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100% Complete
500 Total pages
30 Contributing members
Bernardia, Alchorneopsis, and others - complete
Bernardia is a flowering plant genus in the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, which can be found throughout the world. Common names include, would you believe, mouse's eye or mouse's ear?
Please contact Sylvia Orli, Department of Botany, or tweet us at @sylviaorli @TranscribeSI for any questions or comments about the transcriptions.
100% Complete
102 Total pages
54 Contributing members
Biographical Sketches and Interesting Anecdotes of Persons of Colour. To Which Is Added, a Selection of Pieces in Poetry
Phillis Wheatley Peters (c. 1753 – 1784) was born in West Africa and captured by slave traders as a child, whereupon she was sold to John and Susanna Wheatley of Boston, Massachusetts. She was named after the slave ship on which she was transported to the Americas and the name of her enslavers, but her surname of Peters is that of the man she married in 1778—John Peters, a free man of color. The story of the discovery of her talent by the Wheatley family is oft told—they taught her to read and write, and by age fourteen, she had begun to write poetry that was soon published and circulated amongst the elites of late eighteenth century America and Great Britain. Her first and only volume of poetry, Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral (1773), was published in London with the assistance of wealthy abolitionists. Peters’ poetry brought her renown in abolitionist circles as proof of the humanity of those of African descent and the inhumanity of the institution of slavery. The Wheatleys manumitted Peters in 1773 under pressure from critics who saw the hypocrisy in praising Peters’ talent while keeping her enslaved. They died within a few years of this decision, and Peters soon met and married grocer John Peters. Her life afterwards was indicative of the troubled freedom of African Americans of the period, who were emancipated but not fully integrated into the promise of American citizenship. Peters was also affected by the loss of all three of her children—the birth of the last of whom caused her premature death at age 31 In 1784. Despite being feted as a prodigy while enslaved, the emancipated Peters struggled to find the support necessary for producing a second volume of poetry and her husband’s financial struggles forced her to find work as a scullery maid—the lowest position of domestic help. Posthumous publications of Peters’ poetry in various anthologies and periodicals solidified her image as a child poet for the benefit of abolitionist activism and African American cultural pride in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. In the twenty-first century, the accumulation of this collection is a restoration of Peters the woman and the influence of her poetry and activism today.
Browse projects by National Museum of African American History and Culture
100% Complete
208 Total pages
93 Contributing members
Biographical Sketches and Interesting Anecdotes of Persons of Colour. To Which Is Added, a Selection of Pieces in Poetry, 1838
Phillis Wheatley Peters (c. 1753 – 1784) was born in West Africa and captured by slave traders as a child, whereupon she was sold to John and Susanna Wheatley of Boston, Massachusetts. She was named after the slave ship on which she was transported to the Americas and the name of her enslavers, but her surname of Peters is that of the man she married in 1778—John Peters, a free man of color. The story of the discovery of her talent by the Wheatley family is oft told—they taught her to read and write, and by age fourteen, she had begun to write poetry that was soon published and circulated amongst the elites of late eighteenth century America and Great Britain. Her first and only volume of poetry, Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral (1773), was published in London with the assistance of wealthy abolitionists. Peters’ poetry brought her renown in abolitionist circles as proof of the humanity of those of African descent and the inhumanity of the institution of slavery. The Wheatleys manumitted Peters in 1773 under pressure from critics who saw the hypocrisy in praising Peters’ talent while keeping her enslaved. They died within a few years of this decision, and Peters soon met and married grocer John Peters. Her life afterwards was indicative of the troubled freedom of African Americans of the period, who were emancipated but not fully integrated into the promise of American citizenship. Peters was also affected by the loss of all three of her children—the birth of the last of whom caused her premature death at age 31 In 1784. Despite being feted as a prodigy while enslaved, the emancipated Peters struggled to find the support necessary for producing a second volume of poetry and her husband’s financial struggles forced her to find work as a scullery maid—the lowest position of domestic help. Posthumous publications of Peters’ poetry in various anthologies and periodicals solidified her image as a child poet for the benefit of abolitionist activism and African American cultural pride in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. In the twenty-first century, the accumulation of this collection is a restoration of Peters the woman and the influence of her poetry and activism today.
Browse projects by National Museum of African American History and Culture
100% Complete
14 Total pages
9 Contributing members
Bird Head Drawings, Box 19
How can a hand-drawn image capture the tiny details of a belted kingfisher's feathering? An illustrator's steady hand and eye for detail are essential. And so are systematic standards for colors and color nomenclature. These are drawings from ornithologist Robert Ridgway's personal papers. His color studies and systematic approach for naming species and coloring has influenced zoology in North America and internationally. Help us transcribe this box of drawings using the special instructions under READ MORE.
100% Complete
12 Total pages
9 Contributing members
Birney School Life Newsletter, May 1951
Help transcribe the Birney School Life newsletter. In the newsletter, the students, parents, teachers, and principal share their experiences, which illustrate the community atmosphere fostered at school. Birney school was the first school built with federal funding for African Americans in the Anacostia area of Washington, DC.
100% Complete
19 Total pages
11 Contributing members
Birney School Life Newsletter, May 1952
Help transcribe the Birney School Life newsletter. In the newsletter, the students, parents, teachers, and principal share their experiences, which illustrate the community atmosphere fostered at school. Birney school was the first school built with federal funding for African Americans in the Anacostia area of Washington, DC.
100% Complete
24 Total pages
15 Contributing members
Birney School Life Newsletter, November 1950
Help transcribe the Birney School Life newsletter. In the newsletter, the students, parents, teachers, and principal share their experiences, which illustrate the community atmosphere fostered at school. Birney school was the first school built with federal funding for African Americans in the Anacostia area of Washington, DC.
100% Complete
28 Total pages
8 Contributing members
Birney School Life Newsletter, Undated
Help transcribe the Birney School Life newsletter. In the newsletter, the students, parents, teachers, and principal share their experiences, which illustrate the community atmosphere fostered at school. Birney school was the first school built with federal funding for African Americans in the Anacostia area of Washington, DC.
100% Complete
3 Total pages
3 Contributing members
Birthday Card to Robert Fractious from Blanche Queen, May 9, 1940
Over one hundred personal letters describe the experiences of the Fractious Family of Washington, D.C. The family descends from William and Lucy Fractious, who came to the District of Columbia during the Civil War and acquired land in the Barry Farm development, where the Freedmen’s Bureau sold lots to formerly enslaved men and women. The correspondence was written primarily by Blanche Queen to her future husband, Robert Fractious, during World War II. It describes their romance, Robert’s time overseas as part of the war effort, everyday life in Washington, D.C., and personal reactions to political events. Help us discover more about the experiences, thoughts and feelings of this African American family by transcribing these letters.
100% Complete
20 Total pages
42 Contributing members
Black American Cinema: Images of a Culture Series , January 03, 1988, Side 1
Please view the <a href="https://transcription.si.edu/audioinstructions">instructions for transcribing audio collections before beginning</a>. Pearl Bowser (b. 1931) is a renowned African American film scholar, filmmaker, author, and film/conference programmer. She is widely recognized as an expert on the works of Oscar Micheaux, who is considered the first major African American filmmaker. Working as a researcher from the 1960s through the early 2000s, Bowser travelled the world interviewing actors, actresses, filmmakers, and scholars, including Lorenzo Tucker, Gordon Parks, Arthur Jafa, Edna Mae Harris, Toni Cade Bambara, and many others. As a programmer (1971-2012), she organized conferences and film festivals that focused on the rich, yet often obscure, history of African Americans in film. The audio in this project is from unique recordings of the interviews, conferences, and film festivals captured by Pearl Bowser. Some of the recordings may have lower quality and require close attention to understand the content, and some speakers may not be identified, or the recordings may not include the beginning of their remarks. If a speaker cannot be identified either by context in the recording or by notes from the project team, please list them as “unidentified speaker” in the transcription. Some of the recordings may contain sensitive or offensive language. For historical accuracy, our policy is to transcribe the language as it is presented in the recordings. See TC’s FAQ <a href="https://transcription.si.edu/FAQs">page</a> for more information on transcribing sensitive language. All recordings are in the English language. The transcriptions created by TC volunteers will be used to make these unique and important recordings accessible to researchers, scholars, and the general public.
Browse projects by National Museum of African American History and Culture
100% Complete
2 Total pages
8 Contributing members
Black American Cinema: Images of a Culture Series , January 03, 1988, Side 2
Please view the instructions for transcribing audio collections before beginning. Pearl Bowser (b. 1931) is a renowned African American film scholar, filmmaker, author, and film/conference programmer. She is widely recognized as an expert on the works of Oscar Micheaux, who is considered the first major African American filmmaker. Working as a researcher from the 1960s through the early 2000s, Bowser travelled the world interviewing actors, actresses, filmmakers, and scholars, including Lorenzo Tucker, Gordon Parks, Arthur Jafa, Edna Mae Harris, Toni Cade Bambara, and many others. As a programmer (1971-2012), she organized conferences and film festivals that focused on the rich, yet often obscure, history of African Americans in film. The audio in this project is from unique recordings of the interviews, conferences, and film festivals captured by Pearl Bowser. Some of the recordings may have lower quality and require close attention to understand the content, and some speakers may not be identified, or the recordings may not include the beginning of their remarks. If a speaker cannot be identified either by context in the recording or by notes from the project team, please list them as “unidentified speaker” in the transcription. Some of the recordings may contain sensitive or offensive language. For historical accuracy, our policy is to transcribe the language as it is presented in the recordings. See TC’s FAQ page for more information on transcribing sensitive language. All recordings are in the English language. The transcriptions created by TC volunteers will be used to make these unique and important recordings accessible to researchers, scholars, and the general public.
Browse projects by National Museum of African American History and Culture
100% Complete
17 Total pages
23 Contributing members
Black Expressive Culture Narrative Stage: Arlene Mills Ultrasound; Groove Phi Groove
The 1984 Folklife Festival included a program of black American expressive culture from Philadelphia as part of an initiative to showcase the African Diaspora in America. Black America began its move to the city because of a desperate need for change; as rural southern communities remained too restricting an experience due to racism, economic, social, and political repressions, some people had to leave. In northern cities such as Philadelphia, vibrant black communities took root and thrived. As part of its narrative portion, the programming featured artists, musicians, rappers, and others explaining their craft as well as the cultural roots behind it. The culture of American cities, as presented a the 1984 Philadelphia program, echoed the fact that urban America is also black urban America, a powerful, rich, evolving source of cultural life and creativity. Please view the instructions for transcribing audio collections before beginning. For more information about the programs in these recordings, please look at the audio log sheets describing the content and speakers at each presentation.
Browse projects by Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections
