John B. Secrist, Jr. Collection
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BIOGRAPHY
Record collector and mathematician John Bert Secrist, Jr. was
born in Kansas City, Kansas on August 14, 1918 to Florence and
John B. Secrist. Secrist received a Bachelor of Arts degree in
Mathematics (Phi Beta Kappa) from the University of Richmond in
1939 and a Master of Arts in Mathematics from the University of
Virginia in 1941. He taught math for several years at the United
States Naval Academy, Emory University, and Columbia University
where he continued his graduate course work.
In 1953 he joined the staff of IBM in New York, working as a
mathematician. His projects included computer technology, satellite
communications and missile defense.
Secrist began acquiring records as a high school student, and continued to
have an interest in collecting vocal recordings throughout his college career.
After moving to New York in 1945 and meeting others who shared his interests,
he became a more avid collector, and was a founder and member of the Vocal
Record Collectors’ Society, a non-profit organization for those interested
in collecting classical vocal recordings of all eras.
Secrist collected early record catalogs and began compiling more
detailed discographies for his favorite artists. The first, of
Rosa Ponselle, was published in the 1950 issue of The Record Collector.
While compiling the Ponselle discography, Secrist was granted an
interview with Miss Ponselle, and became a friend for many years.
In 1951 he published a discography of Enrico Caruso in the same
journal and later published it in conjunction with Francis Robinson’s
Caruso, his life in pictures..
As a prominent record collector, Secrist he was known for his
exacting standards. Although he kept much of his collection in
his parent’s home in Atlanta, a large portion was held
in New York as well, especially items he kept for trade. Secrist
was meticulous in his efforts to find not just a copy of particular
recordings, but those as close to perfect as possible. Discographer
Aida Favia-Artsay referred to his methods in the following way: "His
was the selective, purposeful way: only classical vocal recordings,
related material, and mainly quality above quantity!"
Secrist died in New York City at the age of 40 on October 11,
1958. In January of 1963, his parents transferred the majority
of his collection (1700 opera recordings) to the Library of Congress.
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SCOPE AND CONTENT
This collection of papers comprises a small part of the major
collection of nearly 1700 operatic recordings acquired by John
Secrist. Strengths of this collection include large runs of Enrico
Caruso and Rosa Ponselle recordings; the collection is further
distinguished by being in near-mint condition due to Secrist’s
exacting standards. The papers in this collection further explain
and index the Secrist recordings, while discographic and photographic
materials provide information on the artists whose work he collected.
Provenance
This collection was donated to the Library of Congress in
1963 by John B. and Florence Secrist in memory of their son, John
Secrist.
Link to Series I.
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