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Oscar Bane 'O.B.' Keeler papers

 Collection
Collection number: ahc.MSS1160

Scope and Content

This collection contains documents written by and about golf author O.B. Keeler, as well as general golf articles and ephemera. Materials include news releases and statistics from the Augusta National Golf Club, the National Golf Foundation, and the United States Golf Association (USGA); newspaper clippings; and correspondence. Specific tournaments described in the collection include the 26th Masters Golf Tournament, the 62nd U.S. Open, the 44th PGA Tour, and the 47th Women’s Southern Golf Tournament. Correspondence includes monthly golf member letters, letters from author Corra Harris, USGA museum correspondence for Annie Keeler, and Christmas cards from the Keeler family. This collection also includes golf magazines, women’s tournament ephemera, articles about sculptor Jimmy Watt, company reports from the United Voluntary Services during the 62nd National Open, and one edition of The Thunderbolt newspaper. Of particular note are a USGA golf instructional journal for girls.

Dates

  • 1925-1996, undated

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

Unpublished manuscripts are protected by copyright. All requests to publish, quote, or reproduce must be submitted through the Kenan Research Center.

Administrative/Biographical History

Oscar Bane (O.B.) ‘Pop’ Keeler (1882-1950) was born in Chicago, Illinois, to George Henry Keeler (1853–1932) and Anna Belle Bane (1853–1916). His family moved to Georgia a few years after his birth. After graduating school and working as a bookkeeper, he married Annie Maxcy Field (1882–1962) in 1904. They had two children: George Henry Keeler (1905–1996) and Annie Elizabeth ‘Tippy’ Keeler (1907–1995). O.B. Keeler became a sports journalist and wrote for the Atlanta Georgian, the Atlanta Journal, and the Kansas City Star. He specialized in covering golf tournaments and the career of golfer Bobby Jones (1902-1971), the only player in history to have completed a ‘Grand Slam’ in one year, a term coined by Keeler signifying victory at the Masters Tournament, the U.S. Open, The Open Championship, and the PGA Championship. In 1927 Keeler and Jones co-authored Jones’ autobiography Down the Fairway and the two continued to work together until Jones announced his retirement in 1948.

Extent

0.209 linear ft. (one half document case and three oversize folders)

Language

English

System of Arrangement

This collection is arranged alphabetically according to titles supplied by staff.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift, 1999

General

MSS 1160 was previously processed as MSS 834f.

Description Control

This collection was processed in 2019.

Title
Oscar Bane 'O.B.' Keeler papers
Author
Alyssa Huenniger
Date
February 2019
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid is written in English.

Repository Details

Part of the Kenan Research Center at Atlanta History Center Repository

Contact:
130 West Paces Ferry Road
Atlanta GA 30305
404-814-4040