The Case:
A man in Port Washington, Wisconsin who owns a pair of metal "masters" that were used to press shellac records in the 1920s and 30s has a hunch they could represent surviving fragments of a lost moment in American musical history.
The contributor’s great uncle was the master sound engineer for one of the more peculiar recording enterprises in the United States, Paramount Records. He worked for the Wisconsin Chair Company, which, among other things, manufactured phonograph cabinets.
The company’s salesmen were savvy to the broad spectrum of musical talent at the time and established a tandem recording label, ultimately bringing some of the best blues artists from the Mississippi Delta to Wisconsin to record in the factory.
History Detectives travels to Wisconsin and New York to determine the significance of these metal masters and to explore how one company captured the regionally and culturally diverse music played around the nation in the 20s and 30s.
Related Content
Feature:
Feature:
Technique:
Technique:
Related Links
Explore
-
Related Investigation
Airstream Caravan
Was this mobile home part of a modern-day wagon train halfway across the world?
-
Related Investigation
Birthplace Of Hip Hop
Did this Bronx apartment building give birth to a culture that now spans the globe?
-
Also in Emerging Modern America: 1890-1930
Dempsey Fight Bell
Is this the bell that sat ringside at the world's first boxing superstar's legendary match?
-
Also with Tukufu Zuberi
Seth Eastman Painting
Is this painting a true depiction of Native American life from one of the premiere painters of the American West?
-
Also in Emerging Modern America: 1890-1930
Nora Holt Autograph Book
Why did this Harlem Renaissance luminary own a book filled with U.S. Presidents' signatures?
-
Also in Season 4
Cleveland Electric Car
What happened to the electric street car network in Cleveland?
Comments
This is a place for opinions, comments, questions and discussion; a place where viewers of History Detectives can express their points of view and connect with others who value history. We ask that posters be polite and respectful of all opinions. History Detectives reserves the right to delete comments that don’t conform to this conduct. We will not respond to every post, but will do our best to answer specific questions, or address an error.