Elmer Snowden wurde am 9 Oktober 1900 in Baltimore, Maryland, USA geboren. Er war Schauspieler. Er war mit Gertie Wells verheiratet. Er starb am 14 Mai 1973 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
Banjoist and bandleader of the Jazz Age. Briefly with Eubie Blake in 1915, he formed his own band, The Washingtonians, in 1921 and this became the nucleus for the future Duke Ellington Orchestra. Snowden's hot-style jazz remained popular in the New York area until the mid-1930's.