Conditions Governing Use

Before publishing quotations or excerpts from any materials, permission must be obtained from Special Collections and University Archives, and the holder of the copyright, if not Old Dominion University Libraries.

Conditions Governing Access

Open to researchers without restrictions. The fragile nature of the material may limit handling.

Preferred Citation

Identification of item], Box [insert number], Folder or Item [insert number and title], USS (BB-4) Iowa Navy Band Photograph Album, Special Collections and University Archives, Old Dominion University Libraries.

Source of Acquisition

Purchase--Abe Books

Method of Acquisition

Acc. 2017.018 was purchased by Special Collections and University Archives and was received in March 2017.

Processing Information

The collection was accessioned and minimally described by Steven Bookman, University Archivist, in September 2017.

Biographical or Historical Information

USS Iowa (BB-4) was a United States Navy battleship. It was the first ship commissioned in honor of Iowa and was America's first seagoing battleship. Iowa saw substantial action in the Spanish–American War.

The U.S.S. Iowa was recommissioned in 1917 when the United States entered World War I and initially berthed in Philadelphia as a receiving ship. By November 1917, the ship relocated to Norfolk, Virginia and patrolled the entrance to the Chesapeake Bay and served as a training ship for the Atlantic Fleet.

John Phillip Sousa, served as a Navy bandmaster from 1917 to 1919. Known for his work as head of the United States Marine Band in the late 19th century and his own band in the early 20th century, Sousa was brought back into Naval service during World War I at age 62. Throughout Sousa's career in the Marines, he served in the enlisted ranks and attained Warrant Officer status by the time of his resignation.

Note written by Special Collections Staff

Scope and Contents

One photograph album of approximately 120 photographs kept by a Navy band member aboard the battleship USS Iowa (BB-4) and in France during World War I. Some of the photographs in the album include John Philip Sousa as a Navy officer, daily life on board the ship, recreation activities of the officers, the Navy band, and the Navy's NC-4 seaplane that was the first aircraft to fly nonstop across the Atlantic in the spring of 1919. The captions in the photograph album were supplied by the creator. Three loose items, two poems about life on board the ship and a church program, were found at the end of the album and are kept in a folder with the album. The album and loose items have been digitized and are available in the Old Dominion University Libaries Digital Collections .

Related Material

Samuel Leyens Switizer Papers (MG 37) also contains material related to World War I.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Iowa (Battleship)
• Norfolk (Va.)--History--20th century
• Sousa, John Philip (1854-1932)
• United States. Navy--History
• United States. Navy--Officers
• World War, 1914-1918