The Jubilee Singers established themselves in 1871 to tour America, raising money for their school Fisk University in Nashville, Tenn. It began as a nine-member ensemble, directed by George White, the university treasurer. The group popularized African American spirituals which also helped to preserve these songs. After three years of touring America and Europe, including a performance for Queen Victoria of Britain, the group earned over $50,000, which allowed Fisk to pay off debts, to buy a new campus in Nashville, Tenn., and to build its first permanent structure, Jubilee Hall. The building still displays a floor to ceiling portrait of the singers, in memory of their efforts of furthering the education of the students.