Description
Seven flat boxes (12" x 15") containing autograph music manuscripts, in pencil or ink, as well as published sheet music, musical
drafts and sketches of Samuel Wesley Martin (1839–1926) and his son Paul Martin (1867–1950).
Background
Samuel Wesley Martin, born January 20, 1839 in Plainfield, Illinois, was for many years a teacher of school music, singing,
harmony, counterpoint and musical composition, as well as choral conducting. Author of nearly 100 solo sheet music songs and
vocal quartets, he was also editor of several collections of songs for use in singing schools, choirs, social circles, musical
conventions and glee clubs: The Festival Chimes, 1863; The Cluster, 1873; The Welcome Hour, 1877. After a successful period
on the faculty of Wheaton College in the 1880s, he continued with school music and conducted musical conventions, mostly in
Illinois and the adjoining states, before moving to California. S. Wesley Martin died November 7, 1926 in Yountville, CA.
Sources: A Hundred Years of Music in America. An Account of Musical Effort in America During the Past Century ... Together
with Historical and Biographical Sketches of Important Personalities, W.S.B. Mathews, ed., (Chicago: G.L. Howe, 1889), p.
210; https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/185413356 and Ancestry.com. California, Death Index, 1905-1939 [database on-line].
Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013.