Old Building. New Orleans, 1940, Library of Congress
Jazz emerged as an uniquely-American form of music from African-American communities in the early 1900s.
King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band, 1923, Frank Driggs Collections
Following the Harlem Renaissance, jazz became a symbol of the modern African-American and the freedom of American democracy. Spurred by Prohibition-era speakeasies and access to radio, jazz quickly gained mainstream prominence.
The Cotton Club, c. 1930, Gale in Context
Dancers in a jazz club in Washington, D.C., ca. 1940, ABC-CLIO
Print of Cab Calloway Conducting His Band, 1930s, JSTOR
Despite success, jazz faced stigmatization and opposition from many Americans.
December 3, 1922. The Morning Tulsa Daily World
December 1921, The Ladies Home Journal