Pair of Photographs of Moton's Sharps and Flats, c. 1930s
by [African-Americana - Music - African-American Photographers] Polk, Prentice H
- Used
- very good
- first
- Condition
- Very Good
- Seller
-
Marlboro, Vermont, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
Tuskegee, 1930. Pair of silver gelatin prints measuring 9 ½ x 7 ⅞ and 7 x 5 inches. Residue to versos from removal from scrapbook, tear and crease to larger image, very good contrast. Very Good. A pair of photographs from the prolific photographer Prentice H. Polk of a band led by Allen Moton, the son of Dr. Robert Moton, the president of Tuskegee University. Moton was, among other things, an acquaintance of Ralph Ellison's at Tuskegee, and may have been the inspiration for the car ride in Invisible Man, as Ellison recounted a particularly harrowing drive with Moton in his father's Cadillac with the pianist Hazel Harrison, in which Moton was trying to impress Hazelton with his knowledge of philosophy. According to an article in the Tuskegee Herald in 1956, Moton also played with Teddy Wilson at Tuskegee before Wilson joined Benny Goodman's band. The larger photograph has several of the band members identified in ink on the verso, as Allen Moton, Morris, Lollypop, Baker, Robert (likely Moton, also a musician), and Crosby. We find no record of the band besides the photograph, leaving the possibility open that "Moton's Sharps and Flats" was not the name under which they performed.
Works cited: Gebhart, Caroline. Ghosts of Tuskegee. In: Devlin, Paul (editor). Ralph Ellison in Context. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2021.
Works cited: Gebhart, Caroline. Ghosts of Tuskegee. In: Devlin, Paul (editor). Ralph Ellison in Context. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2021.
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Details
- Seller
- Auger Down Books (US)
- Seller's Inventory #
- List2107
- Title
- Pair of Photographs of Moton's Sharps and Flats, c. 1930s
- Author
- [African-Americana - Music - African-American Photographers] Polk, Prentice H
- Format/Binding
- Pair of silver gelatin prints measuring 9 ½ x 7 ⅞ and 7 x 5 inches. Residue to versos from removal from scrapbook, tear and c
- Book Condition
- Used - Very Good
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Place of Publication
- Tuskegee
- Date Published
- 1930
- Weight
- 0.00 lbs
- Keywords
- ABAA-HOLIDAY-2023
Terms of Sale
Auger Down Books
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About the Seller
Auger Down Books
Biblio member since 2012
Marlboro, Vermont
About Auger Down Books
Auger Down Books is a small and highly curated store focusing on American history through photographs, archives, documents and graphics. I issue catalogs and lists via email, and also work directly with curators looking to develop and diversify their collections. Please contact me if you would like to receive my lists or if I may be of assistance in collection development. Thanks for looking!
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Verso
- The page bound on the left side of a book, opposite to the recto page.