Frank Kuchirchuk Jazz Photo Collection
The Frank Kuchirchuk Jazz Photo collection comprises photographic prints and negatives of legendary jazz musicians who performed at Lindsay's Sky Bar in Cleveland, Ohio in the early 1950s. Also included are ephemera and clippings. As a photojournalist for United Press International, Kuchirchuk spent many nights at this venue on the East Side of Cleveland photographing the jazz musicians. Located at E. 105th St and Euclid Ave in what was then known as “Doan’s Corners” (now commonly referred to as University Circle), Lindsay's Sky Bar was one of the first nightclubs in Cleveland to prominently book national acts.
With his Speed Graphic press camera and lighting rig, Kuchirchuk photographed legendary jazz musicians such as Dizzy Gillespie, Buddy Rich, Stan Getz, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Art Tatum and Flip Phillips. These materials were donated by Kuchirchuk to the Oberlin College Conservatory Special Collections in 2012.
After reading a 2007 article in the Plain Dealer about the construction of the Bertram and Judith Kohl Building at Oberlin College, Kuchirchuk donated his entire photograph collection to the Oberlin College Conservatory. In 2012, a number of his jazz photos were digitized and exhibited in the newly open jazz studies building. In 2023, the remainder of the collection was digitized, re-housed and placed in the Conservatory vault.
This website is meant to be a resource for students and researchers with an interest in Cleveland's place in jazz history
Click on each item across this website for full size render.