Finding Aid for Elbern H "Eddie" Alkire Personal Papers and Music Instrument Collection, 1926-1997 | The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music

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Collection Overview

Title: Elbern H "Eddie" Alkire Personal Papers and Music Instrument Collection, 1926-1997

ID: 12/9/101

Primary Creator: Alkire, Elbern H. (1907-1981)

Extent: 73.0 cubic feet

Date Acquired: 02/25/2006. More info below under Accruals.

Subjects: Music - United States, Photographs

Formats/Genres: Papers, Sheet music, Sound Recordings

Languages: English

Scope and Contents of the Materials

Consists of original and published music, business records, correspondence, instructional guides and music examinations, programs, sound recordings, photographs, electrical and mechanical diagrams for several prototype Hawaiian guitars, music instrument catalogs, four original prototype Hawaiian guitars including the first 15-string acoustic guitar, Cruiser, Mini Surfer, and the experimental "Superaxe" guitar with 20 strings, 3 Epiphone Eharp 10-string electric guitars, and Alkire's original acoustic Hawaiian guitar that was used for 1000 radio broadcasts as director and lead guitarist of the Oahu Serenaders during the early 1930s. In addition the collection includes an original Rickenbacker Electro "Frying Pan" guitar. The papers and instruments document Eddie Alkire's career as a musician, music teacher, businessman and inventor. The collection also documents the evolution of Hawaiian guitar performance in America during its height of popularity between 1929 and 1960.

For more Hawaiian guitar materials, see RS 12/9/50 and RS 12/9/150.

Biographical Note

Elbern Homer "Eddie" Alkire (1907-1981) was America's most recognized performer, teacher, and innovator of the twentieth-century Hawaiian guitar. Eddie Alkire, the son of Bessie Alkire, was born on December 6, 1907 in Hacker's Valley, West Virginia. When he was five months old, his father was killed in a railroad accident and he was subsequently adopted and raised by his maternal grandparents, David Lee Alkire and Arminta Alkire (nee Lake). At the age of 16, his grandfather died, leaving Eddie to manage the family grocery store. Sometime around 1921, Eddie began practicing the guitar and enrolled in a correspondence course created by the First Hawaiian Conservatory of Music, a guitar store based in New York and New Jersey. In 1925, Eddie began working at a coal mine operated by Standard Supply Co. in Clarksburg, West Virginia. Soon after, he enrolled in an electrical engineering correspondence course, which he completed in less than a year. During this same year, Alkire performed guitar and tenor banjo for the first time on a radio station, W.M.M.N., which was located in Fairmont, West Virginia.

In 1929, Alkire moved to Turtle Creek, Pennsylvania in order to attend a technical night school. During this time, he was employed by the Westinghouse Electrical Company, where he built switch gear apparatuses and intended to become an electrical engineer. By chance, the Westinghouse building where he worked was located across the street from a local Hawaiian Guitar Shop and School. Members of the School tried to persuade him to abandon his pursuit of electrical engineering and to teach and perform at the school. He soon began playing on the school's Sunday radio hour sponsored by radio station K.Q.V.

In 1930, Alkire was persuaded to move to Cleveland, Ohio where he became a teacher and composer for the Oahu Music Company. Between 1930 and 1934, Alkire acted as the music director for the Oahu Serenaders, an ensemble that performed on over 1000 coast-to-coast, nationally syndocated N.B.C and C.B.S. radio broadcasts. As a performer, Alkire experimented with new tunings that enabled him to play four-part harmonies and rapid melodic passages and as a result the Oahu Serenaders fostered a deep fan base. In 1934, Alkire married Margaret Hanzel, who suggested that he find a more stable career. That year, Alkire and his wife moved to Easton, Pennsylvania. It was here that Alkire created his own music publishing company. Building upon his own educational experiences and the publishing experience he gained from Oahu, Alkire created a series of progressive correspondence lessons that taught beginning and intermediate players how to play Hawaiian and Spanish guitar. His correspondence course would continue publishing learn-by-mail lessons well into the 1960s.

In 1936, Alkire utilized his knowledge of electrical engineering to create an experimental 15-string electric Hawaiian guitar. By 1939, he had solicited renowned electric guitar maker George Beauchamp to help him cast the first 10-string Hawaiian Guitar, which he called the E-Harp (pronounced ay-harp) and which Alkire officially patented in 1950. Near the end of his life, Alkire designed several guitar pedals and several other Hawaiian guitars including: The Mighty Mo, the Super Axe, the Mini Surfer, the Cruiser, and the Islander. Alkire died on January 25, 1981. He was inducted in the Steel Guitar Hall of Fame two years later in 1983.

Subject/Index Terms

Music - United States
Photographs

Administrative Information

Repository: The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music

Accruals: Claude Brownell performance audiocassettes donated by Dick Alkire on February 21, 2018. Alkire business correspondence from 1932 to 1997, and 10-inch disc recordings donated by Dick Alkire on January 17, 2021.

Access Restrictions: None.

Acquisition Source: Richard Alkire

Acquisition Method: Gift.

Other Note: Pages

Box and Folder Listing

Browse by Series:

[Series 1: Instruments and inventions],
[Series 2: Publications, compositions and teaching methods],
[Series 3: Business materials],
[Series 4: Professional materials],
[Series 5: Personal materials],
[Series 6: Recordings],
[Series 7: Photographs],
[All]

Series 4: Professional materials

Sub-Series 1: Articles, magazines and journals

Box 105

Folder 1: Lecture notes, 1969 (5 January)
Folder 2: Hawaiian guitar articles
Folder 3: "Harmonic Resources of the Eharp" as tape recorded
Folder 4: "Overcomers are made of steel": Author: Bell, Victor
Folder 5: Article draft, undated
Folder 6: "Our trip to the convention"
Folder 7: History of the steel guitar, lecture and article notes
Folder 8: Published articles by Eddie Alkire
Folder 9: FIGA articles
Folder 11: "Metronome" column ideas
Folder 12: Articles: Authors: Gould, White, Waddington, McGinley
Folder 13: "Hand stretching", 1932: Illustrator: Klar, Edith
Folder 14: "So you think you know how to write a country tune": Author: Marlowe, Kenny
Folder 15: Magazine clippings, 1968
Folder 16: News clippings, 1950-59
Folder 17: _The Bandsman_, 1959 (Feb.)
Folder 18: _The Billboard_, 1955
Folder 19: _Dormhurst Triangle_, 1932 (Mar.)
Folder 20: _Easton Express_, 1972 (Jun.)
Folder 21: _FIGA News_, 1967 (Nov. - Dec.)
Folder 22: _FIGA News_, 1979
Folder 23: _FIGA News_, 1980
Folder 24: _FIGA News_, 1981 (Jan. - Apr.)
Folder 25: _Fretted Instrument News_, 1945-49

Box 106

Folder 1: _Fretted Instrument News_, 1950-51
Folder 2: _Fretted Instrument News_, 1952-54
Folder 3: _Fretts_, 1958 (Feb. - Mar.)
Folder 4: _The Guitarist_, 1937
Folder 5: _Ha'ilono Mele_ vol. 1, nos. 1-12
Folder 6: _Ha'ilono Mele_ vol. 2, nos. 1-12
Folder 7: _Ha'ilono Mele_ vol. 3, nos. 1-12
Folder 8: _Ha'ilono Mele_ vol. 4, nos. 1-12
Folder 9: _Ha'ilono Mele_ vol. 5, nos. 1-12
Folder 10: _Ha'ilono Mele_ vol. 2, no. 1 - vol. 3, no. 3
Folder 11: _Hawaiian Guitarist_, 1933

Box 107

Folder 1: _Hawaiian Guitarist_, 1934
Folder 2: _Hawaiian Guitarist_, 1935-36
Folder 3: _Hawaiian Guitarist_ survey form
Folder 4: _Honolulu Advertiser_, 1934 (June)
Folder 5: International Hawaiian Steel Guitar Club newsletter vol. 4-7
Folder 6: _Mastertone_, 1937
Folder 7: _Music Dealer_, 1948, 51
Folder 8: _Music Dealer_, 1952
Folder 9: _Music Studio News_ vol. 12, nos. 1-4
Folder 10: _Music Studio News_ vol. 13, nos. 1-4
Folder 11: _Music Studio News_ vol. 14, nos. 1-6
Folder 12: _Music Today_, 1947
Folder 13: _The Music Trades_, 1962 (Jun., Aug.)
Folder 14: _Musical Notes_, 1936
Folder 15: _Pedal Steel Newsletter_, 1978

Box 108

Folder 1: SESAC Bulletins, 1942-51
Folder 2: SESAC Bulletins, 1942-46
Folder 3: SESAC Bulletins, 1947-56
Folder 4: SESAC Bulletins, 1952-56
Folder 5: _The Statler_, 1932
Folder 6: _Steel Guitar Progress_ vol. 1, no. 2 - vol. 2, no. 1
Folder 7: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - Frank Brown
Folder 8: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - Joseph Clemmer
Folder 9: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - Everett Deming
Folder 10: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - Leonard L. Gross
Folder 11: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - Nick de Paola
Folder 12: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - Gene Mack
Folder 13: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - Ladis Marek
Folder 14: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - John McGinley
Folder 15: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - Lloyd L. Nollinger
Folder 16: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - Hibbard A. Perry
Folder 17: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - Frank Quintana

Box 109

Folder 1: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - Ruth Rees
Folder 2: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - Henry W. Rodenbeck
Folder 3: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - W. O. Storhow
Folder 4: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - Ron Waddington
Folder 5: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - Sylvia Wagner
Folder 6: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - Fred Werner
Folder 7: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - Evan White
Folder 8: _Steel Guitar Progress_ article - Robert Whitford
Folder 9: _Steel Guitarist_, 1979
Folder 10: _Steel Guitarist_, 1980
Folder 11: _Steel Guitarist_, 1981
Folder 12: _Your Music_, 1950-51

Box 111

Folder 1: Newspaper articles & publicity, 1930-41
Folder 2: Newspaper articles & publicity, 1941-55
Folder 3: Newspaper articles & publicity, 1950-59
Folder 4: Newspaper articles, 1960-76
Folder 5: _Rodeo News_, 1947 (May)

Box 133

Folder 5: Photocopied news clippings, ca. 1920-30
Folder 6: Superaxe debut article, 1972
Folder 7: Easton Express Electro article, 1976

Sub-Series 2: Professional organizations

Box 109

Folder 13: Hawaiian Music Foundation literature
Folder 14: American Federation of Musicians life membership card
Folder 15: American Guild of Banjoists, Mandolinists and Guitarists meeting minutes, 1951
Folder 16: American Guild of Banjoists, Mandolinists and Guitarists convention programs, 1936-40
Folder 17: American Guild of Banjoists, Mandolinists and Guitarists convention programs, 1947-54
Folder 18: American Guild of Music convention programs, 1940-58

Box 110

Folder 1: American Guild of Music convention programs, 1936-46
Folder 2: American Guild of Music convention programs, 1951-56
Folder 3: American Guild of Music convention programs, 1955-58
Folder 4: American Guild of Music convention programs, 1950-64
Folder 5: American Guild of Music convention programs, 1977-80
Folder 6: American Guild of Music convention programs, 1981
Folder 7: American Guild of Music registration list
Folder 8: Association of Music Publishers
Folder 9: Convention ideas
Folder 10: FIGA directories, 1975
Folder 11: Fretted Instrument Guild of America
Folder 12: Song lists
Folder 13: Reference and suggestions: lists played, 1942-43
Folder 14: Program pieces (song titles)
Folder 15: Reference and suggestions: lists played, 1942-43
Folder 16: Set lists
Folder 17: Radio continuity and list of programs, 1941-42

Box 111

Folder 6: Convention display materials, 1948-49
Folder 7: Convention display materials, 1949-50
Folder 8: Convention display materials, 1951-52

Box 112

Folder 1: Convention display materials, 1952-53
Folder 2: Convention display materials, 1954-56
Folder 3: Convention display materials, 1956-57

Box 120

Folder 2: American Guild of Music Lifetime Achievement Award

Box 140

Item 1: Gretsch Trophy American Guild Award- July 3, 1940
Item 2: Gretsch Trophy American Guild of B.M. & G Award- July 10, 1941
Item 3: Picks
Item 4: Slide/Steel