Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- 1886-1941 (Creation)
Level of description
Extent and medium
1.12 m of textual records
38 photoprints
1 photonegative
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Fernleigh "Francois" Vernon, 1888-late 1940s, was born in Plymouth, England and was in Calgary by 1910. Before the First World War he played trombone in the Calgary Citizens' Band. He served overseas during the war with the 31st Battalion, and then played in the Great War Veterans Association Orchestra which toured Canada and the USA, and later led the orchestra. He also led a smaller dance band called Vernon's Orchestra out of Saskatoon. He was known professionally as Francois Vernon but also used the names Frank or Floyd.
Throughout his career he lived in a number of western Canadian cities including Calgary, Banff, Edmonton, Saskatoon, and Fernie, British Columbia, and was on the concert circuit with his various bands and orchestras. He was also on the Pantages circuit with his vaudeville troupe, Vernon's Versatile Players, and at times with his second wife, Elsie Della Grierson, from Edmonton and their son, Richard Charles. The peak of his career was in the 1920s and early 1930s. During the Second World War he was a supervisor with Canadian Legion War Services, Inc. in Military District #13, Alberta.
Repository
Archival history
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Gift of Gary C. Vernon, 1987.
Content and structure area
Scope and content
The fonds consists of sheet music for orchestras and bands; promotional photographs of Francois, Della and Richard and the various orchestras, bands and vaudeville troupes with which they performed; and photographs of the Grierson family and ranch (ca. 1900s), the Calgary Citizens' Band (1910, 1913), and staff of Canadian Legion War Services, Inc. (late 1940s). Includes essay on First World War experiences in France (author unknown).
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Material removed includes duplicate sheet music compositions.
Accruals
System of arrangement
Series and files are arranged alphabetically.
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
No restrictions on access.
Conditions governing reproduction
Language of material
Script of material
Language and script notes
The material is in English.
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
Finding aids
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Digital content is available
Related units of description
Francois' vaudeville costumes and a drum are held by the Cultural History Department at Glenbow.
Notes area
Note
Title based on contents of records.
Alternative identifier(s)
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Genre access points
Description control area
Description identifier
Institution identifier
Rules and/or conventions used
Status
Level of detail
Dates of creation revision deletion
Thursday, May 10, 2018