Horne family collection
Collection
Identifier: L327
Scope and Contents
This collection contains photographs, glass plate negatives, correspondence, papers, clippings, certificates, and an unbound scrapbook from Edwin Fletcher Horne and Cora Calhoun Horne and their family in New York and elsewhere in the United States, ranging from circa 1865 to 1941, concerning the family, African-American civil rights, slavery, politics, travel abroad to Europe, and civic engagement. The correspondence includes a handwritten letter from Benjamin Harrison denying any intention to run for president of the United States dated May 13, 1884.
The photographs include numerous portraits of Cora Calhoun and Edwin F. Horne, Sr. and their sons, along with some extended family such as the Calhouns and Lena Horne's maternal grandmother and great-aunt. One photograph shows Lena Horne as a child with Uncle "Bye" (possibly J. Burke Horne). There are also photographs of largely unidentified people, likely friends or family. There are also 5 panoramic photographs, which comprise: the 5th Annual Big Brothers and Big Sisters Philadelphia meeting group portrait, 1921 May; Bahai meeting group portrait, undated; the International Council of Women, Washington D.C. meeting group portrait, 1925; Big Brother and Big Sister Federation, Washington D.C. meeting group portrait, May 1923; and a group of unidentified women, circa 1920-1930 (OP003).
The photographs include numerous portraits of Cora Calhoun and Edwin F. Horne, Sr. and their sons, along with some extended family such as the Calhouns and Lena Horne's maternal grandmother and great-aunt. One photograph shows Lena Horne as a child with Uncle "Bye" (possibly J. Burke Horne). There are also photographs of largely unidentified people, likely friends or family. There are also 5 panoramic photographs, which comprise: the 5th Annual Big Brothers and Big Sisters Philadelphia meeting group portrait, 1921 May; Bahai meeting group portrait, undated; the International Council of Women, Washington D.C. meeting group portrait, 1925; Big Brother and Big Sister Federation, Washington D.C. meeting group portrait, May 1923; and a group of unidentified women, circa 1920-1930 (OP003).
Dates
- circa 1865-1941
Creator
- Horne, Cora Calhoun, 1865-1932 (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Legal title, copyright, and literary rights reside with Rare Books and Manuscripts, Indiana State Library, Indianapolis, IN. All requests to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted to Rare Books and Manuscripts.
Biographical Note
Edwin Fletcher Horne was born in Tennessee during January 1859. He was the son of a British captain of a Tennessee River trading boat and a Native American mother. Horne was a teacher, drugstore proprietor, politician, writer, and newspaperman who wrote regularly for The Freeman, an illustrated African-American newspaper based out of Indianapolis, Indiana. He met teacher Callie L. Hatcher while they were teaching in Nashville, Tennesssee and they became engaged. Horne moved to Evansville, Indiana to take the position of principal of the "colored school" at St. John's School while Hatcher continued teaching and studying medicine in Nashville. The couple married hastily on November 29, 1878 in Nashville, Tennessee when Hatcher became gravely ill. She died two weeks later.
Three years later, Horne married Helen "Nellie" Douglas, a schoolteacher and writer from Evansville and Indianapolis on April 20, 1881, in Evansville, Indiana. They moved to Chicago, Illinois, where their daughter Edwina was born in 1882. She died 10 months later on July 14, 1883 and was buried in Oakwood Cemetery in Chicago. The couple had their second daughter, Nellie Douglas, in May 1885 who also died a few years later. His wife Nellie Horne died on October 18, 1885 and was buried in Oakwood Cemetery with her elder daughter. Horne was arrested several days later in Chicago for the seduction of Bertie (Birdie) Frye of Indianapolis and sent back there for trial. He married 17-year old Birdie Frye, daughter of Albert and Ann Frye, on November 12, 1885 in Indianapolis. Nothing else could be found about Birdie Horn after that year, but she most likely died.
After he quit The Freeman, Horne became editor of the Chattanooga Justice. in Tennessee. He married Cora Calhoun (1865–1932) on October 27, 1887 in Birmingham, Alabama. The couple lived in Tennessee and then New York City, New York. They had 4 sons: Errol Stanley (1889–1922), Edwin Fletcher, Jr. (1893–1970), Frank Smith (1899–1974), and John Burke (1903-1971). In New York, Horne became a prominent member of the local civil rights community using his influence to help causes in education and entertainment. He was also an influential advisor to President Benjamin Harrison. In 1900, the Hornes lived in Manhattan and by 1910, in Brooklyn. Horne worked for the New York Fire Department by 1900 and made a career as a fire inspector for the NYFD into the 1930s. He died on October 19, 1939 in Queens, New York and was buried in The Evergreens Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York with his wife.
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Cora Calhoun was born on August 1865 to Moses (1830-1890) and Atlanta Mary (Fernando) Calhoun (ca. 1848-1919), formerly enslaved people, in Washington, Georgia. Her grandparents were Nellie Reynolds Calhoun (ca. 1810-1897), a Black woman formerly enslaved by Andrew Bonaparte Calhoun, and William L. Ezzard (1798-1887), a white judge. Five years after the end of the U.S. Civil War, when Calhoun was 5 years old, her family lived in Atlanta along with her grandmother Nellie; aunt, Sinai Catherine (Calhoun) Webb; and cousin Catherine Webb, along with several others. Her father worked as a grocer and restauranteur, her grandmother as a laudnress, and her aunt as a hair dresser. Calhoun had several siblings, including an older brother, Floyd (1860-1917) and a younger sister, Lena (1868-1941). She graduated from Atlanta University in 1881, having studied education. Her immediate family lived in Atlanta until the mid-1880s when they moved to Birmingham, Alabama. Calhoun married Edwin Fletcher Horne on October 27, 1886 in Birmingham and they moved to New York City and had 4 children. Horne was a college graduate, feminist, civic leader, and suffragist. She was an early member of National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and a founding member of the National Association of Colored Women (NACW). Horne was also actively involved in numerous organizations including the Young Women's Christian Association, Empire State Federation of Women's Clubs, the Natioanl Republican Women's Auxiliary Committee, the National Association of Colored Women, the Brooklyn Urban League, Lincoln Settlement Association, and the Big Brother and Big Sister Federation. She died on September 8, 1932 in Brooklyn, New York and was buried in The Evergreens Cemetery.
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Errol Stanley Horne was born on December 27, 1889 to Edwin and Cora Horne in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He ntered the U.S. Army as an uncommissioned officer in the 24th Regiment, serving in the Philippines and Mexico. Horne also served as a commissioned officer in the 367th Regiment and then a second lieutenant in the Depot Brigade, Company 22, 162nd Regiment. He was primarily stationed at Camp Dodge, Iowa during World War I and was discharged on February 15, 1919. Horne married Lottie G. Benson in New Mexico. After the war, he followed his father into the New York Fire Department, where he worked as an assistant inspector of combustibles from December 1921 unitl his death. Horne died on July 1, 1922 of heart disease and was buried in Cypress Hills National Cemetery in Brooklyn.
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Edwin Fletcher “Teddy” Horne, Jr. was born to Edwin and Cora Horne in Brooklyn, New York on June 15, 1893. He married Edna Louise Scottron (1895-1985) on November 17, 1915 and they a daughter, Lena (1917–2010). The couple divorced on July 12, 1921. Horne remarried while Edna, an aspiring actress, left to pursue her career, both leaving Lena with her paternal grandparents. Horne married Irene Washington in July 20, 1922 in Seattle, Washington. They lived in Seattle for a time, then moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Horne died on April 18, 1970 in Los Angeles, California, while Scottron died in 1985.
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Frank Smith Horne, born August 18, 1899 to Edwin and Cora Horne in Manhattan, New York, became an eye doctor in 1923. He was a Harlem Renaissance poet. In 1927, Horne took the position of dean and then president at Fort Valley High and Industrial School (later Fort Valley State College) in Georgia. He briefly served as guardian of his niece Lena Horne from 1927 to 1929 before she began her music career. Horne married Frankye Bunn (1905-1940) on August 19, 1930 in Manhattan.
Horne first entered civil service as assistant director of the Division of Negro Affairs of the National Youth Administration (NYA) in Washington, D.C. in 1936. Two years later, he began working for he U.S. Housing Authority on minority housing issues and eventually took the position of director of the Office of Race Relations. Horne was a member of FDR's "Black Cabinet" and advised the administraiton on racism in housing and its industry. He continued working for the U.S. Housing Authority until 1955, when he became the executive director of the New York City Commission on Intergroup Relations, developing the country's first laws against racial discrimination in public housing. Horne was also a member of the New York City Housing Redevelopment Board and also founded the National Committee against Discrimination in Housing in 1962. Horne died on September 7, 1974 in New York City and buried in The Evergreens Cemetery.
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John Burke Horne, born July 7, 1903 to Edwin and Cora Horne in Manhattan, New York. During the Great Depression, he worked in positions under the Civil Works Act, including at the YMCA in Brooklyn, New York. According to his mother's obituaries, Horne was also a "graduate pharmacist." In 1940, he was manager of a sporting goods store in New York City. On September 17, 1941, he enlisted in the Headquarter and Service Company, 15th Regiment, New York National Guard and was appointed corporal on February 12, 1942. In 1942, he worked for the Children's Aid Society of New York. Horne enlisted in the U.S. Army during World War II on November 7, 1942. Horne wrote sports articles for the New York Age in 1942 and started writing two column called "We Grew...in Brooklyn" (December 1948-February 1949) and "Brooklyn Banter" (March- 1949). He died in 1971.
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Lena Mary Calhoun Horne was born June 30, 1917 to Edwin Fletcher Horne, Jr. and Edna Louise Scottron in Brooklyn. When her parents divorced, she was raised by her paternal grandparents until she was about 7 years old when her mother returned. The pair traveled the country for the next several years. When Horne was 14, she quit school and by age 16 she was dancing and singing in the chorus at the Cotton Club in Harlem. She went on to become a very successful nightclub performer. Horne married Louis Jordon Jones (1908–1998) in 1937 and they had a son, Edwin Fletcher "Teddy" (1940-1970) and a daughter, Gail Horne (1937-). The couple divorced on June 15, 1944.
Her reputation as a chanteuse brought Horne to the attention of the film industry, leading to her first screen appearance in The Duke Is Tops in 1938. Horne signed with MGM shortly thereafter. Her most memorable role was probably Selina Rogers in the all-Black musical, Stormy Weather (1943). Her acting career stagnated, however, due to racist attitudes in the South where theaters refused to show films with African-Americans cast in non-subservient roles, which Horne refused to play. Horne secretly married composer and MGM Musical Director Leonard George "Lennie" Hayton (1908–1971) in 1947 in Paris, France, which they revealed in 1950. She was blacklisted in the 1950s due to her progressive views during McCartyism. Horne quit making movies after her role in Meet Me in Las Vegas in 1956 to focus on her music career, returning to her roots as a nightclub singer and music artist. She did not, however, give up acting completely, when it came to the theater and frequently appeared on variety shows, sitcoms, and other televised productions over the next few decades.
Horne was a prominent Civil Rights activist who worked with Eleanor Roosevelt on anti-lynching laws and was a frequent guest of at John F. Kennedy's White House. She also participated in the 1963 March on Washington. Horne made two more big screen appearances in a 1969 Western titled Death of a Gunfighter and in the all-Black musical The Wiz (1978) as Glinda the Good Witch. Although she announced her retirement in 1980, Horne returned to the stage the next year in her celebrated one-woman show, Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music. She performed it over 300 times on Broadway before taking it on tour around the country. Today, Horne is known as one of the most popular and influential African-American entertainers of the 20th century. Lena Horne died on May 9, 2010 in Manhattan, New York and was cremated.
Sources:
Items in the collection.
"A Prominent Colored Man Under Arrest." Indianapolis Journal, October 31, 1885. Accessed July 5, 2022. Newspapers.com.
Ancestry.com. "A. B. Calhoun." 1850 U.S. Federal Census - Slave Schedules. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora Calhoun." 1870 United States Federal Census. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora Calhoun." 1880 United States Federal Census. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora Horne." 1900 United States Federal Census. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora Horne." 1910 United States Federal Census. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora Horne." 1920 United States Federal Census. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora Calhoun." Alabama, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1805-1967. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora Calhoun." Alabama, U.S., Select Marriage Indexes, 1816-1942. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora Calhoun Horne." New York, New York, U.S., Index to Death Certificates, 1862-1948. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora C. Horne." New York, U.S., State Census, 1905. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora C. Horne." New York, U.S., State Census, 1925. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora C. Calhoun." U.S., High School Student Lists, 1821-1923. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwin F. Horne." 1930 United States Federal Census. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwina Horn." Cook County, Illinois, U.S., Birth Certificates Index, 1871-1922. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwin F. Horn." Indiana, U.S., Marriage Index, 1800-1941. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwin F. Horne." New York, New York, U.S., Extracted Death Index, 1862-1948. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwin F. Horne." California, Death Index, 1940-1997. Accessed February 6, 2019. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwin F. Horne." New York, New York, Extracted Marriage Index, 1866-1937. Accessed February 6, 2019. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwin F. Horne." Washington, U.S., Marriage Records, 1854-2013. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwin F. Horne." Virginia, U.S., Divorce Records, 1918-2014. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwina Horn." Cook County, Illinois, U.S., Birth Certificates Index, 1871-1922. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Frank Horne." New York, New York, U.S., Index to Birth Certificates, 1866-1909. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "John Burke Horne." New York, New York, U.S., Index to Birth Certificates, 1866-1909. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Errol Stanley Horne." New York, New York, U.S., Index to Death Certificates, 1862-1948. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Errol Stanley Horne." New York, U.S., Abstracts of World War I Military Service, 1917-1919. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Errol Stanley Horne." U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Errol Stanley Horne." U.S., National Cemetery Interment Control Forms, 1928-1962. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Frank S. Horne." New York, New York, U.S., Extracted Marriage Index, 1866-1937. Accessed July 6, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Burke Horne." 1940 United States Federal Census. Accessed July 6, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "John Burke Horne." New York, New York, U.S., Index to Birth Certificates, 1866-1909. Accessed July 6, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "John Burke Horne." New York, U.S., U.S. National Guard Enlistment Cards, 1923-1947. Accessed July 6, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "John Burke Horne." U.S., World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946. Accessed July 6, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "John Burke Horne." U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947. Accessed July 6, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Moses Calhoun." Birmingham, Alabama Directories, 1888-1890. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Moses Calhoun." Georgia, U.S., Returns of Qualified Voters and Reconstruction Oath Books, 1867-1869. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Moses Calhoun." U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Helen Douglas." U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Nellie Douglas Horn." Cook County, Illinois, U.S., Deaths Index, 1878-1922. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Brozan, Nadine. "Born In A Trunk: The Story Of The Hornes." New York Times, June 20, 1986. Accessed February 6, 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/1986/06/20/style/born-in-a-trunk-the-story-of-the-hornes.html.
"Errol S. Horne." Standard Union (Brooklyn, NY), July 3, 1922. Accessed July 5, 2022. Newspapers.com.
"Errol S. Horne Dies." Brooklyn Daily Eagle (NY), July 3, 1922. Accessed July 5, 2022. Newspapers.com.
Findagrave.com. "Cora Calhoun Horne." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed June 30, 2022. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/29019379/cora-calhoun-horne.
Findagrave.com. "Edwin Fletcher Horne." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed June 30, 2022. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/29019297/edwin-fletcher-horne.
Findagrave.com. "Nellie Reynolds Calhoun." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed July 1, 2022. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/64273813/nellie-calhoun.
"G.O.P. Women Continue Auxiliary Committee in Eastern Division." New York Age (NY), March 14, 1925. Accessed July 1, 2022. Newspapers.com.
"Gold Badges for Three." Brooklyn Daily Eagle (NY), October 20, 1924. Accessed July 1, 2022. Newspapers.com.
"Horne." Brooklyn Daily Eagle (NY), September 9, 1932. Accessed July 1, 2022. Newspapers.com.
"Lena Horne." Encyclopaedian Britannica. Last updated June 26, 2022. Accessed July 1, 2022. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Lena-Horne.
"Lena Horne." Pittsburgh Music History. Accessed February 6, 2019. https://sites.google.com/site/pittsburghmusichistory/pittsburgh-music-story/jazz/jazz---early-years/lena-horne.
Lena Horne Biography. Notable Biographies. Accessed on February 6, 2019. https://www.notablebiographies.com/Ho-Jo/Horne-Lena.html.
"Marriage of Lena Horne Revealed." Evening Vanguard (Venice, CA), June 22, 1950. Accessed July 1, 2022. Newspapers.com.
"Notice to Members of the Brooklyn Urban League and Lincoln Settlement Association." New York Age (NY), January 15, 1927. Accessed July 1, 2022. Newspapers.com.
Wikipedia. "Cora Calhoun Horne." Wikipedia.org. Accessed July 1, 2022. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cora_Catherine_Calhoun_Horne.
Wikipedia. "Lena Horne." Wikipedia.org. Accessed July 1, 2022. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lena_Horne.
"Women Attend Session of National Council." New York Age (NY), December 17, 1927. Accessed July 1, 2022. Newspapers.com.
"Women's Club News." Brooklyn Citizen (NY), July 11, 1922. Accessed July 1, 2022. Newspapers.com.
Three years later, Horne married Helen "Nellie" Douglas, a schoolteacher and writer from Evansville and Indianapolis on April 20, 1881, in Evansville, Indiana. They moved to Chicago, Illinois, where their daughter Edwina was born in 1882. She died 10 months later on July 14, 1883 and was buried in Oakwood Cemetery in Chicago. The couple had their second daughter, Nellie Douglas, in May 1885 who also died a few years later. His wife Nellie Horne died on October 18, 1885 and was buried in Oakwood Cemetery with her elder daughter. Horne was arrested several days later in Chicago for the seduction of Bertie (Birdie) Frye of Indianapolis and sent back there for trial. He married 17-year old Birdie Frye, daughter of Albert and Ann Frye, on November 12, 1885 in Indianapolis. Nothing else could be found about Birdie Horn after that year, but she most likely died.
After he quit The Freeman, Horne became editor of the Chattanooga Justice. in Tennessee. He married Cora Calhoun (1865–1932) on October 27, 1887 in Birmingham, Alabama. The couple lived in Tennessee and then New York City, New York. They had 4 sons: Errol Stanley (1889–1922), Edwin Fletcher, Jr. (1893–1970), Frank Smith (1899–1974), and John Burke (1903-1971). In New York, Horne became a prominent member of the local civil rights community using his influence to help causes in education and entertainment. He was also an influential advisor to President Benjamin Harrison. In 1900, the Hornes lived in Manhattan and by 1910, in Brooklyn. Horne worked for the New York Fire Department by 1900 and made a career as a fire inspector for the NYFD into the 1930s. He died on October 19, 1939 in Queens, New York and was buried in The Evergreens Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York with his wife.
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Cora Calhoun was born on August 1865 to Moses (1830-1890) and Atlanta Mary (Fernando) Calhoun (ca. 1848-1919), formerly enslaved people, in Washington, Georgia. Her grandparents were Nellie Reynolds Calhoun (ca. 1810-1897), a Black woman formerly enslaved by Andrew Bonaparte Calhoun, and William L. Ezzard (1798-1887), a white judge. Five years after the end of the U.S. Civil War, when Calhoun was 5 years old, her family lived in Atlanta along with her grandmother Nellie; aunt, Sinai Catherine (Calhoun) Webb; and cousin Catherine Webb, along with several others. Her father worked as a grocer and restauranteur, her grandmother as a laudnress, and her aunt as a hair dresser. Calhoun had several siblings, including an older brother, Floyd (1860-1917) and a younger sister, Lena (1868-1941). She graduated from Atlanta University in 1881, having studied education. Her immediate family lived in Atlanta until the mid-1880s when they moved to Birmingham, Alabama. Calhoun married Edwin Fletcher Horne on October 27, 1886 in Birmingham and they moved to New York City and had 4 children. Horne was a college graduate, feminist, civic leader, and suffragist. She was an early member of National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and a founding member of the National Association of Colored Women (NACW). Horne was also actively involved in numerous organizations including the Young Women's Christian Association, Empire State Federation of Women's Clubs, the Natioanl Republican Women's Auxiliary Committee, the National Association of Colored Women, the Brooklyn Urban League, Lincoln Settlement Association, and the Big Brother and Big Sister Federation. She died on September 8, 1932 in Brooklyn, New York and was buried in The Evergreens Cemetery.
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Errol Stanley Horne was born on December 27, 1889 to Edwin and Cora Horne in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He ntered the U.S. Army as an uncommissioned officer in the 24th Regiment, serving in the Philippines and Mexico. Horne also served as a commissioned officer in the 367th Regiment and then a second lieutenant in the Depot Brigade, Company 22, 162nd Regiment. He was primarily stationed at Camp Dodge, Iowa during World War I and was discharged on February 15, 1919. Horne married Lottie G. Benson in New Mexico. After the war, he followed his father into the New York Fire Department, where he worked as an assistant inspector of combustibles from December 1921 unitl his death. Horne died on July 1, 1922 of heart disease and was buried in Cypress Hills National Cemetery in Brooklyn.
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Edwin Fletcher “Teddy” Horne, Jr. was born to Edwin and Cora Horne in Brooklyn, New York on June 15, 1893. He married Edna Louise Scottron (1895-1985) on November 17, 1915 and they a daughter, Lena (1917–2010). The couple divorced on July 12, 1921. Horne remarried while Edna, an aspiring actress, left to pursue her career, both leaving Lena with her paternal grandparents. Horne married Irene Washington in July 20, 1922 in Seattle, Washington. They lived in Seattle for a time, then moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Horne died on April 18, 1970 in Los Angeles, California, while Scottron died in 1985.
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Frank Smith Horne, born August 18, 1899 to Edwin and Cora Horne in Manhattan, New York, became an eye doctor in 1923. He was a Harlem Renaissance poet. In 1927, Horne took the position of dean and then president at Fort Valley High and Industrial School (later Fort Valley State College) in Georgia. He briefly served as guardian of his niece Lena Horne from 1927 to 1929 before she began her music career. Horne married Frankye Bunn (1905-1940) on August 19, 1930 in Manhattan.
Horne first entered civil service as assistant director of the Division of Negro Affairs of the National Youth Administration (NYA) in Washington, D.C. in 1936. Two years later, he began working for he U.S. Housing Authority on minority housing issues and eventually took the position of director of the Office of Race Relations. Horne was a member of FDR's "Black Cabinet" and advised the administraiton on racism in housing and its industry. He continued working for the U.S. Housing Authority until 1955, when he became the executive director of the New York City Commission on Intergroup Relations, developing the country's first laws against racial discrimination in public housing. Horne was also a member of the New York City Housing Redevelopment Board and also founded the National Committee against Discrimination in Housing in 1962. Horne died on September 7, 1974 in New York City and buried in The Evergreens Cemetery.
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John Burke Horne, born July 7, 1903 to Edwin and Cora Horne in Manhattan, New York. During the Great Depression, he worked in positions under the Civil Works Act, including at the YMCA in Brooklyn, New York. According to his mother's obituaries, Horne was also a "graduate pharmacist." In 1940, he was manager of a sporting goods store in New York City. On September 17, 1941, he enlisted in the Headquarter and Service Company, 15th Regiment, New York National Guard and was appointed corporal on February 12, 1942. In 1942, he worked for the Children's Aid Society of New York. Horne enlisted in the U.S. Army during World War II on November 7, 1942. Horne wrote sports articles for the New York Age in 1942 and started writing two column called "We Grew...in Brooklyn" (December 1948-February 1949) and "Brooklyn Banter" (March- 1949). He died in 1971.
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Lena Mary Calhoun Horne was born June 30, 1917 to Edwin Fletcher Horne, Jr. and Edna Louise Scottron in Brooklyn. When her parents divorced, she was raised by her paternal grandparents until she was about 7 years old when her mother returned. The pair traveled the country for the next several years. When Horne was 14, she quit school and by age 16 she was dancing and singing in the chorus at the Cotton Club in Harlem. She went on to become a very successful nightclub performer. Horne married Louis Jordon Jones (1908–1998) in 1937 and they had a son, Edwin Fletcher "Teddy" (1940-1970) and a daughter, Gail Horne (1937-). The couple divorced on June 15, 1944.
Her reputation as a chanteuse brought Horne to the attention of the film industry, leading to her first screen appearance in The Duke Is Tops in 1938. Horne signed with MGM shortly thereafter. Her most memorable role was probably Selina Rogers in the all-Black musical, Stormy Weather (1943). Her acting career stagnated, however, due to racist attitudes in the South where theaters refused to show films with African-Americans cast in non-subservient roles, which Horne refused to play. Horne secretly married composer and MGM Musical Director Leonard George "Lennie" Hayton (1908–1971) in 1947 in Paris, France, which they revealed in 1950. She was blacklisted in the 1950s due to her progressive views during McCartyism. Horne quit making movies after her role in Meet Me in Las Vegas in 1956 to focus on her music career, returning to her roots as a nightclub singer and music artist. She did not, however, give up acting completely, when it came to the theater and frequently appeared on variety shows, sitcoms, and other televised productions over the next few decades.
Horne was a prominent Civil Rights activist who worked with Eleanor Roosevelt on anti-lynching laws and was a frequent guest of at John F. Kennedy's White House. She also participated in the 1963 March on Washington. Horne made two more big screen appearances in a 1969 Western titled Death of a Gunfighter and in the all-Black musical The Wiz (1978) as Glinda the Good Witch. Although she announced her retirement in 1980, Horne returned to the stage the next year in her celebrated one-woman show, Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music. She performed it over 300 times on Broadway before taking it on tour around the country. Today, Horne is known as one of the most popular and influential African-American entertainers of the 20th century. Lena Horne died on May 9, 2010 in Manhattan, New York and was cremated.
Sources:
Items in the collection.
"A Prominent Colored Man Under Arrest." Indianapolis Journal, October 31, 1885. Accessed July 5, 2022. Newspapers.com.
Ancestry.com. "A. B. Calhoun." 1850 U.S. Federal Census - Slave Schedules. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora Calhoun." 1870 United States Federal Census. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora Calhoun." 1880 United States Federal Census. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora Horne." 1900 United States Federal Census. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora Horne." 1910 United States Federal Census. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora Horne." 1920 United States Federal Census. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora Calhoun." Alabama, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1805-1967. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora Calhoun." Alabama, U.S., Select Marriage Indexes, 1816-1942. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora Calhoun Horne." New York, New York, U.S., Index to Death Certificates, 1862-1948. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora C. Horne." New York, U.S., State Census, 1905. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora C. Horne." New York, U.S., State Census, 1925. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Cora C. Calhoun." U.S., High School Student Lists, 1821-1923. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwin F. Horne." 1930 United States Federal Census. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwina Horn." Cook County, Illinois, U.S., Birth Certificates Index, 1871-1922. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwin F. Horn." Indiana, U.S., Marriage Index, 1800-1941. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwin F. Horne." New York, New York, U.S., Extracted Death Index, 1862-1948. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwin F. Horne." California, Death Index, 1940-1997. Accessed February 6, 2019. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwin F. Horne." New York, New York, Extracted Marriage Index, 1866-1937. Accessed February 6, 2019. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwin F. Horne." Washington, U.S., Marriage Records, 1854-2013. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwin F. Horne." Virginia, U.S., Divorce Records, 1918-2014. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Edwina Horn." Cook County, Illinois, U.S., Birth Certificates Index, 1871-1922. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Frank Horne." New York, New York, U.S., Index to Birth Certificates, 1866-1909. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "John Burke Horne." New York, New York, U.S., Index to Birth Certificates, 1866-1909. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Errol Stanley Horne." New York, New York, U.S., Index to Death Certificates, 1862-1948. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Errol Stanley Horne." New York, U.S., Abstracts of World War I Military Service, 1917-1919. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Errol Stanley Horne." U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Errol Stanley Horne." U.S., National Cemetery Interment Control Forms, 1928-1962. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Frank S. Horne." New York, New York, U.S., Extracted Marriage Index, 1866-1937. Accessed July 6, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Burke Horne." 1940 United States Federal Census. Accessed July 6, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "John Burke Horne." New York, New York, U.S., Index to Birth Certificates, 1866-1909. Accessed July 6, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "John Burke Horne." New York, U.S., U.S. National Guard Enlistment Cards, 1923-1947. Accessed July 6, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "John Burke Horne." U.S., World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946. Accessed July 6, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "John Burke Horne." U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947. Accessed July 6, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Moses Calhoun." Birmingham, Alabama Directories, 1888-1890. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Moses Calhoun." Georgia, U.S., Returns of Qualified Voters and Reconstruction Oath Books, 1867-1869. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Moses Calhoun." U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995. Accessed July 1, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Helen Douglas." U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "Nellie Douglas Horn." Cook County, Illinois, U.S., Deaths Index, 1878-1922. Accessed July 5, 2022. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Brozan, Nadine. "Born In A Trunk: The Story Of The Hornes." New York Times, June 20, 1986. Accessed February 6, 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/1986/06/20/style/born-in-a-trunk-the-story-of-the-hornes.html.
"Errol S. Horne." Standard Union (Brooklyn, NY), July 3, 1922. Accessed July 5, 2022. Newspapers.com.
"Errol S. Horne Dies." Brooklyn Daily Eagle (NY), July 3, 1922. Accessed July 5, 2022. Newspapers.com.
Findagrave.com. "Cora Calhoun Horne." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed June 30, 2022. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/29019379/cora-calhoun-horne.
Findagrave.com. "Edwin Fletcher Horne." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed June 30, 2022. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/29019297/edwin-fletcher-horne.
Findagrave.com. "Nellie Reynolds Calhoun." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed July 1, 2022. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/64273813/nellie-calhoun.
"G.O.P. Women Continue Auxiliary Committee in Eastern Division." New York Age (NY), March 14, 1925. Accessed July 1, 2022. Newspapers.com.
"Gold Badges for Three." Brooklyn Daily Eagle (NY), October 20, 1924. Accessed July 1, 2022. Newspapers.com.
"Horne." Brooklyn Daily Eagle (NY), September 9, 1932. Accessed July 1, 2022. Newspapers.com.
"Lena Horne." Encyclopaedian Britannica. Last updated June 26, 2022. Accessed July 1, 2022. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Lena-Horne.
"Lena Horne." Pittsburgh Music History. Accessed February 6, 2019. https://sites.google.com/site/pittsburghmusichistory/pittsburgh-music-story/jazz/jazz---early-years/lena-horne.
Lena Horne Biography. Notable Biographies. Accessed on February 6, 2019. https://www.notablebiographies.com/Ho-Jo/Horne-Lena.html.
"Marriage of Lena Horne Revealed." Evening Vanguard (Venice, CA), June 22, 1950. Accessed July 1, 2022. Newspapers.com.
"Notice to Members of the Brooklyn Urban League and Lincoln Settlement Association." New York Age (NY), January 15, 1927. Accessed July 1, 2022. Newspapers.com.
Wikipedia. "Cora Calhoun Horne." Wikipedia.org. Accessed July 1, 2022. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cora_Catherine_Calhoun_Horne.
Wikipedia. "Lena Horne." Wikipedia.org. Accessed July 1, 2022. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lena_Horne.
"Women Attend Session of National Council." New York Age (NY), December 17, 1927. Accessed July 1, 2022. Newspapers.com.
"Women's Club News." Brooklyn Citizen (NY), July 11, 1922. Accessed July 1, 2022. Newspapers.com.
Extent
0.46 Cubic Feet (1 manuscript box, 2 oversize folders)
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement
This collection is arranged by subject.
Custodial History
This collection was received by Rare Books and Manuscripts as a donation from the Radcliffe College, on behalf of Gail Lumet, on 1979/06/15.
Accruals
No further additions are expected.
Processing Information
Collection processing completed 2016/02/16 by Patrick Ridout. Collection reprocessed 2022/07/01 by Brittany Kropf. EAD finding aid created 2016/02/17 by Patrick Ridout. EAD finding aid revised 2019/02/06 by Bethany Fiechter; 2021/10/28 by Lauren Patton; 2022/07/01 by Brittany Kropf.
- Actors
- African American civil rights workers
- African American politicians
- African Americans -- History
- Certificates
- Civil rights movements -- United States
- Clippings
- Correspondence
- Dry plate negatives
- Family history
- Harrison, Benjamin, 1833-1901
- Horne, Edwin Fletcher, 1893-1970
- Horne, Lena, 1917-2010
- Photographs
- Politicians
- Presidential candidates -- United States
- Scrapbooks
- Singers
- Suffragists
- Women dancers
- Women political activists
Creator
- Horne, Cora Calhoun, 1865-1932 (Person)
- Horne, Edwin Fletcher, 1859-1939 (Person)
- Horne family (Family)
- Title
- Horne family collection
- Status
- Completed
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Repository
Contact:
140 North Senate Avenue
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204 U.S.A.
317-232-3671
140 North Senate Avenue
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204 U.S.A.
317-232-3671
