King B-Flat Trumpet: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

This trumpet was made by King Musical Instruments, Inc. in Eastlake, Ohio in 1981. It is a B-flat trumpet, serial #863033, made of brass with 3 piston valves with mother-of-pearl buttons. This trumpet is engraved “Harry James” on the bell, and played by him.

Harry Hagg James (1916-1983) began his early career playing with his father’s circus band. By 1935, James joined Ben Pollack’s band and two years later would go on to star with Benny Goodman’s Orchestra. James formed his own orchestra in 1939, which would continue through the early 1980s.

Harry James appeared in several movies from 1937 to 1983, including Swing Fever (1943), Bathing Beauty (1944), and If I’m Lucky (1946).

Materials, dates and provenance

• date made: 1981
• maker: King Musical Instruments, Inc.
• Object Name: trumpet
• Physical Description: brass (overall material)
• Measurements: overall: 22 in x 5 in x 6 in; 55.88 cm x 12.7 cm x 15.24 cm
• place made: United States: Ohio, Eastlake
• ID Number: 1988.0057.01
• accession number: 1988.0057
• catalog number: 1988.0057.01
• Credit Line: Gift of Tim James
• Data Source: National Museum of American History

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of American History through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed.