Jennie C. Lee Papers

Collection

Identifier: W-0113

No requestable containers

African American lives

Go to file

Scope and Contents

The Jennie C. Lee papers contain photographs; letters; telegrams; newspaper clippings; programs for assorted musical performances and dedications; pamphlets; publications; and circulars. Many appear to have been removed from scrapbooks; a large number of the photographs are still affixed to black scrapbook paper.

Volume one, 1891-1934, contains numerous photographs, loose and attached to scrapbook pages. There are several photographs of persons who are clearly Tuskegee Institute faculty members. Many have brief descriptions or names written on them. For example, one very small photograph has the inscription "choir and visitors - Roosevelt's visit '06."

Correspondence of significance includes a telegram from Booker T. Washington in 1903 inviting her to Tuskegee; a letter Booker T. Washington wrote to her in 1906; a letter Julius T. Rosenwald wrote to her in 1915 regarding a gift of $100 he gave her; and a letter from Tuskegee Institute principal Robert Moton at the time of her retirement in 1928.

Volume two, 1905-1938, is smaller than volume one, and it contains the same types of material. Correspondence of significance includes two letters from Roscoe C. Bruce.

Dates

Creation: 1891 - 1938

Creator

Lee, Jennie C. (Jennie Cheatham) (Person)
Washington, Booker T. (Person)
Williams, A. S., III (Collector, Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research. Researchers must register and agree to copyright and privacy laws before using this collection. Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations. Due to the nature of certain archival formats, including digital and audio-visual materials, access to certain materials may require additional advance notice.

Conditions Governing Use

Researchers are responsible for using the materials in conformance with United States copyright law as well as any donor restrictions accompanying the materials. The user assumes all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any copyright claimants in collection materials. Copyright for official University records is held by The University of Alabama. The library claims only physical ownership of many manuscript collections. Anyone wishing to broadcast or publish this material must assume all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any claimants of literary property rights or copyrights. Please contact Special Collections (archives@ua.edu) with questions regarding specific manuscript collections. For more information about copyright policy, please visit: https://www.ua.edu/copyright/. Any materials used for academic research or otherwise should be fully credited with the source.

Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals without the consent of those individuals may have legal implications, for which the University of Alabama assumes no responsibility.

Biographical / Historical

Jennie Cheatham Lee was born in Tennessee on November 16, 1866, to Anderson and Elizabeth Cheatham. She attended Fisk University. In 1903, Booker T. Washington asked her to take the position of choir director at Tuskegee Institute. She held the position until 1928 when she retired.

She passed away in Nashville,Tennessee, in 1956. According to her death certificate, she was divorced.

Extent

0.3 Linear Feet

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

Contains photographs, letters, programs, and other materials created and collected by Lee, who was director of the Tuskegee Choir for twenty-five years (1903-1928).

Arrangement

When the collection arrived, it was arranged in two three-ring binders, each containing items in individual page protectors. The page protectors contained loose items such as clippings, photographs, letters, and publications. In addition, the page protectors contained pages and items that were clearly removed from a scrapbook; the items were either still attached to black scrapbook pages or they were torn in places where they had been removed.

The manuscript materials have been placed into categories such as, "Correspondence" and "Newpaper and Magazine Articles" for ease of searching and access. The scrapbook pages containing photographs and loose photographs have been foldered together.