Jubilee Coliseum, box 12 folder 2 1872
Michael Cummings Collection of P.S. Gilmore IM.M135.2004
- Page 10 - Camp Seaver Article and "Encampment of the Fifth Regiment of box 9 folder 11 Artillery on Boston Common" Sketch, 1852 August 28
Harper's Weekly Sketch of the Grand Coliseum, 1869 June 19 box 9 folder 12
Portion of Lithograph identifying Exterior View of National Peace box 9 folder 14 Jubilee Grand Coliseum, 1869
Page from "Boston: Four Centuries: A Pictorial History of the box 9 folder 14 City", undated
Image of Roxbury Horse Guards, undated box 9 folder 14
Walnut Street Theatre Broadside, 1853 September 13 box 8 folder 3
National Peace Jubilee Grand Coliseum Lithograph, 1869 June box 8 folder 4
National Peace Jubilee Grand Coliseum Lithograph, 1869 June box 8 folder 5
Harper's Weekly "Let Us Have Peace" Illustration, 1869 June 19 box 8 folder 6
Interior View of Grand Coliseum Illustration from Harper's box 8 folder 7 Weekly, 1869 June 19
National Peace Jubilee Grand Coliseum Lithograph, 1869 June box 8 folder 8
National Peace Jubilee Grand Coliseum Lithograph, 1869 June box 8 folder 9
World's Peace Jubilee Great Coliseum Lithograph, 1872 June-July box 8 folder 10
P.S. Gilmore Concert Centurn [sic]… Placard, undated box 8 folder 12
Coliseum at World's Peace Jubilee Lithograph, 1872 June-July box 8 folder 14
Coliseum at World's Peace Jubilee Lithograph, 1872 June-July box 8 folder 15
The Illustrious Sons of Ireland Lithograph, undated box 8 folder 16
Large Posters, undated box 8 folder 18
Series V: The Patrick S. Gilmore Society, 1968-2004 Arrangement
Grouped by format.
Michael Cummings' Incoming and Outgoing Correspondence box 1 folder 17-19 about Gilmore, 1968-1997, undated
Roster of P.S. Gilmore's Band, 1892 box 1 folder 20
Sketch of Copley Square with Locations of Jubilee Coliseums, box 1 folder 21 undated
Biographical Information about Gilmore, undated box 1 folder 22
Primary Source Research Material on Gilmore, undated box 1 folder 23
Untitled Manuscript about Gilmore and the Peace Jubilee by John box 1 folder 24-25 Nicholson, 1971 March
Michael Cummings Collection of P.S. Gilmore IM.M135.2004
- Page 11 - Chapter 1: "Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore" by John Nicholson, box 1 folder 26 typescript, undated
Research Material on Cornetist Jules Levy (1838-1903), undated box 1 folder 27
Gonzaga University Concert Band for the Washington Music box 1 folder 28 Educators Association Convention, Program, 1966 February 22
Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore Memorial Exercises in Copley Square, box 1 folder 29 Program, 1972 June 18
Irish Night at the Pops (unknown location), Program, 1982 May box 1 folder 30 23
Gilmore's Twenty-Second Regiment Band of New York at box 1 folder 31 Manhattan Beach, Exhibit, 1982
Oom Pah Pah: The Great American Band Exhibit (Traveling box 1 folder 32 Exhibit), Program, 1982-1983
Milton Historical Society Newsletter, 1991 March box 1 folder 33
P.S. Gilmore Band Jubilee at Boston City Hall Plaza, Program, box 1 folder 34 1992 June 13
P.S. Gilmore Band Jubilee (unknown location), Program, 1993 box 1 folder 35 June 13
P.S. Gilmore Week Resolution, 1992 September 20 box 1 folder 36
Gilmore Society Board of Directors and Officers, 2002 box 1 folder 37
P.S. Gilmore Tombstone Image (photocopy), undated box 1 folder 38
Gilmore Society Letterhead, undated box 1 folder 39
Miscellaneous Material, undated box 1 folder 40
Articles, 1902-2004, undated box 1 folder 41
Articles, 1902-2004, undated box 2 folder 1-2
Citation from the Secretary of the Commonwealth of box 9 folder 15 Massachusetts for Michael Cummings, 1972 June 18
Series VI: Artifacts, 1859-2000
Gilmore Concert and Peace Jubilee Tickets, 1859-1872 box 1 folder 15
Gilmore Concert and Peace Jubilee Bookmarks, 1869-1919 box 1 folder 16
P.S. Gilmore's Baton (stored in wooden box), undated box 3
National and World's Peace Jubilee Medals, 1869-1872 box 4
Father John's Medicine for Coughs and Colds, undated box 5
Recognition of Michael Cummings, Plaque, 1992 September 20 box 6
Portion of 1869 Coliseum, 1869 box 7
Michael Cummings Collection of P.S. Gilmore IM.M135.2004
- Page 12 - National Peace Jubilee Wood Medallion, 1869 box 7
P.S. Gilmore Society All State Community Band Hat, 1996 box 7
Patrick S. Gilmore Band Award to Michael Cummings, 2000 box 7
Cornet, undated box 10
Series VII: Audio and Video Recordings, 1910-1994 Scope and Contents
Mostly comprises lectures about P.S. Gilmore.
Arrangement
Chronological.
Gilmore's "Any Rags" (wax cylinder recording), ca. 1910 box 11
Masonic Temple Lecture on Gilmore and Peace Jubilee by Major box 11 Paul Muniers, Audio Recording (sound tape reel), 1968
Milton Historical Society Lecture by Michael Cummings, Audio box 11 Recording (sound cassette), 1977 March 16
Irish Radio in Ballygar, Audio Recording (sound cassette), 1979 box 11
Eire Society Lecture on P.S. Gilmore (1980 December 7) and box 11 Interview of T.J. Flatley for Irish Television (1985), Audio Recording (sound cassette), 1980-1985
Adams Academy Lecture on Gilmore, Audio Recording (sound box 11 cassette), 1983 March 20
Milton Historical Society Lecture, Audio Recording (sound box 11 cassette), 1991 March 17
Gilmore Day at Boston City Hall Plaza, Video Recording box 11 (videocassette), 1992 September 20
P.S. Gilmore Society Massachusetts All State Community Band box 11 Concert at the Hatch Shell, Audio Recording (sound cassette), 1994 August 27
Gilmore Lecture Practice, Audio Recording (sound cassette), box 11 undated
Michael Cummings Collection of P.S. Gilmore IM.M135.2004
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