Roy Eldridge Christmas Card Collection

Trumpeter Roy “Little Jazz” Eldridge (1911–1989) was one of the most beloved figures to come out of the Swing Era. For the last forty years of his career Eldridge was based in Queens, where he lived with his wife Vi and daughter Carole.

Eldridge’s home collection of his own career materials was acquired by an antique dealer in the 90s, and in 2012 suffered complete immersion in the storm surge of Hurricane Sandy. Much that was salvaged has become part of an online exhibit from the Sherman Jazz Museum and the University of North Texas.

Also rescued from the flood waters were the following holiday greeting cards to (and from!) Eldridge, mostly in the early 1960s.