Guide to the John Steiner Collection 1860-2001 - The University of ...

active in, the Jazz Institute of Chicago. He was also involved with the Chicago Jazz Archive at
the University of Chicago Library and served on the Visiting Committee to the Department of
Music at the University of Chicago.
Steiner retired from his position as a chemistry professor from University of Illinois-Chicago in
1976, at which time he and Nina moved back to Milwaukee. He continued to stay involved in
the Chicago jazz scene.
For nearly eighty years, Steiner collected material about jazz music, musicians, recording
companies, and many other topics of interest. He was internationally known as an expert on
jazz and especially Chicago jazz and often acted as a source or consultant for articles, books,
dissertations and theses, documentaries, and other productions of jazz history.
John Steiner died in Milwaukee in June 3, 2000.
Scope Note
The John Steiner Collection contains sheet music, articles, photographs, scrapbooks,
correspondence, interviews, ephemera, and publications. The collection spans 140 years and
documents Chicago jazz and blues, musicians, clubs, printed music, recording companies,
and recording technology. The main focus of the collection is jazz and Chicago jazz, but the
collection also documents other music styles such as blues, swing, boogie woogie, minstrel, and
rag.
The John Steiner Collection is organized into twelve series: Series I, Personal and Professional;
Series II, Correspondence, Series III, Record Industry and Collecting; Series IV, Musicians
and People; Series V, Clubs, Events and Ephemera; Series VI, Photographs; Series VII, Subject
Files; Series VIII, Printed Music; Series IX, Publications; Series X, Artifacts; Series XI, Audio-
Visual; and Series XII, Oversize. Much of the original arrangement and description by Steiner
was retained in the guide. Researchers will notice a certain amount of topical overlap between
series. See each individual series description for more detail.
Series I, Personal and Professional, contains correspondence, addresses, a stamp collection,
academic appointment letters, and documents about the renovations of the Kosciuszko Public
Bath into a house. There are also research notes and articles, reports, correspondence, and other
material that documents his career as a chemist.
Series II, Correspondence, contains letters with family, friends, musicians and their relatives,
students, researchers, authors, editors, producers, collectors, and record dealers, and may include
7