Marian Anderson & Poughkeepsie

By Bill Kleppel

On Easter, April 9, 1939, operatic contralto Marion Anderson performed a remarkable concert in front of 75,000 people. This moment on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D. C. is remembered within the annals of American history. The story leading up to it is a testament to the ongoing power of the Civil Rights Movement, and the fight for racial equality in this country.

On January 13, 1939, just months before this historic event, Anderson enthralled a packed audience with a concert… inside the Poughkeepsie High School auditorium!

This is my third post regarding a performance at the old high school auditorium on North Hamilton Street, (which still exists as the Lateef Islam Auditorium at the Family Partnership Center!), and I’m getting the distinct feeling it won’t be the last. (See posts one and two).

Early Life

Marian Andrson was born in 1897, in Philadelphia. Her father died at 37 when she was just 12. She and her mother moved in with her grandparents soon afterward.

Unable to afford music lessons or high school, Marian dedicated her time and effort to singing in church choirs. Her talent was quickly noticed by a local Baptist preacher while she sang for the People’s Chorus of Philadelphia. The reverend and other leaders within South Philadelphia’s Black community raised enough money for Marian to get proper voice lessons, and to attend high school.

Her tremendous talents eventually led to singing engagements in New York City, where she began to build a following in operatic societies. She started a recording career with the Victor Talking Machine Company in Camden, New Jersey. In 1925, she won a singing concert promoted by the New York Philharmonic, which led to Marian singing with their orchestra at Carnegie Hall. Her stardom quickly led her to play the finest concert halls in America, and then eventually, Europe.

Regardless of her talent, Marian was refused service in many restaurants and denied stays in hotels, including the Nelson House in Poughkeepsie, because of Jim Crow laws in the South, along with ever-present bigotry in the North.

Yet, the progressive, open-minded nature of this city was always a welcoming place for artists of any background.

Marian Anderson in Poughkeepsie

After a whirlwind of global touring, it was only natural for an artist of this caliber to perform here. Many legendary figures performed at the Collingwood Theatre on Market Street as early as 1869, from Mark Twain to Sarah Bernhardt to Jan Paderewski. However, the Collingwood had transformed itself into more of a movie venue by the 1920s.

But that didn’t stop the talent from playing Poughkeepsie!

In January 1939, Marian’s show filled the school’s auditorium to its capacity of 2000 people… and brought down the house. “Poughkeepsie audiences in their day have heard some splendid singers…” a Journal writer reported, “but we doubt if ever there was heard an artist who excelled so brilliantly in all conceivable forms of musical expression.”

The city’s attendees were spoiled by an artist at the height of her powers and were very appreciative: “Miss Anderson, after witnessing the spectacle of an otherwise dignified Dutchess County Musical Association audience beginning to stamp its feet, consented to three encores.”

After Anderson’s meteoric rise to the top of her musical field, you’d think no doors would be closed to her… Not so.

Constitution Hall – Washington D.C.

Built in 1929, the 4,000 seat Daughters of the American Revolution Constitution Hall was one of the most prestigious venues in the country. During the early 1930s, an African American tenor named Roland Hayes had performed there (he also previously performed at Poughkeepsie High School and Vassar College in the 1920s).

Hayes’s first concert at Constitution Hall had a segregated crowd. Mr. Hayes demanded that the attendees be integrated for any of his future performances at the venue. The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) agreed to an integrated audience for Hayes’s next appearance in 1931. The organization's members were appalled by having to comply with this decision, so they brought the matter to the DAR hierarchy.

Because of the clamor made by its members, the DAR decided on a strict “black exclusion” policy for any performers at Constitution Hall going forward.

After Marion Anderson performed at Howard University as part of her concert series in 1939, the school requested that Constitution Hall open its doors for her on April 9 of that year. The DAR categorically rejected the request.

Immediately after the announcement, the Vassar College student body and several of its professors officially protested the decision. Part of the Vassar student’s official criticism stated, “…whereas discrimination against any person because of race, creed, or color is totally abhorrent to the American Spirit in which and upon your society was supposedly founded… we strongly protest your recent action in denying the use of Constitution Hall to Marion Anderson for a concert on April 9, 1939.”

But the hammer blow that left the DAR reeling was from a letter sent to them a few days later. The First Lady of the United States decided to resign from the DAR because of their ill-advised decision.

Eleanor Roosevelt didn’t mess around.

“I am in complete disagreement with the attitude taken in refusing Constitution Hall to a great artist. You have set an example which seems to me unfortunate, and I feel obliged to send in to you my resignation.”

She continued, “You had the opportunity to lead in an enlightened way and it seems to me that your organization has failed.”

Ouch!

Here’s a copy of Eleanor’s short, but very effective, letter.

After all of this, the DAR still didn’t relent. But neither did Howard University. Walter White, the Executive Secretary of the NAACP, had the idea to have the concert outside at the Lincoln Memorial. Since it was a national monument, the final decision was in the hands of the Secretary of the Interior, Harold Ickes. Not only did Ickes agree to the concert, he walked Marion Anderson to the stage on the day of the event!

The rest is history. Anderson’s performance is an iconic event for the ages.

Back to Poughkeepsie!

Marian forged friendships within Vassar College and the African American community of Poughkeepsie, including Bessie Harden Payne (featured in a previous blog post). It was the Reverend Herbert Payne, Bessie’s husband, who drove her to the train station after her first concert at the high school in 1939.

She would return to perform again twice. Her next visit was on November 28, 1940, accompanied by the German-born American pianist Franz Rupp.

Anderson’s professional career continued for decades. Her work as an advocate for civil rights lasted her entire life. She did, eventually, curb her schedule. Marian went on to marry architect Orpheus Fisher. The couple decided to buy a house and live in Danbury, Connecticut.

But just when you thought she was done with Poughkeepsie, she appeared again on November 18, 1964. This time she was named an honorary citizen of Poughkeepsie and was given an American flag before even stepping on to the Poughkeepsie Auditorium stage!

The more you research Poughkeepsie history, the less ephemeral it becomes. Historical giants from every walk of life have visited this city, or were here already, building its social fabric to welcome in others. This town’s story is endlessly fascinating.

References

• Polk, David. “This Historic Marian Anderson Performance Made Her an Icon of the Civil Rights Movement.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 10 Jan. 2022, pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/this-historic-marian-anderson-performance-made-her-an-icon-of-the-civil-rights-movement/14241/.
• “Tickets for Marian Anderson Make Ideal Christmas.” Com, Poughkeepsie Eagle News, 19 Dec. 1938, www.newspapers.com/image/114298412/.
• Archives, Carnegie Hall Rose. “Marian Anderson .” Carnegie Hall, Carnegie Hall Rose Archives, collections.carnegiehall.org/CS.aspx?VP3=SearchResult&ALID=2RRM1T78NS7I&VBID=2RRMLBFVTRS4H#/SearchResult&ALID=2RRM1T78NS7I&VBID=2RRMLBFVTRS4H&POPUPPN=13&POPUPIID=2RRM1TO2S087. Accessed 25 Apr. 2026.
• “Marian Anderson, Famed Contralto, Sings Friday.” Com, Poughkeepsie Eagle News, 11 Jan. 1939, www.newspapers.com/image/114327009/.
• “Marian Anderson.” Com, Poughkeepsie Eagle News, 14 Jan. 1939, www.newspapers.com/image/114328230/.
• “Dutchess County Musical Society Presents Marian Anderson [Concert Program 1940-11-28].” Colenda Digital Repository - University of Pennsylvania Libraries, colenda.library.upenn.edu/catalog/81431-p3jm23g3w. Accessed 25 Apr. 2026.
• Historical Snapshots. “American Tenor Roland Hayes.” Historical Snapshots, 8 Nov. 2023, historicalsnaps.com/2022/09/29/american-tenor-roland-hayes/.
• “Vassar Students Protest Barring Marian Anderson from Constitution Hall.” Com, Poughkeepsie Eagle News, 24 Feb. 1939, www.newspapers.com/image/114341858/.
• “Eleanor Roosevelt Resigns from the DAR.” FDR Presidential Library & Museum, www.fdrlibrary.org/document-february. Accessed 25 Apr. 2026.
• “Marian Anderson to Receive Flag, Become Honorary Citizen of Poughkeepsie.” Com, Poughkeepsie Journal, 15 Nov. 1964, www.newspapers.com/image/114122802/.