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Finding Aids to Collections in the Archive of Folk Culture

RHODE ISLAND COLLECTIONS
IN THE ARCHIVE OF FOLK CULTURE

Compiled by: Breanna Byecroft, John DeMetrick, and Hannah Dueck
Series Editor: Ann Hoog
Revised: January 2011


For additional information about Archive of Folk Culture collections, contact the Folklife Reading Room. To request copies, see our webpages regarding audio materials and photographic materials. Please refer to the AFC and/or AFS numbers when requesting information. All indications of time duration listed in this finding aid are estimates.

AFC 1942/002: Eloise Hubbard Linscott Collection
Eleven wax cylinders, 441 discs, 37 tapes, over 100 mostly black-and-white photographs, and approximately 11 linear feet of manuscript materials documenting singing games, ballads, sea songs, American Indian songs, lumberjack songs and other music of New England. Recorded and photographed by Eloise Hubbard Linscott, 1929-1978. [catalog record]

AFC 1942/002:ph106-107: Two black-and-white photos of Mable Hunter, Maynard Reynolds, and Mrs. Maynard Reynolds, Wickford, Rhode Island.

AFC 1942/002:ph125-126: Two black-and-white photos of William (Bill) Spink, playing the fiddle, Chepachet, Rhode Island.

AFC 1942/002:ph127: One black-and-white photo of William (Bill) Spink and an unidentified woman, Chepachet, Rhode Island.

AFC 1942/002:ph185: One black-and-white photo of the rear view of 44 Brown Street, Wickford, Rhode Island.

AFS 9053-9065: Horace P. Beck Duplication Project
Three 6-inch and 10 10-inch discs of folk songs performed with guitar by Dale Potter and Silas Pendleton. Recorded in Kingman, Maine, and Newport, Rhode Island, by Horace P. Beck and Wendell Hadlock, 1947. The collection includes a 2-page log.

AFS 9056-9060: Five 10-inch discs containing a cante fable and 22 songs performed with guitar by Silas Pendleton originally of Huntly, Virginia. Recorded in Newport, Rhode Island, by Horace P. Beck, 1947. (35 minutes; tape copy on LWO 5111 reel 179)

AFS 13,681-13,702: Ralph Rinzler Duplication Project
Twenty-two 10-inch tapes of Cajun music from Louisiana; Scottish-Gaelic music from Cape Breton, Nova Scotia; and ballads from Newfoundland. Recorded at the Newport Folk Festival, Rhode Island, by Ralph Rinzler and Mike Seeger, 1964-1966. The collection includes 48 pages of notes and song lists.

AFS 13,992-14,021: National Federation of Music Clubs Archivists / Folk Music Materials
Eighteen 7-inch, 3 5-inch, and 9 3-inch tapes of folk music from Florida, Idaho, Kentucky, North Dakota, Rhode Island, Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Recorded by regional National Federation of Music Clubs (NFMC) archivists and contributors, 1931-63. Donated by Annabel M. Buchanan for the NFMC Folk Music Archive. The collection includes 5 linear inches of articles, correspondence, logs, and musical and textual transcriptions.

AFS 14,004: One tape containing Narragansett Indian songs sung by Princess Red Wing and Tall Oak, with narration by Marjorie Patterson (Mrs. Carl W.) Kaiser. Sponsored by the Rhode Island State Federation of Music Clubs. Recorded in 1961. (40 minutes; LWO 5712 reel 13)

Manuscripts and photographs [no item numbers]: One 17-page booklet entitled Musical Expressions of Early Rhode Island Indians by Mrs. Carl W. Kaiser as told by Princess Red Wing, 2 pages of correspondence with Mrs. Kaiser, and a black-and-white photograph of Princess Red Wing and her cousin Tall Oak.

AFS 19,268-19,280: Middlebury College Helen Hartness Flanders Collection, Part I
Thirteen 10-inch tapes of music and interviews with various informants. Recorded primarily in New England by Helen Hartness Flanders and Marguerite Olney, ca. 1949-1958.

AFS 19,272: One tape containing 16 songs by William Webster of Wakefield, Rhode Island. Recorded by Helen Hartness Flanders and Marguerite Olney, November 13, 1952. (30 minutes; LWO 12,170 reel 5)

AFS 19,279: One tape containing 4 songs sung by Alice Cassidy of East Matunuck, Albert R. Clark of Perryville, and Dan Howells of Providence, Rhode Island. Recorded on January 27 and April 5, 1945 by Helen Hartness Flanders and Marguerite Olney. (10 minutes; LWO 12,170 reel 12 )

AFS 21,988-22,050: Middlebury College Helen Hartness Flanders Collection, Part II
Sixty-three 10-inch tapes of Anglo-American songs (primarily ballads) and interviews with various informants. Recorded in New England, especially Vermont, and Canada, by Helen Hartness Flanders and Marguerite Olney, ca. 1939-1948. Copied from approximately 1275 discs loaned by Middlebury College.

AFS 21,988A13: One tape containing fragments of "Come All Ye Virginny Girls" and “James Bird” sung by Achsa Parker. Recorded in Providence, Rhode Island, by Helen Hartness Flanders and Marguerite Olney, Feb 4, 1940. (2 minutes; LWO 12,301 reel 1)

AFC 1970/011: Howard T. Glasser Collection of Carnegie Ceilidh and Kingston Ceilidh Ephemera
One and a half linear inches of documentation concerning the Carnegie (Pittsburgh) and Kingston (Rhode Island) Ceilidhs, compiled in the 1960s by Howard Glasser. The collection includes posters, concert flyers, tickets, and newspaper stories. [catalog record]

AFC 1983/023: A Study of the Newport Folk Festival and the Newport Folk Foundation, 1983 / by Cheryl Anne Brauner. St. John's: Department of Folklore, Memorial University of Newfoundland, 1983. M.A. Thesis. 346 pages. Contains a description of the festival's organization and production, and the role of the Newport Folk Foundation in supporting grassroots artists. Includes bibliographic entries for interviews, conversations, correspondence, manuscripts, recordings, and periodicals. Three appendices contain the schedule of events for each festival, the proposal for the 1963 Newport Folk Festival, and listings of festival recordings and participants. [catalog record]

AFC 1984/011: American Dialect Society Collection
Approximately nine hundred 12-inch discs of dialect samples recorded principally in New England, South Carolina, and Virginia by E. Marguerite Chapallaz, Miles Hanley, Guy S. Lowman, Lorenzo Turner, and others, 1931-37. Recorded in part for the Linguistic Atlas of New England. Received on exchange from the American Dialect Society. The collection includes 13 3/4 linear feet of correspondence, database printouts, disc jackets, notes, phonetic transcriptions, and 70 pages of performer lists and subject cards. [catalog record] [finding aid]

AFS 24,554: One disc containing an interview with Donald Fletcher of Providence, Rhode Island. Recorded by Miles L. Hanley, November 8, 1933. (10 minutes; tape copy on RWC 5745)

AFS 24,621; 24,624: Two discs containing an interview with Margaret Stillwell of Providence, Rhode Island. Recorded by Miles L. Hanley, December 7, 1933. (20 minutes; tape copy on RWC 5749)

AFS 24,626; 24,628; 24,630: Three discs containing an interview with Mrs. Arthur Weeden of Providence, Rhode Island. Recorded by Miles L. Hanley, December 7, 1933. (33 minutes; tape copy on RWC 5749)

AFS 24,729; 24,730; 24,731: Three discs containing an interview with Mrs. William Covell of Newport, Rhode Island. Recorded by Miles L. Hanley, January 11, 1934. (29 minutes; tape copy on RWC 5754)

AFS 24,732: One disc containing an interview with William King Covell of Newport, Rhode Island. Recorded by Miles L. Hanley, January 11, 1934. (11 minutes; tape copy on RWC 5754)

AFS 24,733; 24,734: Two discs containing reflections and information about food and crafts by Sarah Champlin of Narraganset (Point Judith), Rhode Island. Recorded by Miles L. Hanley, January 12, 1934. (19 minutes; tape copy on RWC 5754)

AFS 24,735: One disc containing fishing and sea stories by John R. Champlin of Narraganset (Point Judith), Rhode Island. Recorded by Miles L. Hanley, January 12, 1934. (10 minutes; tape copy on RWC 5755)

AFS 24,736; 24,737; 24,738: Three discs containing an interview with John Gardner Mawney of East Greenwich, Rhode Island. Recorded by Miles L. Hanley, January 12, 1934. (32 minutes; tape copy on RWC 5755)

AFS 24,776; 24,779; 24,782; 24,785; 24,790: Five discs containing an interview with Herman G. Tucker of Foster (South Foster), Rhode Island. Recorded by Miles L. Hanley, January 31, 1934. (52 minutes; tape copy on RWC 5757)

AFS 24,788: One disc containing an interview with Wilson Tucker of Foster (South Foster), Rhode Island. Recorded by Miles L. Hanley, January 31, 1934. (10 minutes; tape copy RWC 5757)

AFS 24,852; 24,853; 24,854: Three discs containing an interview with Mrs. H. F. Kenyon of Richmond (Wyoming), Rhode Island. Recorded by Miles L. Hanley, February 22, 1934. (31 minutes; tape copy on RWC 5762)

AFS 24,921: One disc containing segments from Herman G. Tucker of Foster, Rhode Island, and from radio broadcasts, for test purposes. Recorded in 1934. (5 minutes; tape copy on RWE 2987)

AFS 25,592: One disc containing Marguerite Chapallaz of London, England, reciting a letter home. Includes a history of Providence, Rhode Island. Recorded June 26, 1934. (11 minutes; tape copy on RWE 2984)

AFS 25,608; 25,609; 25,610: Three discs containing an interview with Mrs. P. Lee of Chepachet, Rhode Island. Recorded by J.D. and Marguerite Chapallaz, September 7, 1934. (33 minutes; tape copy on RWE 2988)

AFC 1986/022: Center for Applied Linguistics Collection
Fifty-nine 10-inch tapes of spoken dialect samples, recorded at various locations in North America by various collectors, and compiled by the Center for Applied Linguistics for a project entitled "A Survey and Collection of American English Dialect Recordings." The collection includes 14 linear inches of documentation, including an introduction and preface, a list of contents, content summaries, correspondence, and transcripts. [catalog record] [online presentation]

AFS 24,329B1: One tape containing an interview with Cook E. Clinton, age 77, white male, a long-time resident of Newport, Rhode Island, discussing the care of roses. Recorded in 1958. Collected by William Kirwin, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, Canada. (5 minutes) [audio]

AFS 24,329B2: One tape containing an interview with W.J. Kirwin, Sr., age 67, white male, native of Newport, Rhode Island, reminiscing about his life and family. Recorded in 1966. Collected by William J. Kirwin, Jr., Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, Canada. (6 minutes) [audio]

AFC 1991/022: Rhode Island Folklife Project
One hundred and thirty-eight 7-inch reels, 59 audiocassettes, approximately 7500 color slides, 8300 black-and-white negatives, 11 linear inches of photo and sound logs, 6 linear inches of fieldnotes, 1 linear inch of interview report forms, 10 linear inches of survey response forms, as well as 1 1/2 linear feet of administrative materials, correspondence, publications, ephemera, final reports, and essays for the Rhode Island Folklife Project. This project documented and analyzed ethnic, regional, and occupational traditions of Rhode Island, especially ethnic traditions (Black, French-Canadian, Greek, Irish, Polish, Portuguese, Ukrainian, and others), maritime activities, material culture, and local history. Collected by Peter Bartis, Michael E. Bell, Thomas Burns, Carl Fleischhauer, Kenneth Goldstein, Nancy Harley, Henry Horenstein, and Geraldine Johnson, July 15 - December 31, 1979. Conducted by the American Folklife Center of the Library of Congress, in cooperation with the Rhode Island Heritage Commission, the Rhode Island Council on the Arts, and the Rhode Island Historical Society. See related publication: Rhode Island Folklife Resources. (includes AFS 22,208-22,405) [catalog record]

AFC 1993/001: Ethnic Heritage and Language Schools Collection
Twenty-four 5-inch tapes, 60 7-inch tapes, and 288 audiocassettes from the Ethnic Heritage and Language Schools in America Project, a survey of 23 ethnic schools from 22 ethnic groups. Recorded at various locations throughout the United States by Elena Bradunas and twenty-three fieldworkers, April-July, 1982, sponsored by the American Folklife Center. The collection includes 14 2/3 linear feet of correspondence, fieldnotes, final reports, key contributor forms, news clippings, publications, references to curriculum materials, references to donated photographs, slide and photo logs, sound recording logs, and transcripts of audio recordings. [catalog record] [finding aid].

The following materials are from the St. Michael's Ukrainian Orthodox Church school in Woonsocket, Rhode Island.

AFS 23,706-23,718: Thirteen audiocassettes containing interviews and classes recorded at St. Michael’s Ukrainian Orthodox Church school in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, by Carole Bell, April 30 - May 30, 1982. (11 1/2 hours; RYA 4644-4656)

AFC 1993/001:ES82-MLH-1: Twenty color slides containing Ukrainian pysanky, Odessa Ukrainian Dancers, and St. Michael’s Ukrainian Orthodox church parish house taken at St. Michael’s Ukrainian Orthodox Church school in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, photographed by Carole Bell and Mary-Louise Haas, April 30 - May 30, 1982.

AFC 1993/001:ES82-196612-1, ES82-196793-1, ES82-197044-1, ES82-197562-1, ES82-197630-1, ES82-197630-2: One hundred and seventy-four black-and-white negatives containing Odessa Ukrainian dancers, classes, school buildings and paraphernalia at St. Michael’s Ukrainian Orthodox Church school in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, photographed by Carole Bell and Mary-Louise Haas, April 30 - May 30, 1982.

AFC 1993/001: Manuscripts, ephemera, and artifacts [no item numbers]: One church brochure, a painting, and the final report for this portion of the project.

AFC 1995/004: Mike Seeger Collection
Two hundred and seventy-five 10-inch tapes of bluegrass, country, and folk music, recorded in California, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Ohio, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, D.C., and West Virginia, primarily by Mike Seeger, 1953-67. The collection includes 3 linear inches of computer disks, correspondence, notes, and photos. The tape numbers indicated in the following annotations correspond with Mike Seeger's item numbers.

AFC 1995/004:102B-104: Three tapes containing a panel discussion entitled “What is American Folk Music” with Moses Asch, Stanley Hyman, Willis James, and Alan Lomax moderated by Marshall Stearns, as well as interviews with artists at the Newport Folk Festival. Recorded in Newport, Rhode Island, by Mike Seeger, July 12, 1959. (4 hours)

AFC 1995/004:120-121A: Two tapes containing the Stanley Brothers with Chubby Anthony, Lendy Clear, and Curley Lambert and Earl Scruggs with Hylo Brown and the Timberliners performing at the Newport Folk Festival, July 12, 1959. Recorded in Newport, Rhode Island, by Vanguard and copied for Mike Seeger. (1 hour and 15 minutes)

AFC 1995/004:212-213A: Two tapes containing Eck Robertson and the New Lost City Ramblers with Tracy Schwarz, Mike Seeger, and John Cohen performing at the Newport Folk Festival. Recorded in Newport, Rhode Island, by Mike Seeger, July 25, 1965. (1 hour and 15 minutes)

AFC 1995/004:253-254A: Two tapes containing a workshop with Sara and Maybelle Carter and a performance by an unidentified group at the Newport Folk Festival. Recorded in Newport, Rhode Island, by Mike Seeger, July 14, 1965 [?]. (1 hour)

AFC 1996/023: Michael Bell "Devil's Foot Rock: The Folkloristic Component" Collection
Fifty-eight-page manuscript entitled "Devil's Foot Rock: The Folkloristic Component: Final Report" by Michael Bell, containing the "folkloristic component (by far the major aspect) of a study to determine the traditional cultural significance (if any) of the Devil's Foot Rock site in North Kingston." The study, submitted on February 18, 1994, was done for the Public Archaeology Survey Team, Inc., under contract from the Rhode Island Department of Transportation as a result of a proposal to destroy the site for a highway off-ramp.

AFC 1997/011: Lands' End All American Quilt Competition
Approximately 18,000 images (mostly color slides) and 60,000 pages of manuscript materials from quilt contests in 1992, 1994, and 1996, sponsored by Lands' End in cooperation with Good Housekeeping magazine. The collection includes entry blanks, and essays written by entrants, as well as Lands End administrative files and correspondence pertinent to the promotion of the contest. Numerous types and styles of needlework, quilting, patchwork, applique and embroidery are represented among the visual images. [catalog record] [finding aid] [online presentation]

AFC 1997/011: Box 45, folders 2531-2564: Thirty-four folders containing entries from Rhode Island.

AFC 1997/011: Box 98, folders 6025-6037: Thirteen folders containing entries from Rhode Island.

AFC 1997/011: Box 140, folders 8467-8470: Four folders containing entries from Rhode Island.

AFC 1997/011: Box 150, folder 8974: One folder containing an entry form, photos, slides, and a survey for 1992 Rhode Island Winner Jean F. Burrill.

AFC 1997/011: Box 152, folder 9033: One folder containing correspondence, an entry form, a slide, a negative, and a survey for 1994 Rhode Island Winner Debora Timby.

AFC 1997/011: Box 154, folder 9101: One folder containing correspondence, an entry form, photos, a negative, and a survey for 1996 Rhode Island Winner Joanne L. Krauss.

AFC 2000/001: Local Legacies Collection
Four hundred and five linear feet (approximately 90,000 manuscript pages, 475 sound recordings, 13,000 graphic materials, 330 electronic media, and 75 artifacts) of documentation of local festivals, fairs, parades, and other community-based events from each U.S. state, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories and trusts. The Local Legacies Collection was donated through the efforts of individuals, organizations, and institutions asked to participate by members of Congress. This project was part of the Library of Congress Bicentennial celebration in the year 2000. [catalog record] [online presentation] [Rhode Island Local Legacies]

AFC 2003/018: John Dawson Blues and Jazz Collection
Four CDs of Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee at the Salt Cafe in Newport, Rhode Island, April 1978; Duke Ellington, Tanglewood, New Lenox, Massachusetts, July 15, 1956; Duke Ellington, Rotterdam, January 28, 1967; Billie Holiday, Embassy Theater, Los Angeles, California, April 24, 1946. Private recordings of live performances currently unavailable on commercial recordings. John Dawson is a collector of blues and jazz private recordings that circulate from collector to collector. He has digitally cleaned these recordings. Onsite access only; no duplication permitted.

AFC 2006/027: David and Levon Ayriyan Concert and Interview Collection
Concert from the Homegrown 2006 concert series. Recorded April 12, 2006. [catalog record] [webcast and event flyer]

 

 

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