The Federal Writers' Project Years: 1935 - 1942
“The object of the program was to provide the American people with comprehensive information about their country. This involved compilation of educational material in publishable form, or in a form suitable for radio and lecture presentation; writing of articles on history, the arts, folklore, industry and commerce; assembling maps and photographs; preparing translations of indices of rare material.” --Carita Doggett Corse, State Director Florida Writers' Project
Summary:
In 1935, as part of the New Deal reform agenda, FDR created the Works Progress Administration to employ millions of out-of-work Americans on public projects during the Great Depression. As a part of the WPA, the Federal Writers’ Project enlisted thousands of writers, editors, and researchers (several of whom would later become famous literary figures) to document the national culture through observation, interviews, and a recent sound recording technology using acetate disks. The result was a wealth of material that is still being sifted by scholars across the country. The primary product during the time of operation, however, was the American Guide Series, which details the cultural, historical, and geographical features of the then 48 states and many other cities and regions.
In Florida, the FWP marked the beginning of formalized public folklore in the state, in the sense that the work was federally funded and aimed towards products for public use. In 1935, under the direction of Carita Doggett Corse, researchers began to document the music, dance, folktales, superstitions, and life stories of a significant range of groups, including African-American, Arabic, Bahamian, British-American, Cuban, Greek, Italian, Minorcan, Seminole, Slavic, and others (“Florida Folklife from the WPA Collections” 2013). Only a fraction of the enormous wealth of collected material was used during the FWP years of operation in the state’s central publication, Florida, A Guide to the Southernmost State, and its companion guides.
“The object of the program was to provide the American people with comprehensive information about their country. This involved compilation of educational material in publishable form, or in a form suitable for radio and lecture presentation; writing of articles on history, the arts, folklore, industry and commerce; assembling maps and photographs; preparing translations of indices of rare material.” --Carita Doggett Corse, State Director Florida Writers' Project
Summary:
In 1935, as part of the New Deal reform agenda, FDR created the Works Progress Administration to employ millions of out-of-work Americans on public projects during the Great Depression. As a part of the WPA, the Federal Writers’ Project enlisted thousands of writers, editors, and researchers (several of whom would later become famous literary figures) to document the national culture through observation, interviews, and a recent sound recording technology using acetate disks. The result was a wealth of material that is still being sifted by scholars across the country. The primary product during the time of operation, however, was the American Guide Series, which details the cultural, historical, and geographical features of the then 48 states and many other cities and regions.
In Florida, the FWP marked the beginning of formalized public folklore in the state, in the sense that the work was federally funded and aimed towards products for public use. In 1935, under the direction of Carita Doggett Corse, researchers began to document the music, dance, folktales, superstitions, and life stories of a significant range of groups, including African-American, Arabic, Bahamian, British-American, Cuban, Greek, Italian, Minorcan, Seminole, Slavic, and others (“Florida Folklife from the WPA Collections” 2013). Only a fraction of the enormous wealth of collected material was used during the FWP years of operation in the state’s central publication, Florida, A Guide to the Southernmost State, and its companion guides.
Years:
· began 1935 under the direction of Carita Doggett Corse · funded by WPA until 1939 · 1939 – 1940 became Florida Writers’ Project funded by Florida State Planning Board · 1940 – 1942 funded by University of Florida · 1942 - 1943 became Civilian Defense Fact Finding Phase funded by the State Defense Council, began producing materials for war agencies (ending the collection of folklore) Area: statewide Major Figure: Carita Doggett Corse: Florida State Director Stetson Kennedy Zora Neale Hurston Alton Morris Herbert Halpert Products: Florida: A Guide to the Southernmost State. Federal Writers’ Project. New York: Oxford Universiy Press, 1939. Additional city and regional guides Educational booklets Agricultural bulletins Radio scripts and programs Over 500 sound recordings |
Collaborators:
Farm Security Administration State Department of Agriculture State universities Municipalities County commissioners Historical societies State Library Hotel Commission Department of Education Department of Conservation/Geologic Survey Department of Transportation Collaboration Types: Federal; State; University; Library; Education; Economic; Personal/Colleague |
Analysis:
In retrospect, three characteristics define the FWP in Florida. First, one of its primary drives was capitalizing on the touristic draw of the state in order to boost the marketability of companion travel volumes (Mangione 1972). Contemporary studies of the American Guide Series describe its purpose to be simultaneously preserving and discovering a diverse sense of the nation, stimulating the economy through employing writers and encouraging tourism, and steering public sentiment towards support of the liberal government (Kadlec 2000). The Florida guide in particular shows tourism to be an early economic goal in the state, and contemporary scholars are divided as to whether it offers a balance between promotion and accurate portrayal of social issues of the time, with some citing the Alabama guide as a more honest representation of the harsh realities of rural life in a segregated South (Kadlec 2000; Findlay 1998). Either way, it is clear that the guides were designed practically for visitors to the state and idealistically for a nebulous “American” sensibility, rather than for the folk groups themselves. Furthermore, the production of educational supplements and agricultural bulletins reveals that the FPW was utilized not just “to provide the American people with comprehensive information about their country,” but also to support other government agencies.
A second defining element of the project was the enormous amount and diversity of material collected. However, because this was in such excess to that used for the guide series, individual researchers that began their careers with the FWP were able to publish more comprehensive accounts, continue study with specific folk groups, and draw on their experiences in literary works.
Zora Neale Hurston is one such notable figure from the Florida Writers’ Project who became a novelist of the Harlem Renaissance and an anthropologist. Best known for Their Eyes Were Watching God and Mules and Men, in her writings after the FWP, she often drew on her field experiences. During her research in Florida, Hurston was invested in folklore as a vehicle of cultural creation and change, and her participatory field practices involved her closely with her research communities through her belief that black American folklore in particular was “still in the making” (Kadlec 2000). Her fiction and memoir writings as well as post-FWP contributions to The Florida Negro evidence her conviction that folklore was not only an expression of community but a way to establish an identity for that community within the larger societal sphere (Hurston 1995; McDonogh 1993). Hurston was criticized during her time for these opinions, but this idea of empowerment through folklore predicts later theoretical ideas of applied folklore and responsibility to and collaboration with folk groups.
Another major researcher who began work in the Florida FWP and whose work was motivated towards social justice was Stetson Kennedy. In an essay for the American Memory site, Stetson Kennedy recounts the inequities and challenges of conducting research in the racially segregated South and his experiences with Hurston in particular (“Florida Folklore from the WPA Collections” 2013). His research for FWP led to the publication of Palmetto Country, which established him as a folklorist, and he later went on to investigate and aid in undermining the Klu Klux Klan, as well as addressing other issues of racial discrimination. Because of Kennedy’s work, and especially his long career as a folklorist in Florida, his philosophy towards diversity influenced the development of Florida’s public folklore throughout the twentieth century.
Alton Morris’s work for the FWP consisted mainly of supervising sound recordings. During his time with the project, Morris recorded over 500 folk songs recorded for the Library of Congress from turpentine workers, longshoremen, fishermen, sawmill hands, cowboys, cigar makers, and Seminole Indians (Corse 1943). His research led to a dissertation and later publication of Folksong of Florida, the only collection of its kind to date. In the 1950s, he was instrumental in the organization and early development of the Florida Folk Festival.
However, the credit we ascribe to these figures today was not greatly encouraged during the actual years of the project. Most of the publications to come out of the FWP were authored collectively and anonymously, and many workers actually felt embarrassed for their work with the program, as it could be considered being on government “relief” (Brinkley 2003). Nevertheless, the efforts and interests of these researchers, as well as the relationships and connections they formed with each other and with the folk groups they studied, laid the groundwork for public folklore to come.
The third definitive aspect of the FWP was that it promoted the first extensive study of minority groups, particularly black Americans, during a time of great social tension and change. In Florida, the importance of this is reflected in the dynamics described between Stetson Kennedy and Zora Neale Hurston, Hurston’s desire to use her folklore research for community empowerment, and through the incredible diversity of groups studied during the project. Hirsch declares that for the first time and in a time of racial and immigration hostility, through the FWP, minority voices were celebrated (Brinkley 2003). Though this might have been a laudable accomplishment for the time, it is still important to note that none of the informants were paid or compensated in any way, and the products produced from the research were tailored towards a middle-class, white audience. Furthermore, the researchers themselves often contributed anonymously to the publications, with the 10% author return on sales going to the U.S. Treasury (Corse 1943).
In terms of collaboration, the Writers’ Project covered a broad field. The program’s final report lists almost every state agency as a co-sponsor, from the state university system to the Department of Transportation (Corse 1943). Most notable, and perhaps the predictive of future collaborations, were the partnerships with libraries, education, and agriculture. The project utilized the State Libraries to house and catalogue the massive amount of collected information. These repositories were the predecessors of the State Archive System. Many of the supplementary products produced by the FWP show education to be a priority of the state and federal government at a time when the public school system was solidifying itself as a seat of national ideology. The motivation to indoctrinate school children with a sense of national pride is clear through these products. Thirty-five school readers were produced for the DOE, and the President of the Florida School Board Association, T.V. Conway, stated, “Even in wartime the culture and education of our youth should not be neglected, for upon our youth depends the strength of our Nation, and the Florida Writers’ Project is playing a most important part in this phase of our national morale and defense.” Though the focus has over the century shifted away from that of patriotism and towards celebration or a diverse past and present, education remains one of the primary realms of collaboration in public folklore, and educational products make up a large part of the materials produced by the Florida Folklore Program today.
Additionally, the correspondence of Florida FWP director Carita Doggett Corse and an essay by Stetson Kennedy reveal reciprocity in research and products between the FWP and the Department of Agriculture’s Farm Security Administration (FSA), another New Deal administration program that aimed both to photographically document current agricultural conditions as well as aid farmers during the Depression (“Florida Folklore from the WPA Collections” 2013). Between 1940-41, FWP researchers wrote bulletins for the State Department of Agriculture on topics including tung oil culture, sugarcane growing and sugar making, and Seminole Indians (Corse 1943). It is of interest both the occupational and folk groups designated for these bulletins, as well as the prioritization of agriculture over other areas. At the time, Florida’s economy was agriculturally driven, and when compared to the guides’ focus on tourism, the coexistence of these two (and often opposing) economic forces predicts the tensions Florida will experience, both culturally and economically, during the explosion of development in the second half of the twentieth century.
Overall, the variety shown in the many guides evidences the vastness of diversity of the research, production, and collaboration that occurred during the years of the Federal Writers’ Project. It marks the beginning of folklore study in Florida designed with a purpose for public use, and it also shows a broad reciprocity between government agencies that continues in a more specialized way today. Collaborations between researchers formed significant partnerships that directly influenced the development of Florida folklore. It was the folk groups themselves that had the least amount of agency in the scope of the project, though relationships formed between the researchers and these groups led to continued partnerships. The present-day priority of community empowerment reflects a great ideological shift in this area, albeit one foreshadowed by the attitudes of Hurston.
Contemporary revisits to the WPA years have produced a greater range of collaboration that reflects new priorities in the field of Folklore. Much of the formerly unprocessed material (including hundreds of songs made available through digitization) is being revisited today in consultation with represented communities. In particular, the World Wide Web is becoming both a delivery platform and a forum for collaboration. The Digital Book Index and Internet Archive sites now provide online access to many of the FWP guidebooks and writings (DeMasi 2012). The Library of Congress American Memory Florida WPA exhibit not only provides access to collected texts, songs, and interviews, but also facilitates the use of these resources for educators by cross-referencing them with Florida State Sunshine Standards (the state-mandated education benchmarks) (“Florida Folklore from the WAP Collections” 2013). The collection’s Acknowledgements page reveals that represented folk communities, now generations later, were consulted in the development of the exhibit. The Broward County Library also curates a collection of Florida subject matter published during the FWP era (Bienes 2013), and represents an example of the field’s emphasis on public access. That emphasis, as well as the continued use of materials from this era, underscores the importance of the Federal Writers’ Project in the establishment of public folklore in the state.
In retrospect, three characteristics define the FWP in Florida. First, one of its primary drives was capitalizing on the touristic draw of the state in order to boost the marketability of companion travel volumes (Mangione 1972). Contemporary studies of the American Guide Series describe its purpose to be simultaneously preserving and discovering a diverse sense of the nation, stimulating the economy through employing writers and encouraging tourism, and steering public sentiment towards support of the liberal government (Kadlec 2000). The Florida guide in particular shows tourism to be an early economic goal in the state, and contemporary scholars are divided as to whether it offers a balance between promotion and accurate portrayal of social issues of the time, with some citing the Alabama guide as a more honest representation of the harsh realities of rural life in a segregated South (Kadlec 2000; Findlay 1998). Either way, it is clear that the guides were designed practically for visitors to the state and idealistically for a nebulous “American” sensibility, rather than for the folk groups themselves. Furthermore, the production of educational supplements and agricultural bulletins reveals that the FPW was utilized not just “to provide the American people with comprehensive information about their country,” but also to support other government agencies.
A second defining element of the project was the enormous amount and diversity of material collected. However, because this was in such excess to that used for the guide series, individual researchers that began their careers with the FWP were able to publish more comprehensive accounts, continue study with specific folk groups, and draw on their experiences in literary works.
Zora Neale Hurston is one such notable figure from the Florida Writers’ Project who became a novelist of the Harlem Renaissance and an anthropologist. Best known for Their Eyes Were Watching God and Mules and Men, in her writings after the FWP, she often drew on her field experiences. During her research in Florida, Hurston was invested in folklore as a vehicle of cultural creation and change, and her participatory field practices involved her closely with her research communities through her belief that black American folklore in particular was “still in the making” (Kadlec 2000). Her fiction and memoir writings as well as post-FWP contributions to The Florida Negro evidence her conviction that folklore was not only an expression of community but a way to establish an identity for that community within the larger societal sphere (Hurston 1995; McDonogh 1993). Hurston was criticized during her time for these opinions, but this idea of empowerment through folklore predicts later theoretical ideas of applied folklore and responsibility to and collaboration with folk groups.
Another major researcher who began work in the Florida FWP and whose work was motivated towards social justice was Stetson Kennedy. In an essay for the American Memory site, Stetson Kennedy recounts the inequities and challenges of conducting research in the racially segregated South and his experiences with Hurston in particular (“Florida Folklore from the WPA Collections” 2013). His research for FWP led to the publication of Palmetto Country, which established him as a folklorist, and he later went on to investigate and aid in undermining the Klu Klux Klan, as well as addressing other issues of racial discrimination. Because of Kennedy’s work, and especially his long career as a folklorist in Florida, his philosophy towards diversity influenced the development of Florida’s public folklore throughout the twentieth century.
Alton Morris’s work for the FWP consisted mainly of supervising sound recordings. During his time with the project, Morris recorded over 500 folk songs recorded for the Library of Congress from turpentine workers, longshoremen, fishermen, sawmill hands, cowboys, cigar makers, and Seminole Indians (Corse 1943). His research led to a dissertation and later publication of Folksong of Florida, the only collection of its kind to date. In the 1950s, he was instrumental in the organization and early development of the Florida Folk Festival.
However, the credit we ascribe to these figures today was not greatly encouraged during the actual years of the project. Most of the publications to come out of the FWP were authored collectively and anonymously, and many workers actually felt embarrassed for their work with the program, as it could be considered being on government “relief” (Brinkley 2003). Nevertheless, the efforts and interests of these researchers, as well as the relationships and connections they formed with each other and with the folk groups they studied, laid the groundwork for public folklore to come.
The third definitive aspect of the FWP was that it promoted the first extensive study of minority groups, particularly black Americans, during a time of great social tension and change. In Florida, the importance of this is reflected in the dynamics described between Stetson Kennedy and Zora Neale Hurston, Hurston’s desire to use her folklore research for community empowerment, and through the incredible diversity of groups studied during the project. Hirsch declares that for the first time and in a time of racial and immigration hostility, through the FWP, minority voices were celebrated (Brinkley 2003). Though this might have been a laudable accomplishment for the time, it is still important to note that none of the informants were paid or compensated in any way, and the products produced from the research were tailored towards a middle-class, white audience. Furthermore, the researchers themselves often contributed anonymously to the publications, with the 10% author return on sales going to the U.S. Treasury (Corse 1943).
In terms of collaboration, the Writers’ Project covered a broad field. The program’s final report lists almost every state agency as a co-sponsor, from the state university system to the Department of Transportation (Corse 1943). Most notable, and perhaps the predictive of future collaborations, were the partnerships with libraries, education, and agriculture. The project utilized the State Libraries to house and catalogue the massive amount of collected information. These repositories were the predecessors of the State Archive System. Many of the supplementary products produced by the FWP show education to be a priority of the state and federal government at a time when the public school system was solidifying itself as a seat of national ideology. The motivation to indoctrinate school children with a sense of national pride is clear through these products. Thirty-five school readers were produced for the DOE, and the President of the Florida School Board Association, T.V. Conway, stated, “Even in wartime the culture and education of our youth should not be neglected, for upon our youth depends the strength of our Nation, and the Florida Writers’ Project is playing a most important part in this phase of our national morale and defense.” Though the focus has over the century shifted away from that of patriotism and towards celebration or a diverse past and present, education remains one of the primary realms of collaboration in public folklore, and educational products make up a large part of the materials produced by the Florida Folklore Program today.
Additionally, the correspondence of Florida FWP director Carita Doggett Corse and an essay by Stetson Kennedy reveal reciprocity in research and products between the FWP and the Department of Agriculture’s Farm Security Administration (FSA), another New Deal administration program that aimed both to photographically document current agricultural conditions as well as aid farmers during the Depression (“Florida Folklore from the WPA Collections” 2013). Between 1940-41, FWP researchers wrote bulletins for the State Department of Agriculture on topics including tung oil culture, sugarcane growing and sugar making, and Seminole Indians (Corse 1943). It is of interest both the occupational and folk groups designated for these bulletins, as well as the prioritization of agriculture over other areas. At the time, Florida’s economy was agriculturally driven, and when compared to the guides’ focus on tourism, the coexistence of these two (and often opposing) economic forces predicts the tensions Florida will experience, both culturally and economically, during the explosion of development in the second half of the twentieth century.
Overall, the variety shown in the many guides evidences the vastness of diversity of the research, production, and collaboration that occurred during the years of the Federal Writers’ Project. It marks the beginning of folklore study in Florida designed with a purpose for public use, and it also shows a broad reciprocity between government agencies that continues in a more specialized way today. Collaborations between researchers formed significant partnerships that directly influenced the development of Florida folklore. It was the folk groups themselves that had the least amount of agency in the scope of the project, though relationships formed between the researchers and these groups led to continued partnerships. The present-day priority of community empowerment reflects a great ideological shift in this area, albeit one foreshadowed by the attitudes of Hurston.
Contemporary revisits to the WPA years have produced a greater range of collaboration that reflects new priorities in the field of Folklore. Much of the formerly unprocessed material (including hundreds of songs made available through digitization) is being revisited today in consultation with represented communities. In particular, the World Wide Web is becoming both a delivery platform and a forum for collaboration. The Digital Book Index and Internet Archive sites now provide online access to many of the FWP guidebooks and writings (DeMasi 2012). The Library of Congress American Memory Florida WPA exhibit not only provides access to collected texts, songs, and interviews, but also facilitates the use of these resources for educators by cross-referencing them with Florida State Sunshine Standards (the state-mandated education benchmarks) (“Florida Folklore from the WAP Collections” 2013). The collection’s Acknowledgements page reveals that represented folk communities, now generations later, were consulted in the development of the exhibit. The Broward County Library also curates a collection of Florida subject matter published during the FWP era (Bienes 2013), and represents an example of the field’s emphasis on public access. That emphasis, as well as the continued use of materials from this era, underscores the importance of the Federal Writers’ Project in the establishment of public folklore in the state.
Early Florida Folk Festival Years: 1953 - 1976; Recent Florida Folk Festival Years: 1976 - today
Summary:
The Florida Folk Festival has remained one of the largest state-organized festivals of its kind in the US, and is held over a three day weekend each year in May. It was begun in 1953 and directed for its first two years by Sara Gertrude Knott of Kentucky, who was also the founder of the National Folk Festival. Held at the Stephen Foster Memorial Park on the scenic Suwannee River, in its first year it presented a broad sample of folklife groups, including “Minorcans, Seminole and Miccosukee Indians, Greek-Americans, Jewish-Americans, Czech-Americans, Spanish-Americans, African-Americans, and Florida Crackers” (“Florida Folk Festival” 2013). School groups performed square and Maypole dances, while individual performers displayed a range of ballads, superstitions, fiddle and harmonica tunes, musical saw playing, folk tales and sacred harp songs (“Florida Folk Festival” 2013).
From 1954 until 1965, the festival was directed by Thelma Ann Boltin, who became affectionately known as “Cousin Thelma” for her role as emcee, performer, tireless supporter and the “face of the festival.” Boltin was active in the festival until the late 1980s (“About the Folk Festival” 2013).
During its first two decades, the festival’s folklife sections covered an assortment of groups. Following the organization of the Florida Folklife Program in the late 1970s, and beginning in 1979, a Folklife Area was chosen in order to provide a more in-depth view of a region or group, and to provide a platform for presenting the research gathered by the FFP. Featured groups and themes have included the Miami-Dade Region, Maritime Industries, New Communities of Central Florida, and Ranching, among many others. In 1984, the Folk Arts Apprenticeship Program was established, and the program participants became part of the Folk Festival as a way of showcasing both their talents and the role of the FAAP in renewing folk arts in contemporary youth.
In 1995, control of the festival shifted to the Florida Museum of History, though the FFP continued to manage the Folklife Areas and Apprenticeship elements. In 2002, the Florida Park Services assumed full responsibility for the festival and continued in collaboration with the FFP. Historical materials, recordings, photographs, and administrative files relating to the festival are housed in the Florida Memory State Archives, and many are available online to the public.
Summary:
The Florida Folk Festival has remained one of the largest state-organized festivals of its kind in the US, and is held over a three day weekend each year in May. It was begun in 1953 and directed for its first two years by Sara Gertrude Knott of Kentucky, who was also the founder of the National Folk Festival. Held at the Stephen Foster Memorial Park on the scenic Suwannee River, in its first year it presented a broad sample of folklife groups, including “Minorcans, Seminole and Miccosukee Indians, Greek-Americans, Jewish-Americans, Czech-Americans, Spanish-Americans, African-Americans, and Florida Crackers” (“Florida Folk Festival” 2013). School groups performed square and Maypole dances, while individual performers displayed a range of ballads, superstitions, fiddle and harmonica tunes, musical saw playing, folk tales and sacred harp songs (“Florida Folk Festival” 2013).
From 1954 until 1965, the festival was directed by Thelma Ann Boltin, who became affectionately known as “Cousin Thelma” for her role as emcee, performer, tireless supporter and the “face of the festival.” Boltin was active in the festival until the late 1980s (“About the Folk Festival” 2013).
During its first two decades, the festival’s folklife sections covered an assortment of groups. Following the organization of the Florida Folklife Program in the late 1970s, and beginning in 1979, a Folklife Area was chosen in order to provide a more in-depth view of a region or group, and to provide a platform for presenting the research gathered by the FFP. Featured groups and themes have included the Miami-Dade Region, Maritime Industries, New Communities of Central Florida, and Ranching, among many others. In 1984, the Folk Arts Apprenticeship Program was established, and the program participants became part of the Folk Festival as a way of showcasing both their talents and the role of the FAAP in renewing folk arts in contemporary youth.
In 1995, control of the festival shifted to the Florida Museum of History, though the FFP continued to manage the Folklife Areas and Apprenticeship elements. In 2002, the Florida Park Services assumed full responsibility for the festival and continued in collaboration with the FFP. Historical materials, recordings, photographs, and administrative files relating to the festival are housed in the Florida Memory State Archives, and many are available online to the public.
Years: 1953—present
· 1953-1954 directed by Sara Gertrude Knott · 1955-1965 directed by Thelma Ann Botlin · 1953-1963+ officially funded by Florida Folk Festival Association · 1976 Florida Department of State established the Bureau of Florida Folklife Programs, which ran the festival until 1995 · 1995 general administration taken over by Museum of Florida History, though FFP continued to manage Folklife and Apprenticeship areas · 2002 Florida Park Service took full responsibility for coordinating and producing, beginning with its 50th anniversary presentation Area: Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center State Park, White Springs, FL (North Florida); presentations from throughout state Major Figures: Thelma Ann Botlin Sara Gertrude Knott Alton C. Morris J. Russell Reaver Foster Barnes--recording (see FFP folklorists for involvement in later years) |
Products:
Annual three-day festival Collaborators: Stephen Foster Memorial Park Department of State: Division of Historical Resources; Park Services National Federation of Music Clubs Florida Women’s Music Club Florida Folklore Society Florida Folklife Program National Endowment for the Arts Community businesses and patrons Folk groups from throughout the state Collaboration types: Federal; State; Economic; Community; Philanthropic; Personal/Colleague |
Analysis:
It is difficult to define the exact history of the Florida Folk Festival’s beginnings. The official cite credits the idea to Ada Holding Miller, then President of the National Federation of Music Clubs, and her acquaintance Lillian Saunders, who gained the approval for the festival from the Stephen Foster Memorial Park Commission in 1952 (“Florida Folk Festival” 2013). The cite then states that the festival was officially supported by the Florida Folk Festival Association for at least the following decade, though the nature of this organization and its members is unclear. Other sources state that Alton Morris, a former researcher for the Florida Writers’ Project and professor at the University of Florida, appealed to the Florida Women’s Music club to hold the festival (“About the Folk Festival” 2013), and collaborated with fellow Florida State University folklorist J. Russell Reaver to organize the inception (Hansen 2004). This version attributes support of the festival to the Women’s club, local White Springs organizations, and the newly formed Florida Folklore Society, of which both men were also initial organizers. Reaver in particular envisioned the purpose of the festival to “develop programs and a small conference that would present folklore research to the public through a range of presentations” (Hansen 2004). This conception shows the influence of scholarly methodology on the early formation and perhaps influenced the later adoption of Folklife Areas as themes for research presented at the festival.
Similarities in both accounts suggest that the festival in its early years was coordinated by a small group of people, and that it was supported not so much by the state (beyond the Stephen Foster Park itself) as by community organizations. The early years of the festival represent a bridge between the Florida Writers’ Project and the official establishment of the Florida Folklore Program. Review of festival programs from this time period suggest that advertising likely contributed greatly to the funding support, and appeals for sponsors on the current site imply this has not changed today (Note: further information is potentially available through ordering copies of administrative files from the state archives).
Even as recently as the past decade or so, discrepancies as to how the festival is and could be funded have emerged. In 2002, the year leading up to the 50th anniversary of the festival, state funding was cut considerably. The state officially declared that its decision was based on the fact that the program could likely survive the cuts, because “it is one of the few programs which receives broad-based and significant private sector support” (Gage 2002). Organizers argued that the actual amount of that support was less than 30 percent of the festival’s cost (Gage 2002). In 2004, the festival faced a similar crisis, and was reportedly bailed out by Yankees owner and Tampa resident, George Steinbrenner (Verducci 2004). In 2011, the FFP received a significant grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, part of which was designated to run the festival (“Secretary Browning Announces” 2011). Even through these brief glimpses of funding dynamics, it is clear that though the presentation of folklife materials at the folk festival may fall under the definition of state-endorsed folklore, the actual manifestation of this event relies just as much on public patrons to operate as it does the government.
This interdependence distinguishes the responsibilities of public folklore from those of academic folklore. Regarding the festival in particular, there are community expectations. Performer Johnny Bollard states, “Anglo culture, African-American culture, Hatian culture, Spanish-American culture—from wherever it comes, those traditions are being shared and perpetuated at the Florida Folk Festival” (Gage 2002). Furthermore, those expectations are economic as well as cultural, as many around the festival depend on it for an annual boost in revenue (Gage 2002). This interdependence separates public folklore from academic folklore in the idea that there are multiple stakeholders in public folklore research and presentation. Particularly, the economic dimension creates has the potential to influence choice of research topics and modes of presentation, as these very projects are dependent on their ability to draw a crowd. This influence can be seen in the frequent choice of big-name performers brought to the festival regardless of whether or not they categorize themselves as “Florida folk.”
One of the primary state agency collaborations is between the festival and the Florida Memory State Archives, which curates recordings from all but the first Folk Festival. The curator of the Stephen Foster Memorial, Foster Barnes, created the first recordings in 1954 after the success of the festival in 1953. The Florida Folklife Collection (through the State Archives) now houses nearly 3,500 festival recordings (“About the Folk Festival” 2013). Many of these recordings are available to the public through digitization, and several podcasts have been created on this topic. This aspect of the Folklife Collection reflects the FFP’s concern for public access and availability of materials that is a core tenant of public folklore philosophy.
It is difficult to define the exact history of the Florida Folk Festival’s beginnings. The official cite credits the idea to Ada Holding Miller, then President of the National Federation of Music Clubs, and her acquaintance Lillian Saunders, who gained the approval for the festival from the Stephen Foster Memorial Park Commission in 1952 (“Florida Folk Festival” 2013). The cite then states that the festival was officially supported by the Florida Folk Festival Association for at least the following decade, though the nature of this organization and its members is unclear. Other sources state that Alton Morris, a former researcher for the Florida Writers’ Project and professor at the University of Florida, appealed to the Florida Women’s Music club to hold the festival (“About the Folk Festival” 2013), and collaborated with fellow Florida State University folklorist J. Russell Reaver to organize the inception (Hansen 2004). This version attributes support of the festival to the Women’s club, local White Springs organizations, and the newly formed Florida Folklore Society, of which both men were also initial organizers. Reaver in particular envisioned the purpose of the festival to “develop programs and a small conference that would present folklore research to the public through a range of presentations” (Hansen 2004). This conception shows the influence of scholarly methodology on the early formation and perhaps influenced the later adoption of Folklife Areas as themes for research presented at the festival.
Similarities in both accounts suggest that the festival in its early years was coordinated by a small group of people, and that it was supported not so much by the state (beyond the Stephen Foster Park itself) as by community organizations. The early years of the festival represent a bridge between the Florida Writers’ Project and the official establishment of the Florida Folklore Program. Review of festival programs from this time period suggest that advertising likely contributed greatly to the funding support, and appeals for sponsors on the current site imply this has not changed today (Note: further information is potentially available through ordering copies of administrative files from the state archives).
Even as recently as the past decade or so, discrepancies as to how the festival is and could be funded have emerged. In 2002, the year leading up to the 50th anniversary of the festival, state funding was cut considerably. The state officially declared that its decision was based on the fact that the program could likely survive the cuts, because “it is one of the few programs which receives broad-based and significant private sector support” (Gage 2002). Organizers argued that the actual amount of that support was less than 30 percent of the festival’s cost (Gage 2002). In 2004, the festival faced a similar crisis, and was reportedly bailed out by Yankees owner and Tampa resident, George Steinbrenner (Verducci 2004). In 2011, the FFP received a significant grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, part of which was designated to run the festival (“Secretary Browning Announces” 2011). Even through these brief glimpses of funding dynamics, it is clear that though the presentation of folklife materials at the folk festival may fall under the definition of state-endorsed folklore, the actual manifestation of this event relies just as much on public patrons to operate as it does the government.
This interdependence distinguishes the responsibilities of public folklore from those of academic folklore. Regarding the festival in particular, there are community expectations. Performer Johnny Bollard states, “Anglo culture, African-American culture, Hatian culture, Spanish-American culture—from wherever it comes, those traditions are being shared and perpetuated at the Florida Folk Festival” (Gage 2002). Furthermore, those expectations are economic as well as cultural, as many around the festival depend on it for an annual boost in revenue (Gage 2002). This interdependence separates public folklore from academic folklore in the idea that there are multiple stakeholders in public folklore research and presentation. Particularly, the economic dimension creates has the potential to influence choice of research topics and modes of presentation, as these very projects are dependent on their ability to draw a crowd. This influence can be seen in the frequent choice of big-name performers brought to the festival regardless of whether or not they categorize themselves as “Florida folk.”
One of the primary state agency collaborations is between the festival and the Florida Memory State Archives, which curates recordings from all but the first Folk Festival. The curator of the Stephen Foster Memorial, Foster Barnes, created the first recordings in 1954 after the success of the festival in 1953. The Florida Folklife Collection (through the State Archives) now houses nearly 3,500 festival recordings (“About the Folk Festival” 2013). Many of these recordings are available to the public through digitization, and several podcasts have been created on this topic. This aspect of the Folklife Collection reflects the FFP’s concern for public access and availability of materials that is a core tenant of public folklore philosophy.
The Florida Folklife Program Years: 1976 - today
This section is not yet complete. For a brief list of projects from the Florida Folklife Program, please see the Focus on the FFP Years page.
This section is not yet complete. For a brief list of projects from the Florida Folklife Program, please see the Focus on the FFP Years page.