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Collection Title
Mary Kay Karzas Aragon and Trianon Ballroom Collection (NHM49)
Collection Identifier
49
Inclusive date(s)
1924 – 2001
Extent
1 box
Biographical Note
Andrew Karzas was born in 1888 on the island of Karpathos on the periphery of the Aegean Sea. Andrew Karzas would marry Catherine "Kakia" Karzas in 1924 in Athens, Greece. That same year he and his wife would move to the United States. He became a naturalized citizen in May 1922 and Kakia became naturalized in December 1928. In 1926, Andrew, with his brother William Karzas, founded the Aragon and Trianon Ballrooms in Chicago. These ballrooms would become world renowned. Although Andrew Karzas would die in 1939 his brother and son continued to run the business for the next 30 years until 1964, when William Karzas decided to sell he and his late brothers remaining ballroom, the Aragon, to Oscar Brotherman and Leonard Sherman.
 
Scope and Content Note
The Mary K. Karzas Collection spans from 1924 to 1964. It includes mostly personal documents of Andrew and Katherine Karzas but, also has multiple newspaper clippings and books that add for a larger scope and context of the overall Big Band Era. The newspaper clippings appear to have been placed with intention, so they have been left in the books. The collection also has negatives of the original Trianon Ballroom. The collection is in chronological order starting from 1924 to 1964.
Arrangement
Arrangement maintains original order.
Access Restrictions
The collection is open to research.
Language Note
Collection is in English and Greek
Source of Acquisition
This collection was donated to the National Hellenic Museum in 2021. It was donated by Mary Kay Karzas at the museum.
Preferred Citation
[item], folder, box, Mary Kay Karzas Aragon and Trianon Ballroom Collection, National Hellenic Museum
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