ONYX in Toledo in Lucas County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Art Tatum
Photographed By Dale K. Benington, May 23, 2016
1. Art Tatum Marker
Inscription.
Art Tatum was born in Toledo on October 13, 1909, the son of Arthur Tatum, Sr. and Mildred Hoskins Tatum. Despite being blind in one eye and only partially sighted in the other, he became one of the greatest jazz pianists of his era. To deal with his sight disability, he attended the Ohio State School for the Blind in Columbus from 1918-1920. He came from a musical family and had some formal training at the Toledo School of Music, but was largely self-taught. Influenced by famed Fats Waller, Tatum began playing his music on a local radio station at age 18 and then lived in Chicago, New York City, Cleveland, and Los Angeles, playing and recording extensively both as a soloist and in small groups. His ability to improvise set him apart as a musical genius. Tatum died in November 1956 and was named to the Jazz Hall of Fame in 1983.
Art Tatum was born in Toledo on October 13, 1909, the son of Arthur Tatum, Sr. and Mildred Hoskins Tatum. Despite being blind in one eye and only partially sighted in the other, he became one of the greatest jazz pianists of his era. To deal with his sight disability, he attended the Ohio State School for the Blind in Columbus from 1918-1920. He came from a musical family and had some formal training at the Toledo School of Music, but was largely self-taught. Influenced by famed Fats Waller, Tatum began playing his music on a local radio station at age 18 and then lived in Chicago, New York City, Cleveland, and Los Angeles, playing and recording extensively both as a soloist and in small groups. His ability to improvise set him apart as a musical genius. Tatum died in November 1956 and was named to the Jazz Hall of Fame in 1983.
Erected 2003 by The Ohio Bicentennial Commission, Cinergy, and The Ohio Historical Society. (Marker Number 41-48.)
N, 83° 33.461′ W. Marker is in Toledo, Ohio, in Lucas County. It is in ONYX. Marker is on City Park Avenue south of Woodland Avenue, on the left when traveling north. This marker is situated in the front yard of the now vacant house, that I can only assume that Art Tatum once lived in. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1123 City Park Avenue, Toledo OH 43604, United States of America. Touch for directions.
View of the marker, looking north along City Park Avenue.
Photographed By Dale K. Benington, May 23, 2016
3. Art Tatum Marker
View of marker, looking south along City Park Avenue.
Photographed By Dale K. Benington, May 23, 2016
4. Art Tatum Marker
View of the marker, looking south across the southwest corner of the nearby intersection of City Park Avenue and Woodland Street.
Photographed By Dale K. Benington, May 23, 2016
5. Art Tatum Marker
View of the marker situated in the front yard of a now vacant house, that I can only assume that Art Tatum once lived in.
Credits. This page was last revised on February 4, 2023. It was originally submitted on May 25, 2016, by Dale K. Benington of Toledo, Ohio. This page has been viewed 512 times since then and 28 times this year. Last updated on January 30, 2022, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. Photos:1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on May 26, 2016, by Dale K. Benington of Toledo, Ohio. • J. Makali Bruton was the editor who published this page.