Scope and Contents
The collection contains correspondence, music manuscripts, phonograph recordings, composition and copyright lists, biographical material, and scrapbooks.
Series I: Correspondence contains outgoing letters from 1930-1967. Includes letters from his son, Henry R. Stearns.
Series II: Professional Papers includes correspondence, royalty records, and contracts with the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) (1925-1967), and also correspondence, applications, and certificates with the U.S. Copyright office (1931-1953). Also in this series are Stern's composition and copyright lists. This series also contains correspondence, royalty records, contracts and other documents with music publishers, organized by the name of the publisher.
Series III: Miscellaneous contains press clippings, ASCAP publications, historical newspapers, autographed letters, and unidentified phonograph records.
Series IV: Biographical material includes personal mementos, photographs, and scrapbooks containing sketches, memoirs of a European trip, autograph album and indexes to the record collection.
Series V: Manuscript Music contains bound and unbound music manuscripts organized by title of work.
Series VI: Recordings contain private recordings of Stern's compositions on phonograph records, alphabetically organized by title of song.
Dates
- circa 1874-1966
Creator
- Henry, S. R., 1874-1966 (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open to the public. Collection must be used in Special Collections and University Archives Reading Room. Collection or parts of collection may be stored offsite. Please contact Special Collections and University Archives in advance of your visit to allow for transportation time. Collection includes sound recordings, moving images, and digital files to which access is restricted. Access to these materials is governed by repository policy and may require the production of listening or viewing copies. Researchers requiring access must notify Special Collections and University Archives in advance and pay fees for reproduction services as necessary.
Conditions Governing Use
Property rights reside with Special Collections and University Archives, University of Oregon Libraries. Copyright resides with the creators of the documents or their heirs. All requests for permission to publish collection materials must be submitted to Special Collections and University Archives. The reader must also obtain permission of the copyright holder.
Biographical / Historical
Henry R. Stern (1874-1966) was a music composer and music publishing executive. Stern wrote ballads, novelty and comic tunes under the pseudonym of S. R. Henry. Many of his compositions were published in the "Tin Pan Alley" era when the home piano and sheet music were at their height.
In his thirty-five year career Stern produced several Broadway plays and vaudeville sketches. Stern retired in 1920 and joined the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers in 1921.
He moved to Dallas, Texas in 1941, where he remained for the rest of his life. While in Dallas, Stern continued song writing and devoted considerable time to charitable work with the Boys Ranch at Bedfort, Texas. He wrote the official Boys Ranch Song and was a member of the Variety Club of Dallas, the sponsor of the ranch.
Extent
5 linear feet (5 containers) : 3 record storage boxes, 1 manuscript box, 1 oversize flat box
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Henry R. Stern (1874-1966) was a music composer and music publishing executive. The collection contains correspondence, music manuscripts, phonograph recordings, composition and copyright lists, biographical material, and scrapbooks.
Arrangement
Collection is organized into the following series:
Series I: Correspondence
Series II: Professional Papers
Series III: Miscellaneous
Series IV: Biographical Material
Series V: Manuscript Music
Series VI: Recordings
Other Finding Aids
Paper finding aid with additional information is available in Special Collections & University Archives.
Processing Information
Collection processed by staff, 1971.
This finding aid may be updated periodically to account for new acquisitions to the collection and/or revisions in arrangement and description.
This collection received a basic level of processing including minimal organization and rehousing.
Description information is drawn in part from information supplied with the collection and initial surveys of the contents.
- American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers
- Clippings Subject Source: TGM II, Genre and physical characteristic terms
- Composers -- United States Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Composers -- United States -- Correspondence Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Copyright certificates Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Correspondence Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Henry, S. R., 1874-1966
- Henry, S. R., 1874-1966
- Music Subject Source: Archiveswest
- Music -- Manuscripts -- United States Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Music publishers -- Correspondence Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Phonograph records Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Photographs Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Scrapbooks Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Sketches Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Title
- Guide to the Henry R. Stern Papers
- Status
- Complete Description
- Author
- Finding aid prepared by University of Oregon Libraries, Archivists' Toolkit Project Team and Tanya Parlet.
- Date
- 2012
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English
- Sponsor
- Funding for production of this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC).
Repository Details
Part of the University of Oregon Libraries, Special Collections and University Archives Repository
