Tim Lloyd (American Folklore Society)
In 2010, the Library of Congress, responding to an assignment from the US Congress, contracted with the American Folklore Society to undertake a national inventory of archival collections of oral history interviews with participants in the US Civil Rights Movement, and to develop an online open-access database of information about those collections. These collections were scattered across the country in many different institutions, and information about them was difficult for researchers or the public to find. This paper tells that project’s story, and asserts that such complex research and accessibility efforts can also be instances of advocacy and community service.
Part of 05-15 The Importance and Use of Archives in Folklore Studies, Friday, November 03, 10:30 am–12:30 pm