George C. Howard and Family Collection, 1833-1963, (bulk 1840-1935).

ArchivalResource

Howard, George C. (George Cunnibell), 1820-1887. George C. Howard and Family Collection, 1833-1963, (bulk 1840-1935).

George C. Howard and Family Collection, 1833-1963, (bulk 1840-1935).

http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/122590500

The George C. Howard and Family Collection, 1833-1963, documents the theatrical activities of actor-manager George C. Howard and members of the Howard, Fox, and Aiken acting families of nineteenth and early twentieth century New England, best known for their roles in George L. Aiken's widely performed dramatization of Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin. Prompt books and playbills comprise the bulk of the collection, with programs, posters, original manuscripts, daguerreotypes, and assorted materials making up the balance. These materials record not only the theatrical careers of Howard and his wife, Caroline Emily Fox, but also those of Caroline's brothers George L. and Charles K. Fox and two of the Howard children (Cordelia and Walter), as well as cousins George L. and Frank E. Aiken. The collection was gathered together by Howard's grandson George P. Howard and brings together original materials passed down within the family, as well as George P. Howard's notes and research materials. The Uncle Tom's Cabin series contains prompt books for the George L. Aiken and H. J. Conway stage versions of Uncle Tom's Cabin and a script for Aiken's dramatization of Stowe's The Key to Uncle's Tom's Cabin. Many of the scripts, which date from 1852 to the 1870s, contain performance annotations. Also present are assorted materials relating to Uncle Tom's Cabin, 1852-1935, that were collected by the Howards, including playbills for rival versions of Uncle Tom's Cabin by Conway and C. W. Taylor. The Acting Companies series contains materials relating to the Fox Company, 1833-46, and the Howard-Fox Company, 1846-1928. The Fox Company playbills, posters, and daguerreotypes document the activities of George C. Howard and the Fox children while the latter were still managed by their parents. The Howard-Fox Company materials date from after about April 1846, when Howard took over the management of the Fox troupe; much of this material relates to Uncle Tom's Cabin and other productions in which Cordelia Howard acted. Most of the later Howard-Fox items refer to George, Caroline, or Cordelia Howard, the other Foxes having moved on to careers of their own. The Individuals series pulls together materials concerning four actors who either were not members of the Fox or Howard-Fox companies, or are represented here by material from their "solo" careers: George C. Howard, George L. Fox, Frank E. Aiken, and Walter S. Howard. The George C. Howard material, 1861-1903, relates to his career after 1861 and his family, including programs in which his second wife and daughter are featured. The Frank E. Aiken material, 1880-1910, comprises four folders of programs, clippings, and memorabilia relating to his acting and managing career. Walter S. Howard is represented by programs, playbills, scripts kept as souvenirs, and assorted other material, 1879-1963, concerning his career as an actor and stage manager with the Joseph Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson, and Ada Rehan Companies. Other Walter S. Howard materials relate to his research into the performance history of Uncle Tom's Cabin, his wife and her father, and his son George P. Howard, whose research notes about the Howard-Fox family history are placed here.

1 file drawer (1.8 linear feet), 7 oversize boxes, 1 flat file drawer.

Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center