Jannotta Family Collection

Title

Jannotta Family Collection

Subject

Janotta, Stella Skiff, 1867-1954
Janotta, Alfredo A. (Alfredo Antonio), 1843-1913
Janotta, A. Vernon, 1894-1972

Description

The Janotta Family Collection contains photographs relating to conductor/composer Alfredo Jannotta, his wife, activist and author Stella Skiff Jannotta, and their family. Several photographs belonged to their son, Navy Rear Admiral A. Vernon Jannotta.

Alfredo Jannotta immigrated from Italy by way of London to Boston in 1865 where he taught voice at the New England Conservatory of Music. He married his first wife, Alice Prudy and they had a son, Edward, before Alfredo moved to Cincinnati in 1868. Alfredo spent 12 years in Cincinnati teaching vocal performance as well as conducting the Cincinnati Choral Society and organizing the first Cincinnati orchestra. He moved back to Boston in 1881 but moved to St. Paul, Minnesota, in 1882 and finally to Chicago in 1888 where he established himself as a vocal teacher.

While teaching in Chicago, Jannotta taught vocal lessons to Stella Skiff whom he married in 1893. Skiff was the daughter of Iowa businessman Vernon William Skiff and his wife, Mary Frances Coffin. Her brother, Frank Vernon Skiff founded the Jewel Tea Company which later grew into a national grocery store chain including Jewel, Osco, Eisner, and White Hen.

Skiff continued her singing career after marrying Jannotta and briefly taught lessons. Between 1894 and 1898, she gave birth to sons A. Vernon, Francis, and Joseph. Between 1917 and 1918, Stella adopted three foster daughters, Margaret, Marion, and Betty (Elizabeth).

In the early 20th century she began taking an active interest in causes including the suffrage movement and socialism. Stella Jannotta joined the Chicago Political Equality League (predecessor to the Chicago League of Women Voters) in 1907. She wrote for the propaganda arm of the organization, including a 1916 article entitled "Public Opinion" which she revisted several times over the following decades.

A. Vernon Jannotta, the oldest son on Alfredo and Stella, served in the United States Navy in both World War I and World War II. He rose through the ranks of the Navy and the Naval Reserves, eventually retiring as a Rear Admiral in 1954. Jannotta received several military honors including the Navy Cross, Silver Star, two Bronze Stars, and a Purple Heart. 

Jannotta began working at the Jewel Tea Company in 1919 and held several positions at the company for the next 50 years. He also held several executive positions or held stakes in several companies including Lehman Brothers, Motor Institute of America, Tapp, Inc. and Consolidated Trading Corporation.

The finding aid for the Janotta Family Papers, 1809-1972 at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum may be found at http://alplm-cdi.com/chroniclingillinois/items/show/358.

Photographs in this collection include images of Jannotta and Skiff family members as well as students of Alfredo Jannota.

Collection Items

Margaret Coffin
Margaret Coffin sits for a portrait wearing a large white bow in her hair.On verso: "Mrs. A. Jannotta; 170 N. Ridgeland Ave; Oak Park."

Frank Jannotta, Jr.
Frank Jannotta, Jr., poses for a portrait.

Board of Directors, Jewel Tea Company, Inc.
Members of the Jewel Tea Company Board of Directors pose for a group phtograph. The Jewel Tea Company originated in 1889 when Frank V. Skiff began using a horse and wagon to sell tea and other items door-to-door in Chicago. On verso: "Standing -…

First Collegiate Saxophone Sextet
Saxophonists from an unknown college pose for a group photo.

Mary Frances Coffin Skiff
Mary Frances Coffin Skiff poses for a portrait wearing a white dress.

Jannotta Family
Members of the Jannotta family gather for a group photo. Pictured seated in the center of the photo is Mary Frances Coffin Skiff and her husband Vernon William Skiff, the parents of Stella Skiff Jannotta.

The Jannotta Ladies' Quartette
The four members of the singing group, the "Jannotta Ladies' Quartette" pose for a portrait. The group was named for their vocal teacher, Alfredo A. Jannotta. Stella Skiff Jannotta is on the left.

Stella Skiff Jannotta
Stella Skiff Jannotta sits for a portrait at age sixteen. Jannotta becam an author, suffragist, and one of the founding members of the Jewel Tea Company, Inc.On verso: "Given back to me by Lacy Vaughn. My picture taken in Newton, Iowa, when about…

Old Class
An unidentified Jannotta family member's old class in Newton, Iowa, poses for a school photo. On verso: "Some of my old class in Newton; Standing, left to right: Herman Clark, Cora Mel Patton, Paul Adamson, Bloom Ryan, Eva Blackwood, Horace Campbell.…

Francis Skiff Jannotta
Francis Skiff Janotta poses for a portrait with his arms crossed.

Mary Frances Coffin Skiff Hospital
After Mary Frances Coffin Skiff's death in 1918, her husband, Vernon William Skiff, founder of the Jewel Tea Company, donated $100,000 for the contstruction of a hospital in Newton, Iowa. The building was dedicated and named her memory in 1921. The…

A. Vernon Jannotta, Navy Cross Presentation
A. Vernon Jannotta receives the Navy Cross during a ceremony held at the Great Lakes Naval Training Station, Chicago. Jannotta received the Navy Cross for picking up the survivrs and saving the fuel and munitions when the Orestes Navy tanker was…

Sarah Gardner
A young Sarah Gardner stands next to a table for a portrait.

Marian Axtell
Marian Axtell poses for a portrait wearing a striped shawl,

Edmund Skiff
Edmund Skiff sits for a portrait next to a table covered by a floral tablecloth. The Skiff family is related to the Jannotta family through Stella Skiff Jannotta on her father's side.

Wife of Edmund Skiff
Mrs. Edmund Skiff sits for a portrait wearing a dark dress with a light collar. The Skiff family is related to the Jannotta family through Stella Skiff Jannotta on her father's side.

Cornelia Meyer Fisk
A young Cornelia Meyer Fisk poses for a portrait while holding a doll. She was the daughter of John Meyer and Cornelia Beebee Meyer, and eventually the wife of Frank Fisk.

Emma Connelly
A young Emma Connelly poses for a portrait standing in front of a railing.

Woman in Striped Dress
An unidentified woman poses for a portrait wearing a striped dress and a choker necklace around her neck.

Girl with Curly Hair
An unknown girl leans on an armrest during a portrait sitting.

Edward Jannotta, Age Six
Edward Jannotta sits for a portrait on an artificial rock at the age of six.

Edward Jannotta
A young Edward Jannotta reclines on a fur rug during a portrait session.

Group Rides in Funicular
Mrs. Crocker, Stephen, and A. Vernon Jannotta ride up the side of Mount Manitou in Colorado.

A. Vernon Jannotta on a Donkey
A. Vernon Jannotta rides on a burro in Grand Caverns on a trip to the Cave of the Winds.

Alfredo A. Jannotta
Alfredo A. Jannotta stands in front of Rand's for a photograph.
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