Date of Award
Fall 11-16-1978
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Library Science/Master of Life Sciences (MLS)
Department
Library Science
First Advisor
Patterson, Charles D.
Second Advisor
Cairns, Marie L.
Third Advisor
Hansard, Mary
Abstract
For three decades, 1858-1888, A. E. Blackmar of New Orleans, Louisiana, was one of the leading music publishers in the South. During the Civil War he published more titles than any other Confederate music publisher, operating both from New Orleans and also from Augusta, Georgia. After the war, Blackmar engaged in a number of unsuccessful partnerships but continued to publish music until his death in 1888. He also established business in New York and San Francisco for brief periods. It was primarily as a Confederate music publisher that A. E. Blackmar made his greatest contribution to American sheet music publishing. This study is a history of his music publishing activities and includes a check list of his imprints in three Louisiana collections: The Louisiana Room of Louisiana State University Library, The Special Collections Division of Howard Tilton Memorial Library, Tulane University, and The Historic New Orleans Collection. Part One comprises an historical account of Blackmar's music publishing activities. Chapter 1 includes biographical sketches of A. E. Blackmar and his brother H. C. Blackmar. Chapter 2 is a brief description of music
and music publishing in New Orleans prior to 1860, the year Blackmar established his company in New Orleans. Chapter 3 covers Blackmar's publishing activities in New Orleans from 1860-1862. Chapter 4 covers his Augusta, Georgia, operation during 1862-1864. Chapter 5 covers the post-war period through A. E. Blackmar's death in 1888. A summary and conclusions along with suggestions for further study are included in Chapter 6. Part Two is ”A Check List of Blackmar Imprints in Louisiana Collections.’’ Introductory notes describe the collections from which the check list was compiled and explain the arrangement of data within the entries. Appendices are included for imprints with Blackmar as a subsidiary publisher, for music independently published by H. C. Blackmar, and for music composed by the Blackmars but published by other firms.
Recommended Citation
Powell, Paul Richard, "A Study of A. E. Blackmar and Brother, Music Publishers, of New Orleans, Louisiana, and Augusta, Georgia: with a Check List of Imprints in Louisiana Collections" (1978). LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses. 8234.
https://repository.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses/8234
DOI
10.31390/gradschool_disstheses.8234