G. Harry Wright Showboat Collection

Description

Kent State University Professor G. Harry Wright had a fascination with river showboats that stemmed from his childhood watching the boats travel along the Ohio River. During the 19th century, showboats offered mobile entertainment, making stops along waterways and providing entertainment through vaudeville and big bands. Due to the rising popularity of the moving picture and the automobile, showboats slowly lost popularity and one by one, began shutting down.

Upon discovering an old showboat docked along the Ohio River in 1948, Wright had the idea of creating a summer theater for Kent State students. With permission from the Head of the School of Speech and the President of the University, Wright leased The Majestic for a summer and had a successful three-month run, touring the Ohio and Kanawha Rivers in the summer of 1948.

--Curated by Kathryn Clements


Author/Photographer Wright, G. Harry, 1901-1964
Date
Extent 12 document cases (6 cubic feet)
Institution Kent State University
Repository Special Collections and Archives
Finding aid Finding aid for the G. Harry Wright Showboat Collection
Portion Digitized 6 items selected from the collection: newspaper clipping, program, fliers, and letterhead stationery
Access Rights This digital object is owned by Kent State University and may be protected by U.S. Copyright law (Title 17, USC). Please include proper citation and credit for use of this item. Use in publications or productions is prohibited without written permission from Kent State University. Please contact the Department of Special Collections and Archives for more information.
Duplication Policy http://www.library.kent.edu/special-collections-and-archives/duplication-policy
Temporal Coverage approximately 1946-1964
DPLA Rights Statement http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Format of Original archive (mixed materials)

Credits

Curated by Kathleen Siebert Medicus with guest contributors