D.H. Ramsey Library Special Collections


Oral History Collections
[skip to Index of names, or view collection descriptions below]

The Special Collections oral histories contain a wealth of local history and cultural information on Asheville and the Western North Carolina region. Beginning with two major oral history collections, the Southern Highlands Research Center Oral History collection and the Voices of Asheville Project, Special Collections is now the repository of at least nine different oral history projects, each ranging from four or five interviews to over two hundred interviews. The first two collections cover a broad range of topics on the general history of Asheville and the surrounding area from the early twentieth century up until the brink of the twenty-first century. Recurrent themes involve: city and county development issues, segregation and integration of Asheville schools, private education in the region, the diversity of religions throughout the area, changes in farming and subsistence strategies, and the histories of various families and organizations that impacted western North Carolina.

Southern Highlands Research Center Oral History Collection (SHRC)

The first of these two collections, the Southern Highlands Research Center Oral History Collection (SHRC), contains oral histories taken by Dr. Louis D. Silveri and by Dr. Bruce Greenawalt. Both of these historians focused on interviews collected in and around Asheville and Western North Carolina during the fifteen years from 1977 to 1992. As a visiting scholar, Dr. Silveri collected over 180 hours of audio from architects, doctors, farmers, manufacturers, administrators, business owners, educators, and pivotal personalities. The Southern Highlands Research Center staff transcribed many of the tapes from the Louis Silveri Oral History Collection and these will be made available when time permits the translation to digital format. Until then, the transcripts can be viewed or copied, if permitted, here in the Special Collections reading room area. Dr. Silveri's wife has since donated a significant portion of her husband's personal library to Ramsey. Her contribution provides further study for researchers examining the Southern Highlands Research Center interviews and enriches the historical knowledge of the region.

Voices of Asheville Project (VOA)

The second oral history collection mentioned, known as the Voices of Asheville Project (VOA), was collected by Dorothy Joynes from 1992-1998. As a recent transplant to the area, Mrs. Joynes set out to gain information regarding the history and complexity of the region and its people. Initiated and completed at her own expense, the Joynes collection of over 250 tapes contains cultural and historical material, as well as attitudinal studies that cross class, race, and generations. Thirteen percent of the interviews were conducted with African Americans in the Asheville community (there are also interviews with African American residents in the SHRC and SACC collections). The interviews have been summarized but are not transcribed. The available abstracts are listed in the INDEX below. 

Like the Southern Highlands Research Center interviews, the Voices of Asheville Project contributes to the knowledge of Asheville and the surrounding area especially during the formative years from approximately the First World War to the revitalization of downtown Asheville. The interviews give background history of the Golden Age of the Vanderbilts, the tuberculosis sanitarium era, the Grove Park Inn, Battery Park Hotel, and Grove Arcade. Just as importantly, the project also discusses the varieties of methods residents used to cover the fundamentals of everyday existence in an American town. It addresses education, subsistence, local economic demands, the founding of various religious institutions, and important community issues and how they changed throughout the decades. With discussion of the Great  Depression, World War II, the Korean and Vietnam Wars, and many other significant periods of national history, interviews reflect the state of the local cultures in relation to the national culture. 

Ramsey Library Special Collections  (RLSC)

In recent times, Ramsey Library Special Collections  (RLSC) has begun to gather oral histories on a variety of topics including local medical history, local arts and crafts, and other topics of interest to the community. These interviews are completed in the spirit of the Dorothy Joynes, Dr. Bruce Greenawalt, and Dr. Louis Silveri, whose diligent work showed the value in examining and documenting not only historic events but how people internalize, act upon, and contribute to events.

South Asheville Colored Cemetery (1840-1943) (SACC)

Over the past few years, the repository has also received interview projects on more specific topics. In 1990, we received the a small collection, South Asheville Colored Cemetery (1840-1943) (SACC). This valuable collection of oral histories relates the histories of families and individuals who are buried in the cemetery. What began as a slave cemetery with rocks as markers over time became the place where African American families in Asheville buried their deceased friends and relatives. A large amount of the graves are unidentified, although the interviews shed light on some of the graves and on the use of the cemetery in general. Transcriptions are available for a limited number of the oral histories. Unfortunately, this collection is restricted and is only available for use in the Special Collections reading room.

Documenting Jewish History in Western North Carolina
Multiple Collections

Asheville and Western North Carolina has a strong and thriving Jewish heritage. With a visit to Riverside Cemetery, another historic cemetery in Buncombe County, though better documented than the South Asheville Colored Cemetery, one can instantly gain a sense of the long lineage of Jewish families in the Asheville area. Until recently, little research was completed regarding these families. Through the exhausting efforts of three organizations, The Center for Diversity Education, History @ Hand, and the Center for Jewish Studies at UNCA, not to mention the steadfast contributions of local residents, Special Collections now contains a rich body of material which incorporates Jewish heritage into the larger schema  of Western North Carolina history.

Jewish Businesses in Western North Carolina (JBWNC) is a collection of interviews compiled by Sharon Fahrer and Jan Schochet of History @ Hand which discusses Jewish owned businesses in downtown Asheville from 1880 to 1990. The collection provides vital information about downtown Asheville during both its formative and revitalization periods and can be used in conjunction with the recent digitization project "Asheville's Built Environment" and with the more recent Julian Price Papers to gain a deeper chronological and cultural understanding of downtown and its relation to the greater Buncombe County area. Sharon Fahrer and Jan Schochet also contributed to the Jewish Heritage in Western North Carolina (JHWNC) oral history collection, which is an amalgamation of interviews by David Schulman and History @ Hand. Interviews engage in discussion about general regional history and Asheville's Jewish cultural history. There are also a set of interviews on remembering Sidney Schochet. At this time, the Jewish Heritage in Western North Carolina collection is restriction along with section of Jewish Business in Western North Carolina. However, certain interviews may be viewed in Special Collections, and unrestricted interviews with soon be posted online on the Jewish Businesses in Western North Carolina finding aid.

Through the efforts of the Center for Diversity Education, Special Collections holds a collection of summaries of oral histories taken from local survivors of the Holocaust. The collection, entitled Choosing to Remember: From the Shoah to the Mountains (SHOAH) was originally used by the Center for a traveling exhibit that was displayed in local public middle and high schools. Through the work of Special Collections intern Don Chalfant, the collection is now available online in its entirety.

World War II: Mountain Memories (WWII)

In November of  2006, the Center for Diversity Education donated a collection of oral histories which recounts the experiences of local soldiers who fought in World War II. Entitled World War II: Mountain Memories (WWII), it consists of 112 interviews and roughly two hundred photographs. A few of the names in this collection overlap with those found in the Jewish Heritage of Western North Carolina oral histories. Researchers will benefit by examining both collections.

The Sandy Mush Chronicles (SMC)

For those interested in regional studies, the Sandy Mush Chronicles (SMC) is a collection of seventeen interviews from residents of Sandy Mush, a small rural community located in Leicester, North Carolina. Sandy Mush was made famous when local residents protested the reallocation of the area as a nuclear waste dump. Interviews discuss the changing methods of farming, the homeplace, and molasses making. A highlight of the collection occurs with James Hannah's description of the community quilt, which documents the history of the region. The collection provides a potent seed for future ethnographic work in Southern Appalachian rural communities, tobacco barns and cultural landscape, environmental racism, folklore, and rural Appalachian religion, to name a few.

YWCA of Asheville 100 Years Oral History Project

In preparation for the YWCA of Asheville's 100 year celebration, YWCA volunteers, UNC Asheville faculty, and history students interviewed longstanding members of the YWCA community and the YWCA Boosters Club: Sarah Glasgow, Pat Laurson, Earlene McQueen, and Mary Parker. These interviews serve the same functions as interviews in the Voices of Asheville Collection and in fact compliment existing interviews with other YWCA members Thelma Caldwell, Margaret Fuller, and Florence Ryan. Through the experiences of these women, the researcher will obtain information not only on the history of the YWCA but on the greater Asheville community over the last century. The collection promises to be a valuable resource for women's local history and social history. Although it began with interviews from four women, the collection is expected to grow as more interviews are compiled.

Ongoing Efforts

The Ramsey Library oral history repository continues to grow as local residents gain an interest in either gathering oral histories or contributing their stories to the ongoing narrative of the region. As we try to make these collections available online, the process of  transcribing many of the tapes has only just begun. Meanwhile, we are also working with mp3s to add an audio component to the finding aids. Special Collections has a number of volunteers that work with the archive throughout the year. As we continue to process these oral history collections, additional information will be added to this site and its accompanying finding aids.

 

 

INDEX of ORAL HISTORIES

COMPREHENSIVE ALPHABETICAL LIST
NAME COLLECTION TRANSCRIBED
Aiken, Juanita VOA Abstract
Allison, Daintry SHRC Transcript
Anders, Stafford RLSC In processing
Anderson, Leslie VOA Abstract
Andrews, Ernest A. (Andy) WWII Abstract
Ashe, Walter Frances  WWII Abstract
Ashe, Walter F.  RLSC In processing
Atkinson, Luke VOA Abstract
Ayers, J. Wilson SHRC Transcript
Bailey, Jesse James SHRC Transcript
Baker, Henry WWII Abstract
Baker, Ronald Lloyd SHRC Transcript
Ball, Ewart III VOA Abstract
Ball, Louise SMC Transcript
Balogh, Kathleen (see Troutner, Lynn) VOA Abstract
Barber, Jody Sr. SHRC Partial transcript
Barnard, Reba SHRC Restricted
Baxter, John SHRC Transcript
Benninga, Helen JHWNC Restricted
Benomran, Yousef VOA Abstract
Berdie, John WWII Abstract
Best, John VOA Abstract
Bingham, Jane Raoul VOA Abstract
Black, Reverend James H. SHRC Transcript
Black, Lois SMC Transcript
Blue, Irvin WWII none
Boland, Walter VOA Abstract
Bolden, Annie Mae SACC Partial transcript
Bolinder, Robert Gordon WWII Abstract
Bowman, Kathy (see Pless, Paul Jr.) VOA Abstract
Boyce, John S., Jr. VOA Abstract
Branson, Captain Robert and Louise VOA Abstract
Branson, Vernon WWII Abstract
Brewer, Benjamin [Reverend] SACC Partial transcript
Brewer, Doris RLSC none
Brewer, Doris VOA Abstract
Brewer, Rosa Gordon SACC Partial transcript
Bridges, John A. VOA Abstract
Briggs, Stanley VOA Abstract
Brinkley, Patricia VOA Abstract
Brown, Charles VOA Abstract
Brown, Kenneth RLSC none
Brown, Merton (see Lunsford daughters) VOA Abstract
Brunk, Robert VOA Abstract
Buchanan, Charles VOA Abstract
Buchanan, Gerald WWII none
Buchanan, John O. "Buck" and Janet VOA Abstract
Buchanan, Robert and Barbara VOA Abstract
Bufflap, Carl A. WWII Abstract
Burgan, Ethel SACC Partial transcript
Buck, Lewis and Porge VOA Abstract
Bunn, Robert D. VOA Abstract
Burgin, Robert RLSC In processing
Caccavale, Mary WWII Abstract
Caccavale, Philip J. WWII Abstract
Caldwell, E. Thelma VOA Abstract
Caldwell, Wayne RLSC Abstract
Calhoun, Walker WWII none
Calloway, Margaret VOA Abstract
Camblos, Ruth H. VOA Abstract
Cannon, William Maurice WWII Abstract
Carringer, Wayne WWII Transcript
Carter, Garrett VOA Abstract
Carter, Marguerite VOA Abstract
Carter, Ted and Elizabeth VOA Abstract
Case, Ralph WWII Abstract
Caylor, Henrietta WWII Transcript
Chatfield, Gene WWII none
Chepriss, Harry SHRC Transcript
Chiles, John and Anne VOA Abstract
Chiltosky, Mary SHRC Transcript
Clarke, Ellen VOA Abstract
Clarke, James and Elspeth VOA Abstract
Cline, Rev. Billy VOA Abstract
Cocke, Lucille Hannah SMC Restricted
Cogburn, Annie Reel VOA Abstract
Coggins, George B. VOA Abstract
Coggins, Margo Beach VOA Abstract
Colijn, Hendrik WWII/SHOA Abstract
Collington, Hazel VOA Abstract
Colton, Henry Elliot WWII Transcript
Colton, Marie Waters WWII Transcript
Colton, Henry and Marie VOA Abstract
Cook, Irene SMC Transcript
Cook, Larry SMC Transcript
Cort, John VOA Abstract
Coxe, Frank SHRC Transcript
Crabbe, Richard WWII Restricted
Cragnolin, Karen VOA Abstract
Craig, Jane VOA Abstract
Crawford, Rev. Lonnie SHRC No Transcript
Crawford, William Nielly WWII Transcript
Creasman, Hugh SHRC Transcript
Cress, John Frederick WWII Transcript
Crouch, Phillip VOA Abstract
Culbreath, Herman Kennith WWII Abstract
Cummings, Jeanne VOA Abstract
Daugherty, Robert VOA Abstract
Dave, Hyman JBWNC Video only
Dave, Hyman VOA Abstract
Davidson, Hardy SHRC Transcript
Davis, Hattie Caldwell SMC Restricted
Davis, L, Dr. [includes presentations on Black Heritage in WNC for the YMI by Dr. Davis, Victoria Carey, and Oralene Simmons] SHRC Restricted
Derrough, Roger Jr. VOA Abstract
Dixon, Lindsay WWII Restricted
Dowdle, Margaret VOA Abstract
Duckett, Mabel SMC Audio is restricted
Duckett, William SMC Audio is restricted
Duckworth, William and Mary VOA Abstract
Dunton, Joan Davis WWII Abstract
Edmonds family VOA Abstract
Edwinn, Frank WWII Abstract
Eller, Sarah Ann RLSC Restricted
Ellis, Helga Robertson WWII  
Ensley, Margaret Rose WWII Abstract
Feldman, Sidney WWII Abstract
Feldstein, Rubin SHOAH Abstract
Ferguson, Faye SMC Transcript
Finkelstein, Leo JHWNC Restricted
Finkelstein, Leo VOA Abstract
Fisher, Charles (see Thomas, Col. Alfred) VOA Abstract
Fishman, Sylvia JHWNC Restricted
Fletcher, Beale and Peggy VOA Abstract
Fobes, Jeff VOA Abstract
Fortune, Robert G., Jr. SHRC Transcript
Foster, Denise VOA Abstract
Fox, Ester Ruth Schandler JBWNC Transcript
Fox, Morris WWII Abstract
Frank, Mary Lloyd VOA Abstract
Fuller, Margaret VOA Abstract
Gaddy, Tammy Taylor (see Sluder, Charles) VOA Abstract
Gaines, Henry Irven SHRC Transcript
Galbreath, John WWII Transcript
Garland, John and Elizabeth VOA Abstract
Gaston, Dorothy SHRC Transcript
Gaunt, Mary Jean WWII  
Gennett, Andrew WWII Abstract
Gibbs, Roy B. VOA Abstract
Gibson, George SACC Partial transcript
Giezentanner, Doris VOA Abstract
Gillespie, Bill, Rev. SMC Transcript
Ginn, Stark Flaver, Jr. WWII none
Glasgow, Sarah YWCA Transcript
Golden, Betty Pollock JBWNC Transcript
Golden, Stan JBWNC Transcript
Goldstein, Sarah JHWNC Restricted
Gomez, Gail VOA Abstract
Gordon, Laura VOA Abstract
Gray, Barney WWII Abstract
Green, Otis RLSC none
Greenawald, Nellie (see Lunsford daughters) VOA Abstract
Greenlee, Tyrone (see O.T. Tomes) VOA Abstract
Griffin, O.D. "Lacy" VOA Abstract
Griffin, Robert VOA Abstract
Griffin, Richard WWII none
Griffin, William (Bill) WWII Abstract
Gudger, Albert WWII none
Habel, Yvonne "Bonnie" VOA Abstract
Hadley, Lynn (see Lunsford daughters) VOA Abstract
Haith, Lacy and Harriett VOA Abstract
Hall, Barbara and Garrison WWII  
Hamblen, Lyons Alexander WWII Abstract
Hamilton, James and Virginia VOA Abstract
Hannah, James R. SMC Transcript
Hardy, Forest SACC Partial transcript
Harger, Eone G. VOA Abstract
Harrell, Betty "Chris" VOA Abstract
Harrison, Lucy Mae VOA Abstract
Harshaw, Lou VOA Abstract
Harshaw, Lou WWII  
Haynes, Harvey VOA Abstract
Hearn, James VOA Abstract
Hensley, Chester VOA Abstract
Herring, Lucy SHRC Transcript
Herron, Jo (see Lunsford daughters) VOA Abstract
Hessler, Charles (see Hearn, James) VOA Abstract
Hicks, Frank G. WWII Transcript
Highsmith, Allene VOA Abstract
Hilbert, George WWII Abstract
Hill, Donald (see Collington, Hazel) VOA Abstract
Hollifield, James and Edna VOA Abstract
Holmes, Carrie Lucille (see Brewer, Doris) VOA Abstract
Holt, Dr. John SHRC Transcript
Holt, Lawrence VOA Abstract
Honeycutt, Bonnell VOA Abstract
Howald, Dorothy Snell SHRC Transcript
Howald, Dr. Thomas SHRC Transcript
Hoyle, Jack Vernon WWII Transcript
Hoyle, James W. (Red) Sr. VOA Abstract
Huff, Jesse VOA Abstract
Huff, Olson. M.D. RLSC In processing
Huff, Wade VOA Abstract
Hunter, Benjamin R. SHRC Transcript
Hussey, William and Dorothy VOA Abstract
Hyde, Mary VOA Abstract
Iddings, Nanine (see also Ryan, Florence) VOA Abstract
Ingle, Lucius "Craggy" and Esta VOA Abstract
Jackson, Dorothy VOA Abstract
Jackson, Elizabeth (see Maxwell, Marjorie) VOA Abstract
Jackson, Mary Elizabeth VOA Abstract not for
publication
Jarrel, Tommy [includes music recording with Chester MacMillian and Steve Roberts] SHRC In processing
Jarret, Ned NASCAR In processing
Jarrett, Richard SHRC Transcript
Jervis, John SHRC Transcript
Jewitt, Richard Lee WWII Abstract
Johnson, John VOA Abstract
Johnson, P. Greer VOA Abstract
Johnson, William WWII Abstract/Log
Jones, Candler SMC Transcript
Jones, Gwynn SHRC Transcript
Jones, Mary (see Gwynn Jones) SHRC Transcript
Jones, Minnie VOA Abstract
Joyner, Joseph RLSC In processing
Joynes, Dorothy VOA Abstract
Justice, William S., M.D. SHRC Transcript
Karpen, Morris and Leah VOA Abstract
Katen, Joe WWII Transcript
Katz, Robert JHWNC Restricted
Keleher, Barbara VOA Abstract
Keleher, Dr. Michael VOA Abstract
Kell, Miriam JBWNC Restricted
King, Beulah WWII Abstract
King, Marie Halbert SHRC Transcript
Kirkpatrick, Craig WWII  
Kisiah, Ray VOA Abstract
Kouns, Grace VOA Abstract
Kreamer, Walter H. WWII Abstract
Lawrence, Betty Tenn VOA Restricted
Lamb, Martha "June" WWII Transcript
Lamprinakos, George WWII Abstract
Lamy, Lucille WWII Transcript
Laurson, Pat YWCA Transcript
Ledbetter, Jesse WWII Abstract
Lee, Harmon M. VOA Abstract
Leigon, Marion McCord WWII Abstract
Leppert, Frank (see May, Glenn) VOA Abstract
Leppert, Nancy (see May, Glen) VOA Abstract
Lerner, Ginger Grand JBWNC Transcript
Leslie, G. L. (Grover Lee) WWII Abstract
Levine, Stanley   Restricted
Levy, Isaac Jack   Restricted
Lewis, Ralph WWII  
Lichtenfels, Joe JHWNC Restricted
Lingerfelt, Joseph VOA Abstract
Lipson-Walker, Carolyn   Restricted
Littlejohn, Frederick Jose WWII  
Lloyd, Berniece Adams WWII Transcript
Lockwood, Marjorie VOA Abstract
Longcoy, Clifford R. WWII Abstract
Lord, Anthony SHRC Notes
Lord, Anthony VOA Abstract
Lowenburg, Ruth JHWNC Restricted
Lunsford, Cheryl VOA Abstract
Lunsford daughters VOA Abstract
Lurey, Milton JBWNC Restricted
Lynch, George B., M.D. SHRC Transcript
MacPherson, Robert and Ann VOA Abstract
Mamlin, Harry and Mary Lee JBWNC Transcript
Mapp, Saintolia SACC Partial transcript
Marder, Estelle JHWNC Restricted
Marlowe, Nancy VOA Abstract
Martin, Elsie Marlowe RLSC In processing
Martin, Harry Corpening WWII Abstract
Mason, Dee VOA Abstract
Masters, Margaret "Maggie" VOA Abstract
Mathews, Richard and Jane VOA Abstract
Maxwell, Marjorie VOA Abstract 
May, Glenn VOA Abstract
McAdams, Charlie (see Lingerfelt, Joseph) VOA Abstract 
McAdams, Charles WWII Restricted
McCabe, Eileen VOA Abstract
McDowell, Frances Arthur VOA Abstract
McDowell, Glenda I. VOA Abstract
McGuire, Roger VOA Abstract
McKissick, Ernest and Magnolia T. SHRC Transcript
McLean, W.K. SHRC Transcript