The collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Oscar Bluemner papers, 1886-1939, 1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art.
This finding aid is intended as a historical document of the event, July 1-4, 1967 and the participants in this festival. Not all of the individuals listed below were recorded or photographed. The documentation of this festival was minimal so there is not a wealth of material still existing or accessible from this event for study. What exists is listed later in this document. Contains parts of several boxes of paper records. 7 reel to reel audiotapes, photographs.
Scope and Content note:
The collection includes the paper records that resulted from the production of the program. The collection includes audiovisual documentation during the festival itself including audio recordings and photographs. For specific information about the materials in each series, please refer to the series description. For additional information about the 1967 Festival of American Folklife, one should consult the central Smithsonian Institution Archives and the papers of the Division of Performing Arts.
Historical note:
In 1967, the Smithsonian held its first ever Festival of American Folklife. Then Smithsonian Secretary S. Dillon Ripley was interested in getting the museum out to the people. He assigned the task of creating a festival to James Morris, head of what was then the Smithsonian Division of Performing Arts. Ralph Rinzler was hired as the folklore consultant. Rinzler had been one of the chief talent scouts for the Newport Folk festival and had done extensive fieldwork on American folk traditions. Rinzler had also been involved in the creation of the "festival workshop" concept which incorporates narratives and audience interaction with musical performance. He also felt strongly that craft and food traditions were equally important and also a major part of the folklife of a traditional community.
This four day event set the pattern for what became a yearly event. It featured craft traditions as well as musical performances by some of the well known traditional musicians of the 20th century, many of whom had previously appeared at the Newport Folk Festival.
List of Festival Participants:
Crafts
Louise Jones, Coil basket making, South Carolina
Margaret Coochwytewa, Coil and Yucca leaves, Hopi basket maker, Arizona
Joseph Grismayer, Willow, basket maker, Pennsylvania
Bea Hensley, blacksmith, North Carolina
Homer Miracle, Hand-hewn bowls, carver, Kentucky
Charles Mayac, Ivory carver, Alaska
Leo J. Meyer, scrimshaw carver, Maryland
Edd Presnell, Dulcimer maker, North Carolina
Willard Watson, Toy maker, North Carolina
Dewey Harmon, Whittler, North Carolina
Herman Benton, Scoop maker, New York
Robert Keith, Chair maker, North Carolina
Mrs. Robert Keith, Chair maker, North Carolina
Clifford Lucas, Indian dolls, New Mexico
Hazel Miracle, Apple face, corn shuck dolls, Kentucky
Mildred Cleghorn, Indian cloth dolls, Oklahoma
Alice Merryman, Corn shuck dolls, Arkansas
Lila Marshall, Corn shuck dolls, North Carolina
Ann Mitchell, Corn shuck dolls, Maryland
Maisy Coburn, Apple face and Corncob dolls, Arkansas
Mary Bowers, Seminole patchwork, needlework, Florida
Wade Ward and the Buck Mountain Band, mountain sting band, Virginia
Ed Young and family, African American fife and drum group, Mississippi
Bessie Jones and the Georgia Sea Island Singers, shouts, jubilees, spirituals, and ring games, Georgia
The Moving Star Hall Singers, shouts, jubilees, spirituals, and ring games, South Carolina
Yomo Toro Band, Puerto Rican music, New York
Billie and De De Pierce and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, New Orleans jazz, Louisiana
Jimmie Driftwood, Ozark ballad singer, Arkansas
John Papakee, Mesquakie Indian music, Iowa
Grace Papakee, Mesquakie Indian music, Iowa
Almeda Riddle, Ozark ballad singer, Arkansas
Vinice Lejeune Group, Cajun band, Louisiana
John Jackson, Songster and blues singer, Virginia
Libba Cotten, Country guitarist, North Carolina, Washington, D.C.
The Baca Family Band, Czech-American polka music, Texas
Norman Kennedy, Scots ballad singer, Massachusetts
The McGee Brothers with Sid Harkreader, String band, Tennessee
Glenn Ohrlin, Cowboy singer, Arkansas
Young People's Chorus from the Scripture of Church of Christ, gospel, Virginia
Dance
Blue Ridge Mountain Dancers, cloggers, North Carolina
St. Andrews Society Group, Scottish dancing, Washington, D.C.
Glinka Dancers, Russian dance group, New Jersey
McNeff Dancers, Irish dancing with Ceilidh band, New York
Chinese Lion Group, Washington, D.C.
Jochim Koyuk, King Island Eskimo dancer, Alaska
Mrs. Jochim Koyuk, King Island Eskimo dancer, Alaska
Los Gallegos d'Espana, Galician dance, New York
Henry Paterick, square dance caller, Virginia
Maurice Flowers, square dance caller, Maryland
Shared Stewardship of Collections:
The Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage acknowledges and respects the right of artists, performers, Folklife Festival participants, community-based scholars, and knowledge-keepers to collaboratively steward representations of themselves and their intangible cultural heritage in media produced, curated, and distributed by the Center. Making this collection accessible to the public is an ongoing process grounded in the Center's commitment to connecting living people and cultures to the materials this collection represents. To view the Center's full shared stewardship policy, which defines our protocols for addressing collections-related inquiries and concerns, please visit https://doi.org/10.25573/data.21771155.
Related Publications:
The following publications exist in the archive library and can be studied on-site.
Eaton, Allen H., Handicrafts of the Southern Highlands, New York: Russell Sage Foundation, 1937
Jones, Bessie and Bess Lomax Hawes, Step it Down: Games, Plays, Songs, and Stories from the Afro-American Heritage, New York: Harper and Row, 1972.
Kirlin, Katherine S., and Thomas M. Kirlin, Smithsonian Folklife Cookbook, Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Press, 1991
Kurin, Richard, Reflections of a Culture Broker: A View from the Smithsonian, Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Press, 1997
Kurin, Richard, Smithsonian Folklife Festival: Culture Of, By, and For the People, Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution. Center for Folklife Programs and Cultural Studies, 1998
Restrictions:
Access to the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections is by appointment only. Visit our website for more information on scheduling a visit or making a digitization request. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies.
Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
Citation:
Smithsonian Folklife Festival Documentation Collection, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archive and Collection, Smithsonian Institution.
Minimum wage--They moved my job to Georgia--Down too long--The world's unwilling poor--Together we've got pride--Unlucky Kentucky coal miner's blues--We signed up Billy Beaumont--Stand up for your union while you can--John McLaughlin--Silence ain't always so golden
Collection Restrictions:
Access to the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections is by appointment only. Visit our website for more information on scheduling a visit or making a digitization request. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
Collection Citation:
Collector Records business records, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Smithsonian Institution.
Freedmen's Bureau Digital Collection, 1865–1872, is a product of and owned by the National Museum of African American History and Culture, Smithsonian Institution. Copyright for digital images is retained by the donor, FamilySearch International; permission for commercial use of the digital images may be requested from FamilySearch International, Intellectual Property Office, at: cor-intellectualproperty@ldschurch.org.
Collection Citation:
Courtesy of the U. S. National Archives and Records Administration, FamilySearch International, and the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.
