OklahomaBand History
Menu

Community and Municipal Bands

Oklahoma City's First Uniformed Band

Oklahoma CityOrganized 1891; photographed 1904City or civic band
Documented history with gaps
Master record002

Image status

Photograph withheld

C: Rights confirmation required — not cleared for publication.

How image decisions work

Documented overview

OHS metadata identifies the pictured organization as Oklahoma City’s first uniformed band, says it was organized in 1891, and dates the photograph to 1904. Elias W. Oliver made the photograph; Tom Neal is identified as manager, Ware as leader, and multiple musicians are named.

Documented history with gaps. The record supports a public history, with important limitations stated on the page.

History

Identity and chronology

OHS metadata identifies the pictured organization as Oklahoma City’s first uniformed band, says it was organized in 1891, and dates the photograph to 1904. Elias W. Oliver made the photograph; Tom Neal is identified as manager, Ware as leader, and multiple musicians are named.

Leadership

Ware is the documented 1904 leader and Tom Neal the documented manager. No earlier or later leadership sequence has been established.

Sponsorship and participation

The item supports a civic band in Oklahoma City. It does not identify a municipal appropriation, sponsoring company, or formal membership rule.

Adult or plausibly adult; exact participation model may remain unverified.

Activity

The source establishes organization in 1891 and a named, uniformed membership in 1904. It does not provide a performance chronology.

Why this band matters

Named Oklahoma community or municipal ensemble with durable evidence (Oklahoma City's First Uniformed Band).

Evidence timeline

What the sources establish

  1. Documented evidence

    OHS metadata identifies the pictured organization as Oklahoma City’s first uniformed band, says it was organized in 1891, and dates the photograph to 1904. Elias W. Oliver made the photograph; Tom Neal is identified as manager, Ware as leader, and multiple musicians are named.

    Source 1

Current research decision

What the wording does—and does not—claim

The archival phrase “first uniformed band” is narrower than “first Oklahoma City band.” Contemporary evidence for an Oklahoma City Band in 1890 may concern a predecessor or a separate group, so the site should not convert the archive title into a broader priority claim.

What remains unknown

A predecessor relationship and exact corporate name remain useful research questions, but the 1891/1904 archival record is publishable as qualified.

Evidence

Sources

OHS/Gateway item metadata, including creator, leadership, and member names, was checked on 2026-09-03.

  1. The Gateway to Oklahoma History item

Help strengthen the record

Have a correction or a better source?

New evidence is checked against the controlling record. Submission does not guarantee publication, and images remain private until ownership, date, permission, and credit are resolved.

Read the correction process