Song Notes, 1963

The Abbe Niles Trinity College Song Book collection contains materials related to a proposed revision of the 1939 version of the Trinity College Song Book by Trinity alumnus Abbe Niles. Records include correspondence, project notes and sheet music. Of interest are files pertaining to Trinity alumnus William Rosenbaum, who penned Trinity's "Baseball Song." (Rosenbaum would go on to legally change his name to his pen-name, Gilbert Dodge, and in 1921 have the hit song, "Peggy O'Neil.") Also of interest is a report and student survey regarding publication of the new song book and ideas about what it should or should not include.

During the late 1950s and early 1960s, Niles's main work on the song book project included research on copyright statuses and obtaining permissions; verification of the texts of existing Trinity songs; finding errors in tunes in the most recent version of the song book; and collecting Trinity material he felt had been neglected. Niles's untimely death before the publication of the updated song book leaves the materials in an unfinished place. While there is correspondence to suggest that the committee continued on with the work begun by Niles, with mention that the new book would be dedicated to him, it is unclear as to whether the updated song book was ever completed or published.