Woodrow Wilson in Outside the Capitol Building, Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington - May, 1916
from Ragged but right / Lynn Abbott, page 188:
While showing Washington, D.C. on Decoration Day, we were on parade coming up broad historical Pennsylvania avenue [sic] and when passing the Capitol building our band played W. C. Handy's great hit 'Hail to the Spirit of Freedom.' We were cheered to the echo. President Wilson, who viewed the parade from an upper balcony, was seen to bow, smile and applaud by clapping his hands. We considered this as quite a compliment to the race, Prof. Handy being one of the foremost colored writers.
Lynn Abbott and Doug Seroff (ed.), Ragged but right / Lynn Abbott (Jackson, 2007), p. 188. https://led.kmi.open.ac.uk/entity/lexp/1447167018427 accessed: 11 October, 2024
Listeners
Listening to
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Hail to the Spirit of Freedom
written by W. C. Handy |
performed by L.K. Baker's band, P. L. Jenkins |
Experience Information
Date/Time | May, 1916 |
Medium | live |
Listening Environment | in the company of others, outdoors, in public |
Notes
President Wilson hears the writer playing with his band on Decoration Day.