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Archive: 2017 (114 Posts)

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

A Few Examples of Dads’ Traditions

Posted by: Stephanie Hall

A celebration of fathers and fatherhood took a long time to be established as a nation-wide observance.  Mother’s Day was being locally observed as it was being promoted in the 19th and early 20th century, and became a regular holiday in May in 1914 by presidential proclamation. Father’s Day was locally celebrated around the country …

A man on a horse, accompanied by the caption "'General' Harrison at the Grand Canyon."

“Oh, Mama”: A Mother’s Love and the Murder Ballad “Batson”

Posted by: Stephen Winick

Note: This is the first in a series of posts about the murder ballad “Batson.” This one discusses previously unpublished versions of the song from manuscript collections at AFC. The ballad “Batson,” collected by John and Alan Lomax from Wilson Jones (whose nickname was “Stavin’ Chain”) and two accompanists, has long been a well-known and …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

Gallery Talk: Immigrant Voices of the Veterans History Project

Posted by: Lisa Taylor

The following is a guest post by Owen Rogers, liaison specialist for the Veterans History Project (VHP). Library of Congress specialists often give presentations about ongoing Library exhibitions. This post, a version of which also appears on the Library of Congress Blog, relates to the exhibition, “Echoes of the Great War: American Experiences of World War …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

“People Who Stood Up”: Mississippi Women in the Civil Rights Movement

Posted by: Guha Shankar

This guest blog post comes to us courtesy of Catherine Turner, a high school senior working at the American Folklife Center this Spring on her service project for Park School in Baltimore, MD. Catherine is entering Brown University in Fall 2017, and has spent the last six weeks diving into the collections at the Library …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

American Folklife Center Fellowships and Awards 2017

Posted by: Stephen Winick

The American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress is pleased to announce the recipients of its fellowships and awards for 2017. This year, AFC awarded support to six researchers or teams. To find out how to apply for next year’s awards, please visit our research awards page at this link. Details about this year’s recipients …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

VHP: Missing The Stories

Posted by: Lisa Taylor

The following is a guest blog post by Hope O’Keeffe, an attorney in the Library’s Office of General Counsel, and an ardent supporter of the Veterans History Project (VHP). I come from a long line of heroes. They may be gone, but their stories linger and echo. My grandfather, John McLaughlin, never told us war …