Saturday Club (Sacramento, Calif.)

The Saturday Club was organized in 1893 to promote the advancement of music in Sacramento. It was active in bringing well-known musicians to Sacramento to perform. It has continued its activities to the present day.

From the description of Saturday Club Collection, 1893-1946. (California State Library). WorldCat record id: 58746706

Historical Note

Florine J. Wenzel (1884-1984), the daughter of George F. and Jennie Wenzel, was a native of San Francisco and a pianist and vocalist. Long active in Sacramento music circles, she served as president of both the Sacramento M. T. A. (Music Teachers' Association) and the Sacramento Saturday Club.

The Sacramento Saturday Club was founded in 1893 by a group of 60 local society women for the purpose of furthering the public appreciation of music and it's refining influences in Sacramento. The club's name derived from Saturday afternoon chamber performances that had been held in the home's of the club's founders. At the height of its popularity in the 1920s, the club boasted 1,800 members and sponsored performances by world-famous musicians that drew as many as 5,000 people to Sacramento's Memorial Auditorium. Performers included Fritz Kreisler, Jascha Heifetz, Isaac Stern and Pablo Casals. The Saturday Club contributed financial support for the building of Memorial Auditorium, and funded other philanthropic projects, including the building of the Tuesday Club House and Eagle Theater. The club also worked with the Red Cross to aid victims of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and fire, led sales of Liberty Bonds during WWI, and supported the Women's Council and Y.M.C.A.

From the guide to the Florine Wenzel collection of records of the Sacramento Saturday Club, 1893-1973, (Sacramento Public Library. Sacramento Room)

History

The Saturday Club was organized in 1893 to promote the advancement of music in Sacramento. It was active in bringing well-known musicians to Sacramento to perform.

From the guide to the Saturday Club Records, 1893-1946, (California State Library)