Finding Aid for James Edward Myers Sheet Music Collection, 1836-1986 | The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music

Title: James Edward Myers Sheet Music Collection, 1836-1986

ID: 12/9/96

Primary Creator: Myers, James Edward (1913-2001)

Extent: 8.2 cubic feet

Arrangement: The collection is organized in three series: Series 1, General and Country Music, 1862-1986, Series 2, Military Music, 1836-1975, and Series 3) Jewish-American Music. Each series is arranged alphabetically by song title

Date Acquired: 01/05/2005. More info below under Accruals.

Subjects: Country Music, Jews--Music, Military Music, Music, Music - United States, Musical Repertoires, Piano, Popular Culture, Sacred music, Songs, Vaudeville songs -- United States, Vocal music, Women, World War I, World War II

Formats/Genres: Papers, Sheet music

Languages: English, French, German, Yiddish

Consists of published sheet music, documenting American culture through country music, WWI and WWII pro-military songs, and Jewish music. Of particular note are the pre-1920 country songs, which contain hand-drawn cover art and discuss themes about life on the farm, while many contemporary titles feature the "gayer" night-life of city dwellers. Of particular interest are songs by such composers as Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, George Gershwin, Rogers and Hammerstein, and John Philip Sousa. Cover art of interest includes Irving Berlin's Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep, Cole Porter's I've got you under my skin, and Sousa's In Flanders fields the poppies grow, Solid men to the front, and We are coming.

James Edward Myers (1913- 2001), a lifelong resident of Springfield, Illinois, was born on November 9, 1913. He graduated from the University of Illinois in 1936 with a degree in history and a fondness for the university bands, in which he played oboe and drums. The son of Albert Myers, a founder of the Myers Brothers department stores, James joined the US army in 1939 and served in Cuba and India during World War II.  Upon discharge, he married his wife, Edith, and returned to the University of Illinois to study agriculture. He farmed a 350-acre farm in Central Illinois from 1947 to 1953 that was noted for its agricultural innovations.  An injury forced retirement from farming; and in 1953 he returned to the family business, where he served as vice-president, remaining with the firm until 1968. He was extremely active in his community and was president or on the board of many civic organizations.

Myers was something of a Renaissance man and was a collector throughout his life. In the 1930s he journeyed to Guatemala, where he amassed an extensive collection of handcrafted fabrics and clothes of the Guatemalan natives, which he donated to the Illinois State Museum. After he retired, he bought the Lincoln-Herndon law offices building and, with two partners, restored it and opened it to the public. It was later sold to the state of Illinois. At the time of its opening, he also opened Prairie House, a pioneering showcase of US crafts, which remained in existence until 2010, exhibiting comporary art and ceramics, woodwork, glass, and jewelry. Myers also began collecting American books of humor, and his collection now forms part of the "wit and humor" holdings of the University's Rare Book & Manuscript Library.

In his later years he established Lincoln-Herndon Press, which published books of humor compiled by himself and others. His books Jones, a novel, and The Bridge of Time, a nonfiction book about Israel, were published by A. S. Barnes.  A further novel, The Stones of Summerville, remains unpublished.  His extensive collection of American sheet music was built late in life. Myers specialized in music about and during wartime, and his single largest sub-collection consists of songs related to World War I. An amateur pianist, he was especially interested in the covers in his collection, which he regarded as underappreciated instances of a kind of folk art. He died on December 7, 2001.

Country Music
Jews--Music
Military Music
Music
Music - United States
Musical Repertoires
Piano
Popular Culture
Sacred music
Songs
Vaudeville songs -- United States
Vocal music
Women
World War I
World War II

Repository: The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music

Accruals: January 5, 2005. A second set of materials, now series 3, was donated on April 2, 2014 by Jamie Myers. Third and fourth sets of materials were donated on July 9, 2015 and July 28, 2015, by Jamie Myers. The majority of materials in the third set of donations have been added to Series 1. Materials in the fourth set of donations have been added to Series 1, 2, or 3 - based on their subject.

Access Restrictions: None.

Acquisition Source: Gift

Acquisition Method: The James Edward Myers Sheet Music Collection was donated to the University of Illinois on January 5, 2005

Related Materials: World War I music contained in the James Edward Myers Sheet Music Collection digital repository documents not only what was produced by Midwestern music publishers but also offers a compelling cross-section of popular musical practices and tastes across the Midwest during the War. For more information please see https://digital.library.illinois.edu/collections/692ae4c0-c09b-0134-2371-0050569601ca-6.