Dr. Lizzie May Ulmer Dramatic Co. account book

Access and use

Location of collection:
George Mason University
2400 Fenwick Library
Special Collections Research Center
Fenwick Library MS2FL
George Mason University
Fairfax, VA 22030
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Mieko Palazzo
Phone: (703) 993-2220
Fax: (703) 993-2669
Restrictions:

There are no access restrictions.

Terms of access:

Public domain. There are no known restrictions.

Preferred citation:

Dr. Lizzie May Ulmer Dramatic Co. account book, C0314, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries.

Summary

Extent:
0.25 Linear Feet
Creator:
Dr. Lizzie May Ulmer Dramatic Co
Abstract:
This collection consists of an account book listing the finances of the Dr. Lizzie May Ulmer Dramatic Company as it traveled around the United States in fall 1885.
Language:
English .
Preferred citation:

Dr. Lizzie May Ulmer Dramatic Co. account book, C0314, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries.

Background

Scope and content:

This account book records the cash intake and expenditures of the Dr. Lizzie May Ulmer Dramatic Co. from September 14, 1885 to October 31, 1885. The company traveled to cities across the Southern and Eastern United States during that time - the first entry is for Savannah, GA, and the final entry is for Philadelphia, PA. Expenditures documented include percentages paid to staff, cost of advertising in various forms, etc. The intake side of each entry lists number of tickets sold, different prices of tickets, and total cash intake from each type of ticket sales.

Biographical / historical:

Lizzie May Ulmer and George T. Ulmer were actors and theater impresarios in the second half of the 19th century, travelling and performing across the United States. According to his memoir, George Ulmer served as a drummer boy in the 8th Maine Regiment of the Union Army during the Civil War, including at the Battle of Cold Harbor and the Siege of Petersburg (Ulmer 38, 46). After the war, he married his stepsister, Lizzie May, and they "adopted the stage as a profession" (Ulmer 76). Lizzie May achieved a degree of notoriety, and Nelson A. Primus, an African-American artist from Connecticut who was living in Boston, painted her portrait in 1876 (See Jenn Phelps, 'Me and Lizzie May,' and Samella S. Lewis, 37).

Acquisition information:
Purchased by the Special Collections Research Center before June 2018.
Processing information:

Processing completed by Elizabeth Beckman in July 2018. EAD markup completed by Elizabeth Beckman in July 2018.

Arrangement:

Entries in the account book are arranged chronologically.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard