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American Folklore Society records

 Collection
Identifier: UUS_COLL MSS 206

Scope and Contents

Correspondence, memorandums, financial records, membership records, meeting agendas, conferences, notes, questionnaires, surveys, election records, bylaws, applications, grants, committee records, and affiliate records generated by the administrative offices of the American Folklore Society. Records will be transferred continually to this archive from the AFS offices as they become inactive. The materials are divided into series according to function. The series within this archive include Historical Records, Secretary/Treasurer, Presidents Papers, Affiliates, Centennial Coordinating Committee, Philadelphia Folklore Project, Committees, Constitution, Executive Board, Meetings, Publications, Misc. Publications, and Sections. These series are further divided into sub-series. The archive spans the years 1890 to 2017.

  1. Officers and Editors
  2. Secretary/Treasurers
  3. 1942 D. S. Davidson
  4. 1943-1960 MacEdward Leach
  5. 1961-1965 Tristram P. Coffin
  6. 1966-1972 Kenneth S. Goldstein
  7. 1973-1976 Richard Bauman
  8. 1977-1981 David J. Hufford
  9. 1982-1986 Charles Camp
  10. 1987-1991 Timothy Lloyd
  11. 1992-2000 Shalom Staub
  1. Executive Director
  2. 2001- Timothy Lloyd
  1. Presidents
  2. 1942 Harold W. Thompson
  3. 1943 Gladys A. Reichard
  4. 1944 Benjamin B. Botkin
  5. 1945 Melville J. Herskovits
  6. 1946-1947 Joseph M. Carrière
  7. 1948 Erminie W. Voegelin
  8. 1949 Thelma G. James
  9. 1950 A. H. Gayton
  10. 1951-1952 Francis Lee Utley
  11. 1953-1954 William R. Bascom
  12. 1955-1956 Herbert Halpert
  13. 1957-1958 Wayland D. Hand
  14. 1959-1960 William N. Fenton
  15. 1961-1962 MacEdward Leach
  16. 1963-1964 Melville Jacobs
  17. 1965-1966 Samuel P. Bayard
  18. 1967-1968 Richard Dorson
  19. 1969-1970 Daniel J. Crowley
  20. 1971-1972 D.K. Wilgus
  21. 1973-1974 Dell Hymes
  22. 1975-1976 Kenneth S. Goldstein
  23. 1977 Ellen Stekert
  24. 1978 J. Barre Toelken
  25. 1979 Roger D. Abrahams
  26. 1980 Alan Dundes
  27. 1981 Don Yoder
  28. 1982 Linda Dégh
  29. 1983 W.F.H. Nicolaisen
  30. 1984 Bruce Jackson
  31. 1985 Jan Harold Brunvand
  32. 1986 Rayna Green
  33. 1987 Judith McCulloh
  34. 1988 Alan Jabbour
  35. 1989-1990 Henry Glassie
  36. 1991-1992 Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett
  37. 1993-1994 Sylvia Grider
  38. 1995-1996 Jane Beck
  39. 1997-1998 John Roberts
  40. 1999-2000 Jo Radner
  41. 2001 Peggy Bulger
  42. 2002-2003 Jack Santino
  43. 2004-2005 Michael Owen Jones
  44. 2006-2007 Bill Ivey
  45. 2008-2009 Elaine Lawless
  46. 2010-2011 C. Kurt Dewhurst
  47. 2011-2012 Diane Goldstein
  1. Journal of American Folklore Editors
  2. 1888-1899 (volumes 1-12) William Wells Newell
  3. 1900-1907 (volumes 13-20) Alexander F. Chamberlain
  4. 1908-1924 (volumes 21-37) Franz Boaz
  5. 1925-1939 (volumes 38-52) Ruth Benedict
  6. 1940 (volume 53) Gladys A. Reichard
  7. 1941 (volume 54) Archer Taylor
  8. 1942-1946 (volumes 55-59) Ermine Wheeler-Voegelin
  9. 1947-1951 (volumes 60-64) Wayland D. Hand
  10. 1952-1953 (volumes 65-66) Katherine Luomala
  11. 1954-1958 (volumes 67-71) Thomas A. Sebeok
  12. 1959-1963 (volumes 72-76) Richard M. Dorson
  13. 1964-1968 (volumes 77-81) John Greenway
  14. 1969-1973 (volumes 82-86) Americo Pardes
  15. 1974-1976 (volumes 86-89) J. Barre Toelken
  16. 1976-1980 (volumes 90-94) Jan Harold Brunvand
  17. 1981-1985 (volumes 94-98) Richard Bauman
  18. 1986-1990 (volumes 99-103) Bruce Jackson
  19. 1991-1995 (volumes 104-108) Burt Feintuch
  20. 1996-2000 (volumes 109-113) Jack Santino
  21. 2001-2006 (volumess 114-volume 419 No. 471 ) Elaine J. Lawless
  22. 2006-2010 (volume 419 No. 472-volume 123 No. 490 ) Harris M. Berger and Giovanna P. Del Negro
  23. 2011-2015 (volume 124 No. 491 - ) Thomas A. DuBois and James P. Leary

Dates

  • 1890-2017

Language of Materials

Collection materials are in English.

Restrictions

Open to public research.

Copyright

It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances.

Permission to publish material from the American Folklore Society records must be obtained from the Special Collections and Archives manuscript curator and/or the Special Collections and Archives department head.

Historical Note

by Shalom D. Staub

The American Folklore Society is a scholarly association that exists to further the discipline of folklore studies. The society was founded in Boston in 1888 by such luminaries as Francis James Child, William Wells Newell, Daniel Garrison Brinton, and Franz Boas, with its principal emphasis directed toward the publication of a scientific journal and the convening of an annual meeting.

Generations of scholarly theories and approaches are reflected in the society's publications, revealing the sometimes partisan leanings of its members toward folklore as literature or folklore as a subfield of anthropology. The Journal of American Folklore (JAF) has been published quarterly since 1888. It includes articles, notes, and commentaries; reviews of publications, films and videotapes, audio recordings, and exhibitions and events; and obituaries. The Centennial Index (1988; vol. 101, no 402 of JAF) provides a serial listing of all Journal entries from 1888 to 1988, with author, title, and subject indexes.

Additional publications of the society include a Memoir Series of book-length monographs (1894-1975), a Bibliographical and Special Series (1950-1978), and a New Series (1980-). Titles in the New Series, judged by a publications series editor and outside readers to be outstanding in the field, are issued with the imprimatur of the American Folklore Society through various university presses.

The American Folklore Society Newsletter has been published bimonthly since 1971. This publication carries official news and reports of the society's business, as well as a wide range of information relevant to the field generally. Regular features include listings of academic meetings, publication news, job notices, grant announcements, a cooperation column, prizes, and information on electronic media. Special features include columns on computer applications in folklore study, career opportunities, the status of funding for folklore in federal agencies, and folklore studies outside the United States. The preliminary program of each year's annual meeting is published in the August issue of the Newsletter.

In recent years, the society has moved beyond the early dichotomy between literary and anthropological folklorists working in academic settings and those working in the public sector, a term broadly applied to folklorists. It provides a common forum for folklorists working in nonacademic positions such as federal, state, and local government agencies (such as arts or humanities funding agencies) or private non-profit organizations (such as museums or historical organizations). The need to bridge the academic and public sectors has prompted the society to sponsor an annual public-sector internship for a graduate student to gain experience working in a public-sector agency and a public-folklorist-in-residence program, which places experienced public folklorists in an academic setting to pursue individual research and interact with faculty and students. The residency program was developed in cooperation with Indiana University's Folklore Institute. Subsequent partners for this residency program have been Utah State University and Western Kentucky University.

The society's annual meeting takes place in October in cities throughout the continental United States and occasionally Canada. The five-day gathering offers panels, forums and workshops, film and video screenings, book exhibitions, special events, and tours of folklorist interest. The society offers several prizes to honor outstanding work in African American folklore studies, public folklore, and Francophone folklore studies. Additionally, sections of the AFS, which are interest groups of society members, offer separate prizes. In 1995, there were approximately thirty such sections, addressing folklore genres (such as dance, folk arts, folk belief, folk narrative, foodways, and music), folklore of particular folk groups (such as African, American Indian, Baltic, British, Catholic, children, gay and lesbian, Italian, Jewish, Latino, occupational, and women), and professional issues (such as computer applications, graduate students, journals, social justice, and public programs). Sections meet at the annual meeting. Many of them sponsor sessions, offer prizes, and issue newsletters or journals of their own. Several sections maintain electronic bulletin boards, as does the society itself, available via a gopher at the University of Texas-Pan American.

The American Folklore Society is governed by an executive board composed of nine members plus the president and the president-elect, as set forth in the society's by-laws. An executive secretary-treasurer is responsible for the day-to-day administration of the society's business. The society's papers and records are archived at Utah State University's Library, Special Collections Division. These archives are indexed and are accessible for research.

Additional information about the society can be obtained by contacting the American Folklore Society, 4350 North Fairfax Drive, Suite 640, Arlington, VA 22203.

(From American Folklore: An Encyclopedia, edited by Jan Harold Brunvand. New York: Garland Publishing, Inc. 1996)

Extent

345 boxes (166.5 linear feet)

Abstract

Correspondence, memorandums, financial records, membership records, meeting agendas, conferences, notes, questionnaires, surveys, election records, bylaws, applications, grants, committee records, and affiliate records generated by the administrative offices of the AFS.

Arrangement

Organized into the following series: I. Historical records; II. Secretary/Treasurer; III. President's papers; IV. Affiliates; V. Centennial Coordinating Committee; VI. Philadelphia Folklore Project; VII. Committees; VIII. Constitution; IX. Executive Board; X. Meetings; XI. Publications; XII. Misc. Publications; XIII. Sections. These series are further divided into sub-series.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

In 1991, the Executive Board of the American Folklore Society selected Utah State University as the official repository for its papers. The decision to place the AFS papers at USU was based in part on the university's central location to major U.S. folklore programs, the national reputation of the school's own folklore program, and the library's commitment to maintaining and providing access to the collection. The Society's collection, dating from 1890, continues to receive regular additions from current AFS officers and section heads. The AFS collection is divided into two parts: a manuscript collection (MSS COLL 206) and a published collection containing the Journal of American Folklore and the AFS book series (FOLK COLL 18).

Related Materials

Fife Folklore Archives (FOLK COLL 18).

Title
Guide to the American Folklore Society records 1890-2017
Author
Finding aid created by Special Collections and Archives.
Date
©2008
Description rules
Finding Aid Based On Dacs (Describing Archives: A Content Standard)
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding guide is in English in Latin script.
Sponsor
Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) grant, 2007-2008

Revision Statements

  • August 8, 2008: Template information was updated to reflect Utah Manuscript Association best practices.
  • 2009: Template information was updated to reflect Archives West best practice guidelines.
  • June 18, 2012: Finding aid updated by Andrew Izatt to include new accessions.

Repository Details

Part of the Utah State University, Merrill-Cazier Library, Special Collections & Archives Repository

Contact:
Merrill-Cazier Library
Utah State University
3000 Old Main Hill
Logan Utah 84322-3000 United States
435 797-8248
435 797-2880 (Fax)