Browse Projects
Delegate Magazine 1971
Founded by Pittsburgh Courier journalist C. Melvin Patrick, each yearly-issue of Delegate contains hundreds of photographs providing coverage of African American professional and fraternal organizations, special events, award recognitions, individuals of note, and newsworthy situations. The magazine was a virtual year in review of African American life in the United States during the 1960s and 1980s. Published by MelPat Associates, Delegate magazines were distributed free of charge by African American organizations at their conferences and meetings. Help us transcribe this issue to make the names, places, and events discoverable to all.
Delegate Magazine 1972
Founded by Pittsburgh Courier journalist C. Melvin Patrick, each yearly-issue of Delegate contains hundreds of photographs providing coverage of African American professional and fraternal organizations, special events, award recognitions, individuals of note, and newsworthy situations. The magazine was a virtual year in review of African American life in the United States during the 1960s and 1980s. Published by MelPat Associates, Delegate magazines were distributed free of charge by African American organizations at their conferences and meetings. Help us transcribe this issue to make the names, places, and events discoverable to all.
William Jones World War II Scrapbook
William Jones was an aerial photographer in the Army Air Corps during World War II. During the occupation of Japan, Jones photographed the atomic bomb damage of both Hiroshima and Nagasaki at low altitude. After his discharge he continued in his photography career, owning and operating a studio, Jones Photos, in Columbia City, Indiana, for over 43 years. PLEASE NOTE: for the maps, images, and photographs in this collection, please simply transcribe words, captions and annotations. Descriptions of the images, photographs, and maps are not required. If you choose to add descriptions, please place them in the notes field with brackets [[image description]] man in hat smiling [[/image description]] etc.
Manila Davis Talley Scrapbook
Manila Davis Talley (1898-1973) soloed in October 1929 and received her pilot's license in April of 1930. She joined Curtis-Wright Corporation as a saleswoman in late 1929 or early 1930. Talley joined the 99s (international association of female pilots) in 1930 and was a founding member of Betsy Ross Corps, a private 1930s female auxiliary/reserve for the Army Air Corps. Talley was the third woman to go through Air Force War College, in December 1966.
Helen C. Rountree Lecture to Anthropological Society of Washington, 1988 October 18-19, Side 2, Helen C. Rountree Papers
This is part one of a lecture given to the Anthropological Society of Washington by Helen Rountree, who was a professor at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia. Rountree studied the history of the Virginia Tribes from the 17th century to the 21st century and is considered a leading expert on Pocahontas. Please be aware that this audio recording is a bit difficult to hear given the poor audio quality. Do the best you can, and reach out anytime for help! Please view the instructions for transcribing audio collections before beginning.
Cleofé Calderón - Brasil 1979, Amazonia #3
The sheer number of specimens agrostologist Cleofé Calderón collected for the Smithsonian, evidenced in this 1979 notebook, make it hard to believe that in just a few years, Calderón completely retired from botany. She remained in Washington after stepping away from the U.S. National Herbarium in 1985, but rarely returned to the Smithsonian, especially after her longtime professional partner Dr. Tom Soderstrom passed away in 1987. After breaking from the field, Calderón worked at a bibliographic service before retiring and returning to Argentina in 2005. Just two years later, she passed away. Your assistance in transcribing this project will ensure that Cleofé Calderón’s important work will not be forgotten. Calderón's handwriting can be a little difficult to read, so feel free to see how volunpeers have transcribed her work.
Smithsonian Memories Project, 1996 – T. Vennum
Ethnomusicologist Tom Vennum helped coordinate the Smithsonian’s annual Folklife Festival for two decades, so it is only appropriate that he was interviewed at the Smithsonian Memories booth at the 1996 festival. As one may assume, the job came with many stresses, but also a lot of laughs. He tells one particularly amusing story about a German-American band that had a few too many drinks at the German Embassy. In the interview, Vennum also discussed his landmark work surrounding Native Americans and lacrosse, among other programs and publications. Join a group of volunpeers in transcribing Vennum’s career bringing music, and other forms of culture, to the Smithsonian.
Deaf Folklore: What is Deaf Folklore? JUN 26 1981
The 1981 Smithsonian Folklife Festival celebrated the skills and traditions of a cultural minority who, despite their large numbers, frequently pass unnoticed: deaf and hard of hearing Americans. In recognition of the International Year of Disabled Persons, deaf participants performed "signlore," told stories emerging from Deaf culture (often with a capital D), and discussed life and experiences growing up deaf. They taught workshops on American Sign Language, displayed homemade devices to substitute for alarm clocks and doorbells, and demonstrated standardized technology such as a TTY, a machine that allows deaf people to make phone calls. Deaf visitors were invited to share jokes, riddles, stories, or puns on videotape with Smithsonian researchers. These recordings were only recently preserved and previously were inaccessible due to their advanced age and format obsolescence. Transcription of their content will provide access- for the first time - to those hard of hearing, and increase our understanding of the history of accessibility in the United States. Please view the instructions for transcribing audio collections before beginning. If you can identify the speakers, please do so using the format {SPEAKER NAME= "____" } if you cannot identify the speakers, please simply indicate when a different individual is speaking by inserting the "Speaker 1," "Speaker 2," etc. tags.
Smithsonian Memories Project, 1996 – C. Booth
Following his retirement from a long military career between 1945 and 1968, Carvester Booth decided to take a vacation. He traveled to Washington, D.C, and went on a sightseeing tour of the Smithsonian museums. And there he remained for the next twenty-two years as a security officer. Booth really loved the Smithsonian. He began working for the National Air and Space Museum in 1976, the day before it opened, and protected various other museums on the National Mall. If you feel like a good listen and laugh, join a group of volunpeers in transcribing Booth’s interview from the 1996 Folklife Festival in which he recounts a typical day of an officer at the Smithsonian.
Jacques Seligmann & Co. records, General Correspondence: Burlington Magazine, 1921-1956
Letters from the General Correspondence subseries of the Jacques Seligmann & Co. records. The Jacques Seligmann & Co. records in the Archives of American Art are among the world's foremost resources for provenance research. The collection documents the business dealings of international art galleries which were active for nearly a century, and contains invaluable information for tracing the provenance of works of art which passed through the Jacques Seligmann & Company holdings.
