http://jessicadoeshistory.com/cnd/exhibits/show/final-exhibitfr
My final exhibit combines the projects of the New Deal Era such as the Federal Writer’s Project and the Southern Mosaic Project of John and Ruby Lomax to explore the origins and impacts of spirituals and religions following the abolition of slavery at the end of the Civil War. The Library of Congress contains a wealth of primary sources focused on the lives of former slaves, narrated and documented in the 1930’s for folkloric preservation in the national archives, and although the topic itself is not centered on the Great Depression, I felt that it was a topic with incredible depth and complexity, which deserved attention, especially because the work of writers and folklorists in the New Deal allows for its study today.
I chose to take advantage of the rich personal narratives of the Born In Slavery collection, and began my project with an overlapping timeline containing three different narratives. I chose to highlight biographical milestones, such as freedom from slavery and marriages, but also paid special mind to mentions of religious practice and holiday observance, as I noticed that while these subjects were noted by all three, it occurred in different ways. For example, Adeline Jackson’s testimony made her deep-seated spirituality evident, whereas Frank Adamnson seemed to view church attendance as a way of finding a wife moreso than as a spiritual calling. I feel that it is necessary to compare and contrast these kinds of experiences, especially when the focus of the exhibit is on religion and spirituality in particular. Secondly, I chose to use Soundcite to analyze two examples of traditional spirituals, and to open up a conversation in my exhibit about the important roles that spirituals played during and after slavery.1 Finally, I chose to do annotations of two images from a church congregation in Charleston, South Carolina, to facilitate a discussion of the emergence of Black churches in the American South following emancipation, and their cultural significance.2 All of my primary sources originate in South Carolina, from the songs and images, and even the personal narratives. This was a conscious choice (and a true hassle when it came to selecting sources that would fit my exhibit well), as I wanted to build my observations and conclusions around a specific group, in order to increase my own accuracy, and minimize the amount of generalizations I stood to make about a community to which I do not belong.
When first I entered the class, I had no idea that there was such a heightened initiative and interest in documenting American folklife during the New Deal.3 As I conducted my research and found primary sources for this undertaking, I was truly blown away by the sheer amount of material that was compiled during such a short period of American history, moreover the fact that there was so much pertinent information at my disposal for what I consider to be a somewhat narrowly focused exhibit. The push to immortalize American Folklore and Folklife at this point in history stands out to me at a personal level as well—as an anthropologist, I am impressed with the degree of attention the government and the country at large gave to aspects of culture that so often go neglected by the majority of the public.4
The action taken to preserve and compile folklore during the 1930’s was invaluable, especially as our culture continues to grow more and more homogenous as mainstream media takes over the collective focus of the country. Through the projects of the New Deal, we are able to access firsthand accounts of events from two hundred years ago, recorded in audio files and transcribed by ethnographers. It’s utterly incredible. I have never been interested in digital archiving—or any archiving, for that matter—before taking this class, but thanks to all of our work with the Library of Congress digital collections I have gained a deep appreciation for all of the work that goes into the compilation and digitizing of these sources. Accessibility truly is everything, and this class allowed me to see behind the scenes, and gain an understanding of how this accessibility is made possible.
- African American Spirituals. Online Text.
- Maffly-Kipp, Laurie F. “The Church in the Black Southern Community.” The Church in the Southern Black Community: Introduction, 2001, docsouth.unc.edu/church/intro.html.
- Bindas, Kenneth J. All of This Music Belongs to the Nation: the WPA’s Federal Music Project and American Society. University of Tennessee Press, 2003
- Filene, Benjamin and Alan Lomax, et. al. Romancing the Folk:Public Memory and American Roots Music. pg 133-134
