Physical description:

1 volume.

Dates:

1899 - 1911.

Provenance:

Purchased from Bookworm and Silverfish, August, 1989.

Agency history:

The Osterburg [Pennsylvania] Cornet Band was organized 20 October 1880. Osterburg is located ca. 75 miles southeast of Pittsburgh.
 

Scope and Content:

Minutes of the weekly meetings of the Osterburg [Pennsylvania] Cornet band, 7 August 1899 - 6 April 1911, kept by secretaries J. Harry Stambaugh, 1899-1903, A.S. Cobler, 1904-1906, and S.W. Riddle, 1906-1911.
 

These meetings concentrated primarily on invitations to the band to furnish music for picnics, festivals, fairs and meetings held by the Grange, churches and church organizations, political parties, fraternal and labor associations, and nearby communities and the income and expenses thereof. There is also occasional discussion of the purchase of music and musical instruments, including prices on a variety of brass instruments, and a discussion, November 1906-May 1907, of the purchase of new band uniforms.
 

Minutes also include information on resignations and deaths of members and on the election of new members and occasionally mention fines levied for absences and "unbecoming" behavior and band social events and fund raisers.
 

Although there are intermittent references to the purchase of music, no titles are given and there is no information in the minutes on the band's repertoire or composition except for lists 7 August 1899 and 30 December 1902 of members and their instruments.
 

The band owned its own hall which was often rented to other groups, and these minutes deal with repairs and improvements to the hall and the rental thereof. There is also sporadic mention of repairs and maintenance of the band's wagon and of rental/loan of festival equipment (e.g. milkshake machine, chairs, dishes) owned by the band.
 

Location:

This volume is shelved by accession number with manuscript collections.