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Name:    Handy, W. C.
Profession:  Entertainer
Category:  African-American Experience
Born/Started:    1873
Died/Ended:    1958
Description:    W.C. Handy is known as the "Father of the Blues." His experiences as a young musician, down and out in St. Louis in 1893, are believed to have inspired his 1914 song, the "St. Louis Blues."

Handy was also a performer, choral and orchestral conductor, and musical historian. The "St. Louis Blues" skyrocketed to fame after Sophie Tucker introduced it into her vaudeville act. Highlights of Handy’s career include his performance in Carnegie Hall in 1928. Handy Park at Euclid and Ashland was named in his honor.



Reference
African-American Heritage of St. Louis: a Guide
 Selected Neighbors and Neighborhoods of North St. Louis
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