Family & Social Life

Donations to the Museum have preserved irreplaceable evidence about generations of ordinary Americans. Objects from the Copp household of Stonington, Connecticut, include many items used by a single family from 1740 to 1850. Other donations have brought treasured family artifacts from jewelry to prom gowns. These gifts and many others are all part of the Museum's family and social life collections.

Children's books and Sunday school lessons, tea sets and family portraits also mark the connections between members of a family and between families and the larger society. Prints, advertisements, and artifacts offer nostalgic or idealized images of family life and society in times past. And the collections include a few modern conveniences that have had profound effects on American families and social life, such as televisions, video games, and personal computers.

Bing Crosby. side 1: Home on the Range; side 2: (Hush-a-Bye, Ma Baby) Missouri Waltz (Decca 2676), from the album, Bing Crosby - Cowboy Songs (Decca 69).78 rpm.Currently not on view
Description
Bing Crosby. side 1: Home on the Range; side 2: (Hush-a-Bye, Ma Baby) Missouri Waltz (Decca 2676), from the album, Bing Crosby - Cowboy Songs (Decca 69).
78 rpm.
Location
Currently not on view
recording date
1939
recording artist
Crosby, Bing
manufacturer
Decca
ID Number
1996.0320.05080
maker number
2676
69
accession number
1996.0320
catalog number
1996.0320.05080
Gene Autry. side 1: Home on the Range; side 2: Red River Valley (Columbia 37184), from the album, Gene Autry's Western Classics (Columbia C 120).78 rpm.Currently not on view
Description
Gene Autry. side 1: Home on the Range; side 2: Red River Valley (Columbia 37184), from the album, Gene Autry's Western Classics (Columbia C 120).
78 rpm.
Location
Currently not on view
recording date
1946
release date
1947
recording artist
Autry, Gene
manufacturer
Columbia
ID Number
1996.0320.05056
maker number
37184
C 120
accession number
1996.0320
catalog number
1996.0320.05056
side 1: Al Jolson. Snap Your Fingers; side 2: Collins and Harlan. I Want To Be in Dixie (Victor 17075)78 rpm. Side 1 was recorded in 1911. Side 2 was recorded in 1912. This pressing was released in 1923.Currently not on view
Description
side 1: Al Jolson. Snap Your Fingers; side 2: Collins and Harlan. I Want To Be in Dixie (Victor 17075)
78 rpm. Side 1 was recorded in 1911. Side 2 was recorded in 1912. This pressing was released in 1923.
Location
Currently not on view
recording date
1912
1911
recording artist
Jolson, Al
Collins, Arthur
Harlan, Byron G.
manufacturer
Victor
ID Number
1985.0256.01
accession number
1985.0256
maker number
17075
catalog number
1985.0256.01
"Doctor" (Peter J.) Clayton. side 1: Honey Stealin' Blues; side 2: On the Killin' Floor (Bluebird 34-0702).78 rpm.Currently not on view
Description
"Doctor" (Peter J.) Clayton. side 1: Honey Stealin' Blues; side 2: On the Killin' Floor (Bluebird 34-0702).
78 rpm.
Location
Currently not on view
recording date
1942
recording artist; composer
Clayton, Peter J.
recording artist
Lewlar, Ernest
manufacturer
Bluebird
ID Number
1996.0153.08738
catalog number
1996.0153.08738
label number
34-0702
accession number
1996.0153
Bob Wilber and his Jazz Band. side 1: Limehouse Blues; side 2: Zig Zag (Circle J-1064), from the album, Bob Wilber Jazz Band (Circle S-24).78 rpm.This album was designed was by Jimmy Ernst (born Hans-Ulrich Ernst, 1920-1984), a German-born American painter.Currently not on view
Description

Bob Wilber and his Jazz Band. side 1: Limehouse Blues; side 2: Zig Zag (Circle J-1064), from the album, Bob Wilber Jazz Band (Circle S-24).
78 rpm.

This album was designed was by Jimmy Ernst (born Hans-Ulrich Ernst, 1920-1984), a German-born American painter.

Location
Currently not on view
recording date
1949
recording artist
Bob Wilber and his Jazz Band
manufacturer
Circle
ID Number
1978.0670.480
maker number
J-1064
S-24
accession number
1978.0670
catalog number
1978.0670.480
The Southernaires. side 1: Swing Low Sweet Chariot; side 2: Go Down Moses (Decca 2855). from the album, The Southernaires in a Recital of Spirituals (Decca 83).78 rpm.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
The Southernaires. side 1: Swing Low Sweet Chariot; side 2: Go Down Moses (Decca 2855). from the album, The Southernaires in a Recital of Spirituals (Decca 83).
78 rpm.
Location
Currently not on view
recording date
1939
recording artist
Southernaires
manufacturer
Decca
ID Number
1996.0320.05285
maker number
2855
83
accession number
1996.0320
catalog number
1996.0320.05285
various artists. side 1: Body and Soul; side 2: Rosetta [part 1] (Mercury 11030), from the album Norman Granz' Jazz at the Philharmonic, Vol. 5 (Mercury)78 rpmCurrently not on view
Description (Brief)
various artists. side 1: Body and Soul; side 2: Rosetta [part 1] (Mercury 11030), from the album Norman Granz' Jazz at the Philharmonic, Vol. 5 (Mercury)
78 rpm
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1944
composer
Hines, Earl
Wood, Henri
lyricist
Heyman, Edward
composer
Green, Johnny
lyricist
Eyton, Frank
Sour, Robert
manufacturer
Mercury
ID Number
1996.0153.11927.02
catalog number
1996.0153.11927.02
accession number
1996.0153
label number
11030
various artists. side 1: Flip and Jazz [part 3]; side 2: Honeysuckle Rose (Vox 16029), from the album, WNEW Saturday Night Swing Session, Vol. 1 (Vox VSP 303).78 rpmWNEW (AM 1130) was a New York based radio station.
Description

various artists. side 1: Flip and Jazz [part 3]; side 2: Honeysuckle Rose (Vox 16029), from the album, WNEW Saturday Night Swing Session, Vol. 1 (Vox VSP 303).
78 rpm

WNEW (AM 1130) was a New York based radio station. This recording features jazz radio broadcasts from the station, recorded in 1947.

Location
Currently not on view
recording date
1947
recording artist
Eldridge, Roy
Powell, Specs
Colicchio, Mike
Phillips, Flip
Safranski, Eddie
Casey, Al
manufacturer
Vox
ID Number
1978.0670.681
accession number
1978.0670
maker number
16029
VSP 303
catalog number
1978.0670.681
The Bibletone Jubileers. side 1: Old Ship of Zion; side 2: Didn't It Rain (Bibletone S-2009), from the album, Jubilee Spirituals (Bibletone SP).78 rpm.Currently not on view
Description
The Bibletone Jubileers. side 1: Old Ship of Zion; side 2: Didn't It Rain (Bibletone S-2009), from the album, Jubilee Spirituals (Bibletone SP).
78 rpm.
Location
Currently not on view
release date
ca 1947
recording artist
Bibletone Jubileers
manufacturer
Bibletone
ID Number
1996.0320.05038
maker number
S-2009
SP
accession number
1996.0320
catalog number
1996.0320.05038
Red River Dave. side 1: Is the Range Still the Same Back Home; side 2: Home om the Range (Sonora 1063), from the album, Songs of the West (Sonora MS 464).78 rpm.Currently not on view
Description
Red River Dave. side 1: Is the Range Still the Same Back Home; side 2: Home om the Range (Sonora 1063), from the album, Songs of the West (Sonora MS 464).
78 rpm.
Location
Currently not on view
recording date
1944
manufacturer
Sonora
ID Number
1996.0320.05212
maker number
1063
MS 464
accession number
1996.0320
catalog number
1996.0320.05212
Oak Ridge Quartet. side 1: Gonna Move This Wicked Race; side 2: Turn Your Radio On (Capitol 48022), from the album, Songs from the Grand Ole Opry (Capitol AD 86).78 rpm.The cover art for this album was made by Carlos Andreson.
Description

Oak Ridge Quartet. side 1: Gonna Move This Wicked Race; side 2: Turn Your Radio On (Capitol 48022), from the album, Songs from the Grand Ole Opry (Capitol AD 86).
78 rpm.

The cover art for this album was made by Carlos Andreson. Andreson, also as Anderson, (1905-1978) was an American painter, lithographer, and teacher. A native of Salt Lake City, Utah, Andreson studied at the University of Utah, then subsequently in Los Angeles, New York, Paris, and Berlin. In 1933, Andreson returned to the United States, creating paintings and drawings of early pioneer life for the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and teaching at Utah Arts Center. After the start of WWII, Anderson was commissioned by Abbott Laboratories to paint medical subjects at the stateside Naval hospitals. Andreson moved to San Francisco after the war where he produced artwork for the Oakland Army Base.

Location
Currently not on view
release date
1948
recording artist
Oak Ridge Quartet
manufacturer
Capitol
ID Number
1996.0320.05118
maker number
48022
AD 86
accession number
1996.0320
catalog number
1996.0320.05118
Nelson Eddy (singing in four-part harmony). side 1: Nearer, My God, To Thee; side 2: Ten Thousand Times Ten Thousand (Columbia 17388-D), from the album, Hymns We Love (Columbia M-646).78 rpm.The cover art for this album was made by Alex Steinweiss.
Description

Nelson Eddy (singing in four-part harmony). side 1: Nearer, My God, To Thee; side 2: Ten Thousand Times Ten Thousand (Columbia 17388-D), from the album, Hymns We Love (Columbia M-646).
78 rpm.

The cover art for this album was made by Alex Steinweiss. Alexander “Alex” Steinweiss (1917-2011) was an American artist and graphic designer. He was the first art director of Columbia Records, expanding the use of album covers and cover art. Steinweiss created album cover art from 1938 to 1973.

Location
Currently not on view
release date
1947
recording artist
Eddy, Nelson
Eddy, Nelson
manufacturer
Columbia
ID Number
1979.1023.098
accession number
1979.1023
maker number
17388-D
M-646
catalog number
1979.1023.098
Burl Ives. side 1: The Foggy Foggy Dew; side 2: Black Is the Color (Asch 345-2), from the album, The Wayfaring Stranger (Asch 345).78 rpm.The cover art for this album was by David Stone Martin (born David Livingstone Martin, 1913-1992).
Description

Burl Ives. side 1: The Foggy Foggy Dew; side 2: Black Is the Color (Asch 345-2), from the album, The Wayfaring Stranger (Asch 345).
78 rpm.

The cover art for this album was by David Stone Martin (born David Livingstone Martin, 1913-1992). Martin was an American artist best known for his illustrations on jazz album covers for labels including Mercury, Asch, Clef, Disc, and Dial. Many of his commissions were from Martin’s longtime friend, American jazz record producer and concert promoter Norman Granz (1918-2001).

Location
Currently not on view
release date
1944
recording artist
Ives, Burl
manufacturer
Asch
ID Number
1996.0320.05141
maker number
345-2
accession number
1996.0320
catalog number
1996.0320.05141
various artists. side 1: Lady Be Good [part 2]; side 2: Lady Be Good [part 3] (Stinson 999-3), from the album, Jazz At the Philharmonic (Stinson S-999).78 rpm.Currently not on view
Description
various artists. side 1: Lady Be Good [part 2]; side 2: Lady Be Good [part 3] (Stinson 999-3), from the album, Jazz At the Philharmonic (Stinson S-999).
78 rpm.
Location
Currently not on view
recording date
1944
recording artist
Smith, Willie
Jacquet, Illinois
Ventura, Charlie
Guy, Joe
McGhee, Howard
Finney, Garland
Livingston, Ulysses
Callender, Red
manufacturer
Stinson
ID Number
1978.0670.657
accession number
1978.0670
maker number
999-3
S-999
catalog number
1978.0670.657
Frank Luther and Zora Layman. side 1: The Wassail Song [track 1] Why, Alas!
Description
Frank Luther and Zora Layman. side 1: The Wassail Song [track 1] Why, Alas! In Lowly Stall [track 2] The First Nowell [track 3]; side 2: Carol, Carol Christians [track 1] When Dnow Lies Deep [track 2] The Sleigh Ride [track 3] (Decca 2865), from the album, Christmas in Song, Volume 1 (Decca 94).
78 rpm.
Location
Currently not on view
recording date
1939
manufacturer
Decca
ID Number
1996.0320.05177
maker number
2865
94
accession number
1996.0320
catalog number
1996.0320.05177
Josef Marais and his Bushveld Band. side 1: Jan Pieriewet; side 2: There Comes Alibama [track 1] Train to Kimberley (Decca 18233), from the album, Songs From the Veld, Vol. 2 (Decca A-302).78 rpm. Both tracks were recorded in 1941.
Description
Josef Marais and his Bushveld Band. side 1: Jan Pieriewet; side 2: There Comes Alibama [track 1] Train to Kimberley (Decca 18233), from the album, Songs From the Veld, Vol. 2 (Decca A-302).
78 rpm. Both tracks were recorded in 1941. This album was released in 1948.
Location
Currently not on view
recording date
1941
release date
1948
recording artist
Josef Marais and his Bushveld Band
manufacturer
Decca
ID Number
1979.1023.112
accession number
1979.1023
maker number
18233
A-302
catalog number
1979.1023.112
Carson Robison and His Old Timers. side 1: Buffalo Boy Go 'Round the Outside; side 2: Oh Sussana (Columbia 36019), from the album, Square Dances (Columbia C-47).78 rpm.Currently not on view
Description
Carson Robison and His Old Timers. side 1: Buffalo Boy Go 'Round the Outside; side 2: Oh Sussana (Columbia 36019), from the album, Square Dances (Columbia C-47).
78 rpm.
Location
Currently not on view
recording date
1941
recording artist
Carson Robison and His Old Timers
manufacturer
Columbia
ID Number
1996.0320.05248
maker number
36019
C-47
accession number
1996.0320
catalog number
1996.0320.05248
Jack Teargarden's Chicagoans. side 1: Stars Fell on Alabama; side 2: Deed I Do (Capitol 10027), from the album, The History of Jazz Vol. 2 - The Golden Era (Capitol CE-17).78 rpm.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Jack Teargarden's Chicagoans. side 1: Stars Fell on Alabama; side 2: Deed I Do (Capitol 10027), from the album, The History of Jazz Vol. 2 - The Golden Era (Capitol CE-17).
78 rpm.
Location
Currently not on view
recording date
1943
recording artist
Jack Teagarden's Chicagoans
manufacturer
Capitol
ID Number
1978.0670.087
accession number
1978.0670
maker number
10027
catalog number
1978.0670.087
maker number
CE-17
Jimmie Rushing. side 1: She's Mine, She's Yours; side 2: Somebody's Spoiling These Women (King 4606).78 rpm.Currently not on view
Description
Jimmie Rushing. side 1: She's Mine, She's Yours; side 2: Somebody's Spoiling These Women (King 4606).
78 rpm.
Location
Currently not on view
recording date
1952
recording artist
Rushing, Jimmie
manufacturer
King
ID Number
1991.0305.274
maker number
4606
catalog number
1991.0305.274
accession number
1991.0305
Phil Napoleon and his Memphis Five. side 1: The Blue Danube Goes Dixieland; side 2: Alabama Blues (Decca 27040), from the album, Dixieland Jazz Battle, Vol. 1 (Decca A-770).78 rpm.Currently not on view
Description
Phil Napoleon and his Memphis Five. side 1: The Blue Danube Goes Dixieland; side 2: Alabama Blues (Decca 27040), from the album, Dixieland Jazz Battle, Vol. 1 (Decca A-770).
78 rpm.
Location
Currently not on view
recording date
1950
recording artist
Phil Napoleon and his Memphis Five
manufacturer
Decca
ID Number
1978.0670.598
accession number
1978.0670
maker number
27040
A-770
catalog number
1978.0670.598
Carl Myles. side 1: Lady Round the Lady; side 2: Cheyenne Whirl (Imperial 1078), from the album, Square Dance (Imperial FD-15).78 rpm.Currently not on view
Description
Carl Myles. side 1: Lady Round the Lady; side 2: Cheyenne Whirl (Imperial 1078), from the album, Square Dance (Imperial FD-15).
78 rpm.
Location
Currently not on view
release date
1940s
recording artist
Myles, Carl
manufacturer
Imperial
ID Number
1996.0320.05193
maker number
1078
FD-15
accession number
1996.0320
catalog number
1996.0320.05193
Gene Autry. side 1: Peter CottontailL; side 2: The Funny Little Bunny (With the Powder Puff Tail) (Columbia MJV 68).78 rpm.Currently not on view
Description
Gene Autry. side 1: Peter CottontailL; side 2: The Funny Little Bunny (With the Powder Puff Tail) (Columbia MJV 68).
78 rpm.
Location
Currently not on view
release date
1950
recording artist
Autry, Gene
manufacturer
Columbia
ID Number
1996.0320.11199
collector/donor number
1316
maker number
MJV 68
accession number
1996.0320
catalog number
1996.0320.11199
Dexter Gordon Quintette. side 1: Dexter's Riff; side 2: So Easy (Savoy 960).78 rpm.Currently not on view
Description
Dexter Gordon Quintette. side 1: Dexter's Riff; side 2: So Easy (Savoy 960).
78 rpm.
Location
Currently not on view
recording date
1948
recording artist
Dexter Gordon Quintette
manufacturer
Savoy
ID Number
1978.0670.378
maker number
960
accession number
1978.0670
catalog number
1978.0670.378
Liberace. An Evening with Liberace (Columbia B-329)45 rpmCurrently not on view
Description (Brief)
Liberace. An Evening with Liberace (Columbia B-329)
45 rpm
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1953
recording artist
Liberace
manufacturer
Columbia
ID Number
2000.3053.3304
nonaccession number
2000.3053
catalog number
2000.3053.3304
label number
B-329

Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.

If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.